In business today, ethical and moral decisions need to be made daily. It seems that there are an increasing number of stories in the news about corporate corruption. The misconduct of the financial industry no longer surprises most Americans. I know that I no longer trust the banks. The overall trust in big business is declining as well. More than half of all Americans believe corruption is widespread across corporate America. According to Transparency International, an anticorruption watchdog, nearly three in four Americans believe that corruption has increased over the last three years.
The California Council on Science and Technology states that there are many data gaps and inadequate state testing of the fracking fluids flowing and that there may be a potential to containment the drinking water supplies near Bakersfield, where they are doing this. The risks and hazards are not fully known however oil companies claim no environment impacts exist. I can only envision what this story is going to look like in (10) ten years when neighborhoods of people are being diagnosed with some type of rare cancer. This example might be more of a moral decision, money and profits vs human life.
I have been studying for my PMP Certification for the last year. As a Project Management Professional (PMP), the Project Management Institute (PMI) has a Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct Policy. This policy outlines the vision and purpose of PMI, emphasizing their commitment to do the right and honorable service at work and within our profession.
Ethics in leadership is concerned with what leaders do and who leaders are. (PSU, 2015) Organizations are not being held accountable for the misconduct that their top leaders are taking part in. Whatever happened to the foundation of core values, responsibility, respect, fairness and honesty? Have corporations lost whatever ethical compass they once had? Or does it just look that way because we are paying more attention than we used to?
PSU (2015). Ethics and Leadership (Lesson 14) PSYCH-485 State College, PA: Penn State World Campus.
Los Angeles Times (2015). Hydraulic Fracturing, By Julie Cart
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership Theory and Practice (6th ed.) Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications Inc.
Christopher Lee Van Wagner says
I agree with you that ethics are difficult to find in many businesses today. I feel the lack of ethics is also what caused our last great recession in 2008. I believe this was the fault of not just banks, but also our government leaders by allowing sub-prime mortgage lending to individuals who really could not afford the amount they were financing their homes for. The theory was that everyone should be able to own a home and creative sub prime lending enabled it. Truth be told, the banks and most likely the government knew they could not keep pace with increasing variable interest rates. So, who is worse in the declining ethics of American business the private industry or our own government? I would be inclined to put more blame on government since, we entrust them to have our best interests in mind.