Good Example Of Ethical Dilemma In A Business Essay

Introduction

Ethical dilemmas are difficult situations in which a person or business organization is entitled to make a selection between two options, neither of which resolves the situation in an ethically acceptable manner. These situations call for personal intelligence and wisdom of a person or an organization to provide a satisfactory solution to the problem. Ethical dilemma assumes that the chooser will have to a bid by rules and regulations of the society or the business organization hence making it very difficult for the chooser to make a decision between the two situations.

Jans' Ethical Dilemma

Jan is faced with two situations. First he is tied to the norms of the business to keep all the information of their organization more so of their department as top secret and never to give it to anyone even if he is a close friend. Again Jans' closest friend is miss led by personal ambitions that he will get a job of which Jan know better that he will not get. Jan is tied by the laws of the organizations; she finds herself in a dilemma whether to tell Steve the truth about the job or to keep the secret of the organization.
Jan should keep the secret to herself. Because when she reveals the information to her friend Steve, he might think that she is not happy with her promotion he is to get and this may great enmity between them. In addition, if she tells him the secret she might lose her job or be given a penalty from the organization in any case the management get that she said the secret to her friend; as this may make it hard for the management to trust her again with their information.

Employees' Role in Ethics

Employees have several roles to play when it come to ethics. To begin with an employee must be confidential since they may act as principal instruments for controlling and monitoring the transfer of confidential and sensitive information within the company (Phillips, 2003). Hence, they are not required to disclose nonpublic information concerning their business, clients or an employee unless authorized to do so.
Again, employees are to be transparent and open to talk with their client and top official so as to report any ethical difficulties they are facing. An employee also has to be able to manage risks so that they can easily handle any moral problem. An employee also should be responsible for their work so as to avoid making mistakes that may lead to an ethical problem.

Factors that make employees not to operate ethically in business

Pressure from management may make it very difficult for an employee to perform ethically in a company. Various companies have different policies. Some may stress on profits above everything. In such environment, management may not be keen on ethical mistakes and if an employee commits one, other workers may not report him due to the firm's policy of the end justifies the means as they will be taken as traitors but not as team player (McDaniel, 2004).
In addition, ambitions and discrimination of workers may make the employee not to operate ethically in a business. If workers are not rewarded, they may be desperate to do something unethical such as falsifying numbers or even taking someone's credit to get ahead. Some employees may not be able to appreciate the role of diversity in business hence they may not be able to stand others person background thus treating them unfairly.

Again, negotiation tactics also may make a worker not to operate ethically in business.

Company may involve in a business with another, and an employee is forced to get the best deal or price from such transactions. This pressure may make an employee to negotiate in a bad way or lie to get the required rates. Workers may also try to bribe their way to get the real deal done thus unethical practice.

Steps an employee can take to try to make the most appropriate decision

The Organization's responsibility in Ensuring Ethical Practices
An organization can help the employees to make an appropriate decision when faced with the ethical situation by writing up a code of ethics for their business and providing each employee with a copy. This system should contain the expectations and how employees should behave. The workers should follow the examples listed in the codes and avoid the wrong ones also indicated in the list. Organization can also enroll employees in ethical training programs. This can be done by living persons or through the web-based training. The program should include the company moral philosophy and how to manage stressful situations in the organization.
The organization should make it mandatory for each employee to look at their perspectives when making an ethical decision. Each situation should be handled through the eyes of the employee; management's customers and vendors. Again, the organization has to set a good example for the employees to follow (Sikula, Sikula & Kocher, 2001).

Steps an organization can take to try to certify that all parts of the organization operate ethically

The first step an organization can take to ensure it ethically operates is by using the positive deviate. These are people who are highly respected since they establish the standard of ethical values, attitudes, and behavior in an organization. They model the ideal ethics attitudes and best practices that should be followed by other employees hence the pioneer and creators of an organization ethics.
Secondly, the organization should motivate those employees who have achieved the positive deviant social good. This act will make other workers strive as much as possible to reach the stand of required ethics. Again, the organization is to check that the commitment to the ethics is sustained so that new employees can follow the footsteps of the old workers hence ensuring continuity in the organization ethics.
Conclusion

References

McDaniel, C. (2004). Organizational ethics. Aldershot, England: Ashgate.
Phillips, R. (2003). Stakeholder Theory and Organizational Ethics. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Sikula, A., Sikula, J., & Koocher, G. (2001). Employee relations ethics. Mahwah, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.