Personal Code Of Ethics By James Svara Summary

James Svara defines ethics as “well based standards of rights and wrongs that prescribe what humans ought to do, usually in terms of duties, principles, specific virtues, or to benefit society” (pp.12) Ethical behavior is one of the largest cornerstones when it comes to productivity and quality within a business. Employee behavior has a strong connection with the legitimacy of a business and within society. The ones who are judged on their ethical behavior within a work place usually are criticized for what they speak and how they act. When a person of power at their respective job is looked at closely under the microscope, a lot of unwanted things could be found very easily. In this case, a city manager has created a tight bond with one of
Possessing the ability to constantly check to see if it is the “right” or “wrong” thing to do is a great guide on making good decisions. Good behavior and decision-making skills helps in the eyes of the person in charge and could help with advancing in the ranks at a respective business. Intending to do the right thing is something that every person participates in, but it does not always happen with ethics in mind. Svara explains this phenomenon in his book when he comments that “the unethical official may be driven by ego and overwhelming commitment to accomplish his or her own goals” (pp.112). The city manager could be using this person to advance her plans in moving up the ladder in her career goals. Having a code of ethics to follow helps people follow the rules and stay out of trouble when it comes to advancing their own careers. In this specific incident, the city manager has good intentions in telling the councilmember exclusive information, but when in fact she is executing unethical
Confession of what she was doing with the councilmember, and the information that was passed between the two would be given to the public and could help determine if she is to keep her job or not. Executing this form of resolution will show that she cares about the integrity of her job title and illustrates her own pride in her career. Realizing that she was in the wrong after disclosing the information with the councilmember will help smooth things over in the long run. Confession is a great form of self-review because it makes a person get all of the wrongdoing off of their chests and relieve stress that has been caused by negative ethical