The Responsibility Project
Order Instructions:
Select an organization you work for or one in your chosen field.
Conduct online research on the ethics of your organization and the industry it belongs to.
Write a 750- to 1,050-word paper describing how ethical principles can address organizational issues. Include the organization you selected and discuss the following with regards to that organization and its industry:
•What role do external social pressures have in influencing organizational ethics?
•How might these issues be relevant to organizational and personal decisions?
•What is the relationship between legal and ethical issues?
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines
SAMPLE ANSWER
The Responsibility Project
At the top of discussion in every arena such as churches, schools, and casual fellowship is how the principles of ethics are used to address organizational issues. Ethical principles are applicable in a number of ways that establish a strong relationship structure that workers of all level will value and appreciate (Trevino & Nelson, 2006). This paper discusses how the ethical issues are applied and used in organizations regarding the information about a film redeemed from “Responsibility project” website. The important highlights from the film are the roles, which external pressure has in influencing the ethics of an organization, relevance of these issues in personal and organizational decision, and the relationship between the ethical and legal issues.
The short film known as Good Vibration is a lively animated story that depicts the image and the responsibility of the community and cost of being pleased. The film majorly focuses on a group responsibility within the society and the way community and organizations behave. The milieu of this film is the society responses on their behavior when they see the helpless and disabled individuals walk down on the sidewalks tripping and falling. Some of the employees of the organization find it very interesting when they see these individuals fall. They mock and laugh at them without giving the necessary warning to the ones who are coming on the danger that faces them (Good Vibrations, 2009). After a short time, the laughing employees see an elderly person approaching, he opens the window and warns the next helpless of the dangers ahead at the loose bricks. This helps the person from getting hurt.
A major highlight in this film is how just a single person can take the initiative and responsibility to warn other individuals on the defective pavement, while a group enjoys how the helpless people suffer. An interrelation of this kind can be gotten when it is linked with the attitude of numerous organizations. In many instances, serious problems are figured out by many people regarding certain organizations. However, in this case they are laughed upon, and an effort of improvement becomes an interesting topic of discussion. There are times when an individual finds a problem in the firm, but instead of solving the problem, one just assumes the issue and makes it fun. The major problem with such issues is that if they get ignored for a long time, they become incurable and cause big losses (Trevino & Nelson, 2006). At the end of the day, it is the organization that suffers for its malfunctions and lack of positive attitude to ensure development.
External social pressure manipulates an organizational ethics extensively. In most instances, the number of stakeholders such as the employees, shareholders, and customers increases greatly. As a result, their interests overlap causing serious problems in the organization. In this case, Enron’s example can be cited. To continue with such existing stakeholder and welcome new shareholders, Enron started an off the books to conceal the massive debts and loans. To acknowledge the financial crisis in Enron’s business to the global world, a major reaction to the issue was inevitable, and the business would come down. Nevertheless, due to the social pressures Enron handled it in a different manner. This is an example on how external social pressures affect the ethics of an organization.
In order to secure an organization’s turnover, deals, and profits, in many occasions, legal and ethical responsibilities may be neglected. To save the firm from internal and external problems the head in some cases, implements and makes his verdicts. In doing so, they tend to forget that just for the sake of saving the company; the unethical decision can ruin the firm at the long run. In the case of Enron’s scandal, the unethical and illegal decisions were done in the employee’s good understanding, but at last, they remained numb to the situation. Later, when the scenario got exposed individuals tried what they could to safeguard themselves from the quandary. At last, it jeopardized the reputation of the organization. It would have been much better alternative for Enron to reveal their financial position earlier and avoid unethical decisions.
Between ethical and legal issues, correlation is common in many a times (Trevino & Nelson, 2006). The practices and decisions that are ethical are habitually illegal. In the film, the employees laugh at the helpless people; this act cannot be seen as illegal, but it is very unethical for the company reputation hence cannot be sighted as the illegal act but certainly unethical one. The employees ought to have taken the responsibility to fix the pavement or to erect a warning signs to caution the pedestrian. Therefore, some acts may not be illegal but very unethical.
From the discussion, we can learn the real story of what might happen to any organization when the employees lack the nerves to do the right thing and follow the moral stand in some situations. Unethical acts of employees are enough to spoil an organizations reputation. Even though external social pressures have an inevitable role in manipulating an organization’s code of ethics, moralistic approaches should be maintained in the organization for the good of every stakeholder
References
Trevino, L.K. & Nelson, K.A. (2006).Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right (4th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Good Vibrations. (2009). Retrieved on September 11, 2014, from http://responsibility-project.libertymutual.com/films/good-vibrations#fbid=lVhrldrAOyO
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