Ethics and social responsibility are a part of everyday life around the globe. From the time a business begins, ethics and social responsibility play an important role in deciding what direction that business will take, and how the company will turn a profit. Ethical behavior is critical to strategic planning for businesses. In order to be successful, businesses must consider themselves a part of the business community, as well as society. Making money is not unethical; however, money cannot be the driving force of ethical thinking within a business (ethics.org, 2008).
This paper will discuss the statement "strict government regulations are necessary to make companies behave ethically". An examination of this statement in accordance of ethics and social responsibility, as well as the impact government regulations have on these responsibilities will be discussed. Why I agree or do not agree with the thesis or premise behind the chosen statement will conclude the paper.
Looking east from Manhattan College Parkway at 445...
2 West 64th Street, New York, NY (Ethical Culture ...
Michael Oxley , U.S. Senator from Maryland.Before the Enron scandal at the turn of the century, social responsibility, and ethical behavior were, for the most part, more for show. If a shareholder or potential investor saw these guidelines in place, they were more apt to go along with that company, rather than go with one which had no guidelines in place. The world learned a hard lesson after the fall of Enron, and other large corporations, that appearances are not everything (Johnson, K., 2002). However, what exactly is ethical behavior and social responsibility? Why does society feel these are so important?Ethical behavior is that which is morally accepted as good and right as opposed to bad or wrong in a particular setting (Merriam-webster.com, 2008). To whose standards the good and right, or bad and wrong are compared to, have yet to be determined. Each individual who enters a company brings his or her...