Business Ethics

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UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI

SCHOOL OF CONTINUING AND DISTANCE EDUCATION

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND EXTRA MURAL STUDIES

BACHELOR OF PROJECT PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT

COURSE UNIT: ETHICS IN PROJECT PLANNING

UNIT CODE: LPM 410

        GROUP 9 MEMBERS

ASSIGNMENT

Your company policy on reimbursement for meals while travelling on company business is that you will be paid out of your pocket on costs not exceeding Kshs.1000. You don’t need receipts for these expenses, your company will take your word. While travelling you tend to eat at a fast food place and rarely spends in excess of Kshs.100 a day. Most of your colleagues put in a reimbursement request of between Kshs.350 to Kshs.500 a day regardless of what their actual expenses are.  How much would you request for your meal reimbursement?

ETHICS

INTRODUCTION

The field of ethics (or moral philosophy) involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.  At its simplest, ethics is a system of moral principles, affecting how people make decisions and lead their lives.

Ethics is concerned with what is good for individuals and society and is also described as moral philosophy. The term is derived from the Greek word ‘ethos’ which can mean custom, habit, character or disposition.

ETHICAL DILEMMA

According to the University of Southern California Levan Institute, ethical dilemmas are situations that challenge one's ability to choose the most ethical course of action. They arise when there is difficulty in carrying out effective ethical action or when difficulties arise in finding strategies that effectively avoid future ethical obstacles.

An ethical dilemma is one in which a person has to choose between two options, both of which are morally correct but in conflict. Ethics and morals are inseparable. They both deal with questions of right and wrong. What constitutes ethical behavior is determined by societal or cultural norms. What constitutes moral behavior is up to the individual to decide based on his own sense of right and wrong.

 There are three conditions that must be present for a situation to be considered an ethical dilemma.

1. The first condition occurs in situations when an individual, called the “agent,” must make a decision about which course of action is best. Situations that are uncomfortable but that don’t require a choice are not ethical dilemmas.
2. The second condition for ethical dilemma is that there must be different courses of action to choose from.
3. Third condition in an ethical dilemma is that no matter what course of action is taken, some ethical principle is compromised. In other words, there is no perfect solution.

 In determining what constitutes an ethical dilemma, it is necessary to make a distinction between ethics, values, morals, laws and policies.

• Ethics are prepositional statements (standards) that are used by members of a profession or group to determine what the right course of action in a situation is. Ethics rely on logical and rational criteria to reach a decision.
• Values describe ideas that we value or prize. To value something means that we hold it dear and feel it has worth to us. Values are ideas that we aspire to achieve, like equality and social justice.
• Morals describe a behavioral code of conduct to which an individual ascribes. They are used to negotiate, support, and strengthen our relationships with others
• Finally, laws and agency policies are often involved in complex cases and workers are often legally obligated to take a particular course of action. There is considerably less recognition of the supremacy of agency policy in the Code, and Ethical Standard 3.09d states that we must not allow agency policies to interfere with our ethical practice of social work.

SOLVING ETHICAL DILEMMA

Periodic public scandals in which tremendously wealthy people are accused of bilking the poor are a particularly dramatic example of the ethical problems that can emerge in business. When people are corrupted by the idea that anything is justified in the pursuit of greater profit, they sometimes engage in unsavory behavior.

Employees make decisions at all levels of a company, whether at the top, on the front line or anywhere in between. Every employee in an organization is exposed to the risk of facing an ethical dilemma at some point, and some ethical decisions can be more challenging to fully understand than others. Knowing how to resolve ethical dilemmas in the workplace can increase your decision-making effectiveness while keeping you and your company on the right side of the law and public sentiment.

ASSIGNMENT

Your company policy on reimbursement for meals while travelling on company business is that you will be paid out of your pocket on costs not exceeding Kshs.1000. You don’t need receipts for these expenses, your company will take your word. While travelling you tend to eat at a fast food place and rarely spends in excess of Kshs.100 a day. Most of your colleagues put in a reimbursement request of between Kshs.350 to Kshs.500 a day regardless of what their actual expenses are.  How much would you request for your meal reimbursement?