PUBLIC FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

TRAINING PROGRAM(PFMTP)
Business Ethics and Corporate Governance

Todays outline

An

overview of Business Ethics

Ethical principles in Business
Moral Development and Reasoning
Business ethics and Morality in
international Context
Ethics Theory and Practice

An overview of Business Ethics

Business ethics (also corporate ethics) is a form of applied ethics or

professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical
problems that arise in a business environment.

It applies to all aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of

individuals and entire organizations.

Business ethics refers to contemporary standards or sets of values that govern

the actions and behaviour of an individual in the business organisation.

Ethical issues include the rights and duties between a company and its
employees, suppliers, customers and neighbors, its fiduciary responsibility to
its shareholders

Ethical principles in Business

Fairness in trading practices, trading conditions, financial contracting, sales practices,
consultancy services, tax payments, internal audit, external audit and executive compensation
also fall under the umbrella of finance and accounting;
This area of business ethics usually deals with the duties of a company to ensure that products
and production processes do not needlessly cause harm;
Potential employees have ethical obligations to employers, involving intellectual property
protection and whistle-blowing;
Marketing ethics involves pricing practices, including illegal actions such as price fixing and
legal actions including price discrimination and price skimming. Certain promotional activities
have drawn fire, including greenwashing, bait and switch, shilling, viral marketing, spam
Ethical and legal issues include: Patent infringement, copyright infringement, trademark
infringement,
Patent and copyright misuse, submarine patents, biological patents, patent, copyright and
trademark trolling, Employee raiding and monopolizing talent, Bioprospecting, biopiracy and
industrial espionage, digital rights management.

Moral Development and Reasoning

"
People with integrity value other principles, including honesty, respect, personal
responsibility, compassion, and dependability. These qualities are integrated into
the Six Pillars of Character offered by the Josephson Institute, a nonprofit
organization that develops and delivers services and materials to increase ethical
commitment. The pillars are:

Sets of moral Reasoning!

Trustworthiness
Respect
Responsibility
Fairness
Caring
Citizenship
The

overriding principle that you have as an

individual is you have to make the right decision,

Local context situation

Sometimes it is very difficult to apply ethical issues because a decision may be
easier, but it is not right. So it takes more of a personal challenge to do the
right decision.

Business ethics and Morality in

international Context

If it does not come from the top leadership, it will not permeate through the
rest of the organization; Employees look to their top leaders for the behaviors
they are expected to model.

Ethical business practices are not necessarily the most profitable methods in
the short term, but they are essential for long-term organizational survival;

An ethical manner can create positive business results. A business

environment that promotes and upholds strong values is usually a happier and
more productive workplace where customers receive good service so they
keep coming back.

Business ethics and Morality in

international Context

In

addition to work behavior, ethical principles should guide our personal and professional
lives.
Being

ethical requires looking at universal values and that is the decision matrix people
can use in their business and personal lives,

Business ethics and Morality in

international Context

Honesty

Integrity

Promise-Keeping & Trustworthiness

Loyalty

Fairness

Concern for Others

Respect for Others

Law Abiding

Commitment to Excellence

Leadership

Reputation & Morale

Thinking outside of the box

Morals are how you treat people you know. Ethics are how you treat
people you dont know.

Your morality is what makes you a good wife or husband, dad or

mother. A good daughter or son. A good friend. Even a good
employee or boss to the people you know personally in the company.

Your ethics are what makes you a good politician. It is what makes
you a statesman. It is also what makes you a good, humane CEO of
any large company.

Discussion!

Ethics Theory and Practice

Work together in small groups to develop a shared language of ethical values,

apply that language to a series of real-life dilemmas in Liberia.

Assignment

You have just arrived in Liberia to establish another branch of your business, If the morally
questionable action is a common local practice, would you like to conduct business
without engaging in unethical practices?

Please address issues that are prevailing in Liberia and how it could be
addressed?

Food for thought!

Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, and integrity, they
think of you. H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

With integrity, you have nothing to fear, since you have nothing to hide. With
integrity, you will do the right thing, so you will have no guilt. Zig Ziglar

THE END

THANKS!