Business Ethics VS. Military Ethics Essay -- essays research papers

Business Ethics versus Military Ethics June 18, 2005 Business Ethics versus Military Ethics â€Å"The ultimate basis for ethics is clear: Human behavior has consequences for the welfare of others. We are capable of acting toward others in such a way as to increase or decrease the quality of their lives. We are capable of helping or harming. What is more, we are theoretically capable of understanding when we are doing the one and when the other. This is so because we have the capacity to put ourselves imaginatively in the place of others and recognize how we would be affected if someone were to act toward us as we are acting toward others† (Elder & Paul, 2003). There are many types of ethics and many ways to incorporate practices to enforce ethics as well as punish violators of ethics requirements. Two categories of ethics that are similar yet different are ethics in Corporate America and ethics in the United States Air Force (U.S.A.F.). First, we need to understand what ethics are. Ethics contributes to the learning what is right or wrong. â€Å"Doing the right thing is not as straight forward as conveyed in a great deal of business ethics literature†(McNamara, C. 2003, 6). The definition between corporations and the military provides us with a general description of ethics. Are military and corporate ethics different? Business Ethics in Corporate America The Business ethics concept means many things to many different people. It is coming to know what is â€Å"right or wrong in the workplace and doing what is right -- this is in regard to effects of products/services and in relationships with stakeholders† (McNamara, C. 2003, 8 ). â€Å"According to Carter McNamara, business ethics is summarized into â€Å"Two Broad Areas of Business Ethics† defined as managerial mischief and moral mazes.† (McNamara, C. 2003, 10). The first discussion will be managerial mischief. â€Å"Madsen and Shafritz, in their book "Essentials of Business Ethics" (Penguin Books, 1990) further explain that "managerial mischief" includes "illegal, unethical, or questionable practices of individual managers or organizations as well as the causes of such behaviors and remedies to eradicate them" (McNamara, C. 2003,10). Business ethics is merely teaches the basics of what is wrong and right. Business ethics is a matter of dealing with situations that have no clear indication o... ...ed to maintain discipline and cohesiveness in an organization and generally documented to provide specific guidance. No matter what the root cause of Ethics in Business or the Military, most ethical conflicts came to dealing with contracts and agreements between themselves and their customers or their employees. Most people have come to the understanding that lower ethical standards related to lower moral standards in society, in general. From this, one can conclude that it is management that has the social responsibility to conduct his or her business in the most ethical ways possible, for his or her actions is reflexive on society. References McNamara, C. (2003). Complete Guide to Ethics Management: An Ethics Toolkit for Managers. Retrieved 15 June 2005 from www.mapnp.org/library/ethics/ethics.htm Paul, R. & Elder, L. (2003) The Miniature Guide to Understanding the Foundations of Ethical Reasoning, The Foundation for Critical Thinking. Dillon Beach, CA. Retrieved 06-18-2005, from UoPHX rEsource GEN/300 Toner, J. H., Military OR ethics, Air & Space Power Journal Vol. 17,Iss 2, Summer 20032003. Retrieved 06/15/2005 from UoPHX rEsource GEN/300