Apple and Ethics
APPLE INC. & ETHICS
Management/521
October 29, 2012
Professor William Beattie
Scenario
“Insider trading is the buying or selling of a security by someone who has access to material, nonpublic information about the security” (Investopedia, 2012).
A deal has been made by all major cell phone companies with Apple to provide the IPhone 6. The development of this deal will significantly increase Apple’s market shares and stocks as a cell phone provider. In return, the announcement of the new product launch will affect its stock prices in a positive way. There are key parties’ privy of desiring this knowledge including Apple’s Board of Directors, the Board of Directors from other leading cell phone providers and their acquaintances. The information regarding the launch of the IPhone 6 is confidential and can be used to make some individuals or organizations very wealthy. Some members from Apple plan to make the information about this deal known a week in advance to these outside cell phone companies before the news goes public. During this time there are many situations where legality and ethics come into play. Information pertaining to the new IPhone 6 is going to be used to make trades known before the general public is aware and insider trading is a major concern.
What does a company like Apple have to incorporate into its organizational guidelines to prevent insider training from occurring? Ideally, how would we as a team use the outcomes from our ethical values assessments to deal with the unethical decision practices of insider training?
Introduction
According to the on-line article Apple Inc.’s Ethical Success and Challenges (2011), “In 1976, Apple Computers was established by Steve Jobs and Steven Wozniak in Cupertino, California…[by] the year 1977, Apple Incorporated went public with its first line of computer devices to fill the desired consumer needs” (Sawayda & Ferrell, 2011). Currently, Apple Incorporated is recognized as one of
Management/521
October 29, 2012
Professor William Beattie
Scenario
“Insider trading is the buying or selling of a security by someone who has access to material, nonpublic information about the security” (Investopedia, 2012).
A deal has been made by all major cell phone companies with Apple to provide the IPhone 6. The development of this deal will significantly increase Apple’s market shares and stocks as a cell phone provider. In return, the announcement of the new product launch will affect its stock prices in a positive way. There are key parties’ privy of desiring this knowledge including Apple’s Board of Directors, the Board of Directors from other leading cell phone providers and their acquaintances. The information regarding the launch of the IPhone 6 is confidential and can be used to make some individuals or organizations very wealthy. Some members from Apple plan to make the information about this deal known a week in advance to these outside cell phone companies before the news goes public. During this time there are many situations where legality and ethics come into play. Information pertaining to the new IPhone 6 is going to be used to make trades known before the general public is aware and insider trading is a major concern.
What does a company like Apple have to incorporate into its organizational guidelines to prevent insider training from occurring? Ideally, how would we as a team use the outcomes from our ethical values assessments to deal with the unethical decision practices of insider training?
Introduction
According to the on-line article Apple Inc.’s Ethical Success and Challenges (2011), “In 1976, Apple Computers was established by Steve Jobs and Steven Wozniak in Cupertino, California…[by] the year 1977, Apple Incorporated went public with its first line of computer devices to fill the desired consumer needs” (Sawayda & Ferrell, 2011). Currently, Apple Incorporated is recognized as one of