Business Ethics Examples

Business Ethics means conformance to accepted professional high standards of conduct.

Most businesses prepare, document, and publish their company policies derived from their basic beliefs and philosophies. This includes publishing Business Ethics. Within this document they should include business ethic examples.

We must avoid even the appearance of unethical conduct.

Integrity and Company Values

Some companies publish theirs, and some don't.

However, with today's onslaught of major accounting practice frauds that have obliterated employee pension funds and investor monies, it has become increasingly more important for legitimate companies to state their positions relative to ethics.

Companies that do, at least get categorized as having "good intentions"... those that don't seem to fall in the other category, in general, of not having "good intentions"

Business ethics examples cross many subject areas. Companies based these on broad principles of integrity and fairness regarding issues such as

• accounting practices,
• product quality,
• customer satisfaction,
• employee wages and benefits, and
• local community and environmental responsibilities, etc.

If you could sum Values / Ethics up in one other word it would be Integrity.

Some reasons to define your Company Values are:

• define accepted / acceptable behaviors
• promote high standards of practice
• provide a benchmark for employees to use for self-measurement
• as an indication of company maturity

A solid ethics statement, documented as the Company Values Statement, creates team commitment and understanding relative to how the company desires to operate, and gets you categorized as having "good intentions". It enables your team to operationally focus accordingly, and it enables others who read it to understand how the top of the organization visualizes the ethics of the company.

Workplace Business Ethics

How do we apply business ethics in the workplace?

Business ethics examples include what we think about using company equipment and information that we have access to as we perform our duties:

• What we think about making copies of personal (non-business) documents on company provided equipment.
• What we think about faxing personal (non-business) documents on company provided equipment.
• What we think about making personal (non-business) telephone calls on company provided equipment.
• What we think about sending personal (non-business) electronic mail messages on company provided computers and Internet network connections.
• Etc.

These and other non-business usages and actions can drag company profitability.

Other Business Ethics Examples

Other applications of Business Ethics in the workplace might be:

• Do you copy software to take home for personal use?
• Do you properly dispose of classified information regardless of media type?
• Do you "shoulder-surf" when a colleague enters his or her password or view sensitive data?
• Do you ask those who "tailgate" upon entrance to the controlled-access office building to see their ID?

Business Ethics Policies

Just as we have federal, state, and local laws, and business ethics that govern our actions on the big playing field, we should have company policies that can be seen as the rules that govern our internal game plans.

For company roles,

• we have coaches to interpret the policies and develop standards
• team players to implement the rules through practices and procedures
• referees to act as auditors.

Within each policy, include business ethics examples so the employees understand the policy.

Most companies formally prepare, document, and publish corporate policies that provide guidance in conducting business, serving the customer, and valuing people. Business ethics examples of some corporate policies might be:

• Business Ethics
• Business Continuity
• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Export Compliance
• Information Security
• Software Compliance
• Etc.

A Code of Ethics (Company Values) go lock step with employee handbooks and other internal and marketing documents. They portray the culture and ethics that define the expected behaviors of the company and its employees. They should be the fundamental principles by which the company conducts its business.

Some policies and details can usually be found within your Employee Handbook. They emphasize specific topics like...

• Open Door
• Sexual Harassment
• Substance Abuse
• Violence in the Workplace
• Employee Code of Conduct.
• Clean Desk
• Information Handling
• Acceptable Internet Usage
• Acceptable E-mail Usage.

Employees need to review and understand company's policies and procedures to ensure they follow the company's game plan.

Company Business Ethics Example Policy

Below is a business ethics examples for a company ethic policy.

"Integrity begins with the judgments and decisions that each of us make as individuals. How do we define personal integrity?

First, it means living the highest standards of conduct, complying fully with the letter, spirit, and intent of the laws, regulations, and ethical principles that govern us, while complying with company policies, even when we may not agree with them. In a worldwide enterprise, legitimate differences of opinion may arise as to the appropriateness of the corporate policies across our global operations.

While such differences are understandable, and can lead to a healthy discussion of choices, they do not excuse us from observing the existing policies. We always welcome to voice our concerns and to request exceptions for special circumstances through appropriate leadership when warranted. It is important that we use our judgment not only to consider the precise meaning of our stated values or policies, but also the spirit and intended purpose of them as we make these choices.

Second, it means we have a responsibility to voice concerns when we believe you or fellow employees act contrary to existing policies.

Collectively, we are the corporation, and the actions of one individual can damage the reputation of all. When someone compromises the principles of ethics or policies, we should either inform them directly, or use other available channels to voice our concerns.

As the best option, we usually choose to discuss the situation with a manager. Alternatively, we can bring our concerns to functional experts such as Legal, Audit, Security, or Human Resources.

We are dedicated to complying fully with the letter, spirit, and intent of the laws, regulations, and ethical principles that govern us. We will protect all confidential information we receive from our customers or business partners."

Law Compliance Policy

Below is a business ethics examples for law compliance policy.

"To enable compliance with the law, one must be familiar with the law.

For most employees, advice or training from experts would be required to understand the law as it pertains to one’s job responsibilities. Common sense, one’s conscience, and good intentions are sometimes not enough.

At a minimum, one must learn enough about the laws and ethics that impact and govern one’s job responsibilities in order to reveal potential issues, and then follow through to get direction about the proper way to proceed.

Knowledge enables compliance with the law, and action usually ensures compliance. This takes a high degree of cooperation and communication, the essential elements of teamwork. As a member of the our team, if one thinks some aspect of the business may be in violation of the law, you should openly, directly voice and dialogue the issue with their immediate manager, any member of the leadership team, or a representative from the Legal Staff.

The worst scenario regarding a potential legal issue is inaction. For one to ignore or to attempt to cover up a potential problem and allow it to grow more severe over time could result in negative consequences to the company and to the employee."

Company Values Template

Template

"Your Name Here" is an outstanding organization for our employees, our customers, and our stakeholders. We will continue our excellence by preserving the founding principles upon which "Your Name Here" was built. Those founding principles are:

Employees

We value and respect the individual, and we strive to recognize the importance of our people:

• Diversity, Individual Dignity, and Mutual Respect
• Employee Participation, Contribution, and Teamwork
• Integrity, Honesty, and Ethical Behavior

Customers

"Your Name Here" endeavors to provide outstanding service, and commits to excellence in everything we do:

• Commitment to Quality and Customer Satisfaction
• Dedication to Service and Personal Responsiveness

Business

The highest standards of conduct and sound business practice execution are the cornerstones of how we sustain dominance:

• Professional Excellence and High Performance
• Innovation, Creativity, and Open-Mindedness
• Growth, Profitability, and Industry Leadership