In the current essay I would like to consider business ethics issue, in particular, answer the following questions: what reasons are there to apply ethical standards to business at all and what motivates business to follow ethical principles. To begin with it should be noted that personal ethics and morality are the actual core of human behavior. It can be said that installation of our personal ethics are the guiding for our further actions. As a matter of fact, business ethics is one of the most important, but at the same time the least studied areas of modern business life. As a fact, scope of business ethics deals with issues how certain business practice is acceptable. For example, does the vendor have the moral right at an organized presentation of products to hide information from the client about the low standards of a product safety? Should the accountant report inaccuracies found in the audit, knowing that in this case, the client is likely to cease cooperation with his firm? Should car manufacturers use expensive new parts, providing security, knowing that for this reason that car becomes too expensive for the client? Despite the legality of such situations, decisions and actions, the latter should be evaluated in terms of various indicators, not just in the scale of “true-false”. As a fact, these questions relate to business ethics’ sphere of activity, which is extremely contradictory, according to Neil Kokemulle (2011).
As a matter of fact, business and ethics can not be considered separately from each other. In their daily work and activity, people at any level will inevitably face the need to make ethical decisions. As a rule, ethical issues arise in the field of management, marketing, manufacturing, research, human resources, financial management, business strategists, and many others, but what motivates business to follow ethical principles? Answering this question, it can be said that ethical and responsible activity contributes to the creation of new competencies, because it draws its members within the entire organization and contributes to the future-oriented/ holistic approach to leadership style and better prepares the company to both external and internal changes, crises. Hence, business ethics creates confidence, improves reputation, and helps to maintain good relations with various groups, including, customers, partners, owners, investors and organizations, as well as banks and the media. I am convinced that ethical and responsible activity helps to improve the attractiveness of the company in finding good employees, to maintain the goodwill of members and enhance the value and reliability of an enterprise, to provide a consistent and constant development of the enterprise. As a fact, ethical and responsible activity affects not only individuals and interest groups, but also the interests and profitability of the organization. Thus, in other words, business ethics is a way to better manage the enterprise.
Many experts have different definitions of what ethics is. To find a common ground I would like to provide some of them, which in my opinion, characterize this concept the most accurately. According to William H. Shaw, Vincent Barry (2006), ethics ”“ is a measurement of human thought and behavior that emanates from the principles of goodness and correctness. Ethics ”“ is an attempt to define the rules that should guide human activities and life values. Ethics defines how people should treat each other. Ethics ”“ is a set of values that are positive and correct. Personally I think that all these definitions bear in themselves the answer for the question what is ethic. For me, ethics is a set of behavior rules of a person or organization that create its image and attitude to the person or organization by customers, partners, investors, media, authorities and so on. According to William H. Shaw, Vincent Barry (2006), there are following ethical values: “Honesty, integrity, promise-keeping, fidelity, fairness, caring for others, respect for others, responsible citizenship, pursuit for excellence and accountability”.