Introduction

A discussion on ethics can be topically relevant almost in any gathering; but it is more so in our context. Our graduates today are made up of professionals, managers, and entrepreneurs. All of these categories of occupations are faced with ethical dilemmas on a daily basis. Perhaps it may be useful to start the discussion with clarifications of basic concepts on ethics before considering the nature of the challenges and how we can deal with such challenges.

Ethics

Ethics can be regarded as rules of behaviour or moral principles that guide our actions in given situations. (Baran, 2002:390). Everard and Shilt (1979:32) also see ethics as the concern of people for establishing fair rules of conduct.

The word ethics, according to Baran, comes from the Greek ethos, which translates as the customs, traditions, or character that guide a particular group or culture. In our context, we can look at ethics specifically as the application of rational thought by managers and professionals, when they are deciding or choosing from two or more competing moral choices.

Ethics are generally a reflection of the ideas of a given culture about what is right or wrong. They exist at three main levels:

Metaethics

The first level is the Metaethics, which, according to Baran are fundamental cultural values concerning issues and questions such as:

  • What is justice?
  • What does it mean to be good?
  • Is fairness possible?
  • What is right?

It is important for us to philosophically examine these questions to know ourselves. However, as valuable as they may seem to be for our self-knowledge, metaethics provide only the broadest foundation for the kinds of ethical decisions which people are called upon to make on a daily basis. At best, metaethics can, therefore, be only a starting point for moral or ethical reasoning.

Normative Ethics

The second level is Normative Ethics. These are, by and large, generalized theories, rules, and principles of ethical or moral behaviour. Good examples of normative ethics are the various management codes of ethics or standards of good practice. Chartered Accountants, Professional Management Institutes, Advertising Practitioners, Engineers, etc, all have Codes of Ethical Conduct. These are more specific than metaethics to the extent that they relate to real-world frameworks within which practitioners can begin to weigh competing alternative courses of behaviour. Even at that there is still a problem because, if you take certain professions, you may find it difficult to define issues of fairness in a generally accepted manner. Baran observed this problem in the case of journalists.

"Fairness is a metaethic, but journalists’ codes of practice, for example, define what is meant by fairness in the world of reporting, how far a reporter must go to ensure fairness, and how fairness must be applied when being fair to one person means being unfair to another” (Baran, 2002:450).

Applied Ethics

The third level is the Applied Ethics. This came about as a combination of the metaethics with the normative ethics. This is where the manager applies both the meta (big) rules and the specific (general industry) guidelines to his or her specific situation.

The Need for Ethical Codes

Ethics have attracted the attention of mankind since the days of Greek philosophers – Plato and Aristotle. Aristotle, who was Plato’s student, was later to disagree with his mentor on the issue of ethics. Whereas Plato held the view that philosopher kings should be allowed to set the rules as they deemed fit in their wisdom, since they were assumed to have special insights into the truth, his student felt that human frailties were too overwhelming for us to give even philosopher kings such freedom. He, therefore, advocated ethical rules to guide rulers. Plato believed that if one knew the good, then he would do it. But Aristotle took the notion of weakness of the will seriously.

This, by and large, is the position held in the marketing communication and media industry. If free will is allowed, the urge to outwit competitors, the urge to make more profit, and the urge to cut corners is likely to lead, even otherwise good, management practitioners and entrepreneurs to engage in practices that can debase their professions and harm society. Ethical Codes at this level concentrate on legality, truthfulness and fairness. At a higher level, we can see this factor being the major rationale for constitutions of nation states.

Advantages of Ethical Codes

Bowie (1982:90-93) has outlined five key advantages for the institutionalization of Ethical Codes of Conducts in the business.

  • Ethical Codes provide more permanent and stable guides. Decisions are not left to the idiosyncrasies of the person on seat at the time. Personalities do not count. The rules as already stated are the reference point.
  • Ethical Codes are guidance in ethically ambiguous situations.
  • Ethical Codes serve as a control and check against the autocratic power of employers. If an employer wants a professional to do something that is unethical, it is easy to point to the rules that forbid it.
  • Ethical Codes help to specify the Social Responsibilities of a business, thus contributing to bringing about order out of chaos.
  • The development of Ethical Codes, which are essentially voluntary self-regulation, is in the best overall interest of the professions. Unethical business activities normally lead to increased government regulation of business activities normally lead to increased government regulation of business activities, thus taking the initiative out of the business community.

Inherent Ethical Issues in Management

In the performance of the functions of management as espoused by Henri Fayol, it can be said that ethical issues cannot be avoided since choices are involved and since values are self-evident in most management decisions. The following areas of management decision have been selected to highlight the ethical issues that are the concern of this theme:

  1. Division of Work: Managers have a duty to divide up the work, assign duties and to delegate to others. Managers who decide to show favoritism in carrying out this function are in breach of the ethical rules.
  2. Discipline: In disciplining employees, managers must be just and fair in their dealings. Disciplinary actions that are taken out of hate or victimization also breach ethical rules.
  3. Staffing: In the employment of personnel, there is the need to be transparent, fair and just. Employment on the basis of favoritism is unethical. Equally, promotions based on considerations other than clearly laid down merit requirements are unethical. Sexual harassment in the workplace (i.e. sex for promotion, sex for pay rise, sex for interesting work) should be avoided by managers. Poaching staff from clients is also unethical.
  4. Subordination of Individual Interests to the Communal Goal: Managers who place their interests above those of the organization are breaching ethical rules. This includes taking bribes, kickbacks, or engaging in personal projects during office hours.
  5. Remuneration: Managers should be fair and just in remunerating their staff.
  6. Esprit de Corps: Managers should support colleagues, the staff and the organizations they work for. The question often arises as to the limit of this esprit de corps. Is it right for a manager to collude or condone the actions of his peers, or actions of his employer even if such actions offend decency? What is the limit of esprit de corps?
  7. Continuing Education: To maintain one’s knowledge base at the cutting edge may be good professional business sense. But it is more than that. It is also an ethical issue. You owe your clients and your employer a duty to be at your best and offer them the best. Learning, therefore, is a lifelong affair. If you have a Bachelor's degree today, think of a Masters. If you have a Masters, think of a Doctor of Philosophy or a Professional Doctorate.

Ethical Issues are Unlimited

The ethical issues, as discussed above, are not exhaustive. There are many other ethical issues such as money laundering, cooking of company trading records, false claims in advertising, deceptive packaging, immoral presentation in advertising copies and so on, and so forth. The list is endless. The intention here is to demonstrate the presence of ethical issues in the content of a manager’s job.

Socrates once said that people do bad because they are ignorant of what is good. Even though that proposition is debatable, the truth remains that managers, professionals and entrepreneurs whose attention is drawn to the need to beware of their ethical responsibilities in the performance of their job can no longer plead ignorance. That is the purpose of this submission.

References

  1. Buchele, Robert B. (1977) The Management of Business and Public Organisations, McGraw-Hill, Tokyo.
  2. Baran, Stanley (2002) Introduction to Mass Communications, Media Literacy and Culture, Mayfield Publishing Company, London.
  3. Bowie, Norman (1982) Business Ethics, Prentice – Hall, England Cliffs, New Jersey.
  4. Fayol, Henri (1949) General and Industrial Management, Trans. Constance Storrs. Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, London.
  5. Iornem, David (2000) How to Start and Manage Your Own Business, JVC Press, Kaduna.
  6. Peretomode, V. F. (2001) Educational Administration: Applied Concepts and Theoretical Perspectives, Joja Educational Research and Publishers Ltd, Lagos.