The Importance of Ethics in Business

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Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with the principles correlated to human behavior concerning the rightness and wrongness of specific conduct, and to the good and bad that influences and ends those actions (Ditonary.com, 2011). In other words, ethics is the choice people effect in regards to a decision they need to achieve. Without ethics directing the choice an individual makes, moral preferences of what should or should not be done becomes irrelevant. While ethical decisions are made every day there are two different regions in which these choices are made.

Personal ethics are something that everyone has, but ones deeds decide whether the choices are the right ones or the wrong ones. Prior to World War II society as a whole knew the difference between right and wrong and the ethical choices made back then was what we considered to be a no brainer. That meant society was controlled by a specific value system (Hulme, 2000) that we do not have in today’s world of living. In current society right and wrong is judged by how one is perceived not by how one chooses to think.

Business ethics is the ability to make the right decision in regards to how business is conducted. Trust is built on expectations of work and consistency in behavior, so it is conceivable to be beneficial when someone states one thing and achieves what they said. Therefore, an interesting practice of good business ethics is the significance employees bring to their work environment (Chair, 2011). However, in today’s society of business the opposite is usually defined because people are driven by greed. In essence, personal ethics affect business ethics, meaning the cause produces the effect.

Ethics in Business

Without employees, an emp...

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...e job. Santa Clara University. Retrieved

September 11, 2011, from http://humanresources.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=humanresources&cdn=money&tm=124&gps=175_10_1366_575&f=00&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/iie/v10n2/peopleatwork.html

SBA.gov. (2011). U.S. Small Business Administration. Business law and regulations. Retrieved

September 8, 2011, from http://www.sba.gov/category/navigation-structure/starting-managing-business/managing-business/business-law-regulations

SBA.gov. (2011). U.S. Small Business Administration. Tips for choosing a business location.

Retrieved September 11, 201, from http://www.sba.gov/content/tips-choosing-business-location

Traveler, J. (2009). Ethical behavior in the workplace. Ezine Articles. Retrieved September 11,

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