ThursdayOct 7 at 5:50pm
Manage Discussion EntryEthical decision making is a process that makes rational justifications for decisions and actions (Hartman et al., 2021). The process of making a decision includes considerations of facts, a variety of perspectives, consequences and ethical principles (Hartman et al., 2021). This rational, logical thought process, or even brainstorming process, differs from a traditional pragmatic form of decision making because it takes time and debate to develop a conclusion, or decision, that is considered ethical or just. Determining the facts of the situation takes time and thoughtful reflection. It is not an initial reaction or gut feeling, rather a thoroughly processed idea that has been debated and considered from multiple angles. For this reason, a lawyer’s answer is often “it depends.” There is never one right decision that equally balances the needs and desires of everyone. There are many outcomes that result from any decision, and a philosopher understands which decision is best based on the desired outcome. Critical thinking plays a major role in ethical decision making. Leaders have a moral obligation to abide by certain guidelines, such as privacy and confidentiality. Companies that produce products or services must act in the best interest of the consumer. Business decisions can often be ethics-driven, finance-driven, people-driven, or other. The best business practices consider a combination of all factors. Managers may be caught between a decision that makes sense financially for the organization, but its ethics are questionable. In the case of Theranos, or even Pfizer, employees of these companies have become whistleblowers because they are observing practices that are not aiding the the betterment of its consumers, which is in opposition of the company mission. While these practices may be pragmatic and beneficial to the company’s bottom line, they may cause harm to countless consumers that trust the company under false pretenses.
Companies that are acutely aware of, and advocate for, ethical business practices, in turn have a stealthy bottom line because their consumers trust them and remain loyal customers. Consequently for unethical companies, they lose business in the long run because their unethical practices will have run them out of business. There is currently a lack of trust in Pfizer with respect to the vaccine roll-out, likely due to inattention blindness. Companies may enforce so strictly that employees and consumers pay such close attention to certain areas, that they are completely blind to other important ones. Because leadership is not confirmed to be “highly aware and ethically conscious” consumers may not trust the product because they don’t believe their best intentions were considered over profitability.Holmes led Theranos under secrecy and misreporting of results, and is now facing scrutiny and investigation forfalse allegations of her product (Griffith, 2021). Leadership teams are the face of companies, and by striving to be ethical and just in business operations, the companies will survive turmoil.
References
Griffith, E. (2021, October 6). Key takeaways from the fifth week of the Elizabeth Holmes trial.New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/06/technology/elizabeth-holmes-theranos-trial.html(Links to an external site.)
Hartman, L. P., DesJardins, J. R., & MacDonald, C. (2021).Business ethics: Decision-making for personal integrity & social responsibility(5th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
ThursdayOct 7 at 10:14pm
Manage Discussion EntryHartman et al. (2021) write that “responsible decision making and deliberation will result in more responsible behavior” (p. 19). My first questions when reading this were how is “responsible” defined, and who defines it? One view is that of normative ethics, or that ethics are defined by the norms of behavior a group deems appropriate -- how peopleshouldact. Meanwhile, descriptive ethics focuses on why peopledoact the way they ultimately do. I’ve seen these two elements in every organization or group I’ve ever been a part of -- there are accepted norms, and then there are the varying ways people actually behave, because both elements always exist. Depending on the formality and power of the group, deviations from the norms may either be simply observable oddities (e.g. when someone behaves awkwardly in a social situation), or formally punishable (e.g. when someone violates a rule of a workplace or religion).
Ethical decision making consists of both personal integrity, social ethics, practical reasoning (what we should do), and theoretical reasoning (what we should believe). Ultimately, these elements lead you to a “persuasive and rational justification for a decision...developed through a logical process that gives proper attention to such things as facts, alternative perspectives, consequences to all stakeholders, and ethical principles" (Hartman et al., 2021, p. 389). Conversely, decisions made via a purely business or financial lens may consider certain facts but disregard other facts, consequences, impacts on people, and other values. With that said, at least one other study concluded that ethical decision making was not meaningfully different from other techniques. These particular researchers determined that while there are observable, consistent decision-making patterns per individual ethics, patterns did not emerge when comparing ethical vs. other types of decision making across groups (Elm & Radin, 2012, p. 326).
Being in a leadership position within human resources, I frequently have moments where I can make decisions ethically or purely legally. For example, at a previous employer I had an employee end up in the hospital with a serious mental illness. Legally, I wasn’t required to offer them paid leave or job security based on the size of the company and that they had not been employed with us for 12 months. However, I decided that we should offer 12 weeks of paid medical leave and defended that decision, as well as their privacy, to their team members. I also suggested hiring a temporary contractor for those 3 months so the team wouldn’t resent their missing coworker. Of course I have times where I may behave more or less ethically than other times, but this is a particular example of the way that I wish more leaders would act -- putting a person’s well-being first, even when not required to.
References
Elm, D.R., & Rain, T.J. (2012). Ethical Decision Making: Special or No Different?Journal of Business Ethics, 107, p. 313-329.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-1041-4(Links to an external site.)
Hartman, L. P., DesJardins, J. R., & MacDonald, C. (2021).Business ethics: Decision-making for personal integrity & social responsibility (5th ed.).McGraw-Hill.