Difficult Ethical Issues

Overview

A professional designation carries with it not only increased status and remuneration for

a certain skill set but also somewhat loosely defined ethical responsibilities - a public

trust that society expects the individual to act upon and fulfill. The defining

characteristics of every profession include a concern for the ethical impact of the

decisions, actions and inaction of its members, and a provision for self-governance.

Difficult ethical issues will be faced with increasing frequency by management

accountants as their domain and roles evolve. In order to define themselves as

professionals, they must be prepared to deal with such matters. Beyond questions of

office theft and padded expense accounts, these issues will include, for example,

employment practices, the budgeting process, trade practices and government

relations.

As part of the training on professionalism and ethics, candidates must be familiar with

their provincial CMA Code of Conduct. The development of ethical sensitivity is critical

to the effectiveness of management accountants in the workplace. The articles help the

candidate be aware of those areas in which ethical dilemmas are likely to arise.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the assignment, candidates will have demonstrated their knowledge of the

CMA Code of Ethics and good research skills in the selection of a relevant example that

illustrates the complexities of ethical decisions faced by businesses.