Managerial Ethics
• Identify typical ethical problems of managers.
• Recognize differences in ethical behavior and responsibility between an employee and a manager.
Course Assignments
4. Readings
• Read Ch. 6 & 7 of Managing Business Ethics.
• Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings.
5. Learning Team Instructions
• Begin preparing for the Ethics in the Workplace Case Study Action Plan Presentation due in Week Five by reading one of the following case studies from Managing Business Ethics as assigned by your facilitator. The case studies are found in the text near the end of the given chapter.
o Merck and River Blindness in Ch. 2 o Pinto Fires in Ch. 4 o Sears, Roebuck, and Co.: The Auto Center Scandal in Ch. 7 o Videotek Corporation in Ch. 9 o Culture Change at Texaco in Ch. 9 o An Unethical Culture in Need of Change: Tap Pharmaceuticals in Ch. 9
6. Learning Team Assignment: Current Ethical Issue in Business Paper
• Research information on an issue that deals with business ethics from a newspaper, magazine, journal, TV, or the Internet.
• Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word paper in which you analyze the issue and address the following:
o Clearly define the issue. o What seems to be the basis of the issue? o Identify ground rules that manifested the situation. o What ethical change, deficiency, or conflict brought it about? o Which ethical systems were at work for key individuals in the organization—managers, executives, and employees? o How did the organizational leadership come into play? How did ethical behavior and responsibility differ between employees and management? Pay particular attention to the role of middle management and executive management in causing or resolving the issue.
• Propose a plan for revising the ethical standards to resolve the issue for the company. Address how the plan affects employees and management.
o Include prescriptive and psychological approaches. o The plan must