Issue of Honesty and Integrity

Issue of Honesty and Integrity - Lecture 8 Notes Master investor Warren Buffet reportedly once said to a group of business students thus: - "I cannot tell you that honesty is the best policy. I can't tell you that if you behave with perfect honesty and integrity, somebody somewhere won't behave the other way and make more money. But honesty is a good policy. You'll do well, you'll sleep well at night, and you'll feel good about the example you are setting for your coworkers and the other people who care about you". If you work for a company that is satisfied with its employees' simply obeying the law and following a few internal regulations, you might want to consider finding another job. ● If you're being asked to lie to customers about the quality or value of your product, you're in an ethically unhealthy environment. Consider this fable: - "A chef placed two frogs into a pot of simmering soup water. The first frog smelled the onions, realized his predicament, and leaped right out. The second frog paused: The water felt nice, and he decided to stay and take it easy for a minute. He could always jump out when things got too hot (so to speak). As the water got hotter, however, the frog adapted to it, hardly noticing the change. Before long, of course, he was the main ingredient in frog-leg soup." So, what's the moral of the story? ● Don't sit around in an ethically toxic environment and lose your integrity a little at a time ● get out before the water gets too hot and your options have evaporated. Fortunately, a few rules of thumb can guide you. Conflicts of Interest Conflicts of interest occur when individuals must choose between taking actions that promote their interests over the interests of others or taking actions that don't. ● A conflict may arise, for instance, where an employee's self-interest impinges upon or appears to impinge on, the interests of the company's stakeholders (management, customers, and owners). E.g - Suppose you are engaged by a business that holds an agreement to do all the catering at your college, and your uncle prepared and intended to attempt to provide baked goods for such events. ● This situation could create a conflict of interest—or at least give the appearance of one, which is a problem in itself. ● When you're called on to furnish desserts for a luncheon you might be tempted to send some business your uncle's way, even if it's not in your employer's best interest.