Ethics in the Workplace

Ethics as a whole are an important part of all aspects of life and a person’s values reflect the way one lives their life both in and out of the work place. An effective manager always understands the issues and makes sure they coincide with a win/win situation for both the company and the consumer. Of course, to be a truly effective as a manager, you need to also be a team player; and that means being a good leader and communicator. Leadership encompasses all of the above; business knowledge, communicating your ideas to others, using your leadership skills to convince or motivate others, or to realize at other times that consensus may depend on negotiation. These managerial qualities depend upon the values of respecting another person’s opinion and wanting to treat another person like you would want to be treated.

Discussion

Doing a task to the best of my ability is the most important ingredient in my value system. This includes working hard and continuing to strive to improve both myself and the product or service I provide to the consumer. Your personal values can be tested at times by practices in the business environment which are unethical (i.e. – pricing improprieties, polluting the environment, evading taxes, etc.). If I can maintain my work ethic while still continuing to provide the best service or product then all of my personal values should fall into place.

According to the Williams Institute for Ethics and Management I rely the most heavily on a person’s character in regards to his/her ethics. “You look for evidence of virtue in people, including such traits as honor, justice, and benevolence, believing that a virtue is not just an abstract principle.” (www.ethics-twi.org, para. 1). The test also showed that I wait for people to demonstrate these qualities before making my decision on whether or not they are an ethical person. As stated by Aristotle, “Although there is no way to measure the morality, or virtue, of a person other than...