Discussion Posts
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Discussion Posts
Discussion 1
According to the legal requirements of commercial organizations, operations need conducting within the set ethical acts. One such requirement for legal compliance in business firms is trust. All stakeholders should be honest to each other in order to strengthen the existing relationship. For example, the personnel in the financial department of a company ought to provide detailed information regarding the company’s economic growth. This transparency is crucial in providing a firm foundation for the business operations. Consequently, the confidence obtained eases the business transactions hence providing greater returns to the company.
In order to maintain high standards of business ethics, gatekeepers are crucial in any commercial firm. Members in these units provide crucial financial facts to other stakeholders. This helps in building trust among all relevant parties since the financial proceedings of the company are open to all. For example, an accountant should provide comprehensive information to all stakeholders in case the business institution suffers from massive losses. This knowledge will help the relevant parties in formulating strategies that will improve the situation in the institution.
Discussion 2
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is a policy endorsed by the Congress as a tool of supervising accounting operations in commercial firms. Through this law, fraud in economic reporting is a crime punishable through predetermined penalties. Despite the success of this policy, certain concepts need improving in order to increase the act’s efficiency. For example, the stipulated code of conduct should not only affect the senior financial officials but also the subordinate personnel in this department. This will increase the level of transparency in the entire financial sector, which is the backbone of the company hence resulting in competence within the firm.
It is possible for a commercial institution to integrate the federal requirements in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the firm’s practices in one general policy. One way of accomplishing this task involves interpreting the code of conduct detailed in this policy in order to concur with the company’s mission and vision. For example, a banking institution can formulate policies regarding the acceptable business ethics by use of the legal act as a guideline. Through this combination, the company can maintain its principles and objectives while still conducting its business operations within the legal framework.
Discussion 3
The ethical decision making process entails various concepts such as personal features, company aspects, and the influence of business ethics. These factors are important in analyzing the objectives and outcomes of ethical issues in a company. Consequently, it equips decision-makers with relevant facts regarding the process and influences in the decision-making procedure. However, this aspect should include social factors in the process. This is because several social features may influence the accepted code of conduct in a firm. For example, a banking institution serving the Muslim community may have a different ethical decision making process from firms within other religious convictions.
Although the ethical decision-making process only describes factors and processes involved in this procedure, businesses can use certain strategies to help them make the right ethical choices regarding the acceptable code of conduct in commercial firms. This is because ethical issues are similar in most business institutions. The relevant authorities can therefore, provide standard guidelines, which all companies should use in deciding on ethical matters. This will standardize the business ethics aspect in all commercial institutions hence bringing order in the business sector.
Discussion 4
In this chapter, the author addresses various leadership styles that may influence the ethical framework of a business organization. For example, managers may use the authoritative aspect of leadership. In this management tactic, the manager hardly considers the interests or opinions of the subordinate staff. He or she makes decisions that concur with his or her personal beliefs and views. Another leadership form is the use of democracy. Under this style, managers are transparent in their operations. They provide exhaustive information about the company’s proceedings to all relevant stakeholders in an attempt to earn their trust. Such leaders also use the interests of the firm’s stakeholders as a guideline in their operations. This ensures that the outcome of their work satisfies all relevant parties. For this reason, the democratic approach of leadership would be the most effective tool in the ethical decision-making process.
A strong ethical leader has several desirable traits. To start with, he has a desirable personality. A leader should be able to work with people of all characters, in addition to respecting the opinions of other individuals. Leaders should also strive to follow the acceptable code of conduct both inside and outside the work place. He or she should also be practical in order to attain satisfactory outcomes. They also ought to consider the interests of all stakeholders by being transparent in their operations. Their way of performing various duties should exhibit desirable qualities since they are the role models of the company. He also ought to be resilient in order to overcome various forms of challenges. It is through their efforts that the company attains its objectives.