Why Should Company Strategies Be Ethical?
1. There are two reasons why a company’s strategy should be ethical:
a. Because a strategy that is unethical in whole or in part is morally wrong and reflects badly on the character of the company personnel involved
b. Because an ethical strategy is good business and is in the self-interest of shareholders
2. There are solid business reasons to adopt ethical strategies even if most company managers are not of strong moral character and personally committed to high ethical standards:
a. Pursuing unethical strategies puts a company’s reputation at high risk and can do lasting damage
b. Rehabilitating a company’s shattered reputation is time consuming and costly
c. Customers shun companies known for their shady behavior
d. Companies with reputations for unethical conduct have considerable difficulty in recruiting and retaining talented employees
CORE CONCEPT: Conducting business in an ethical fashion is in a company’s enlightened self-interest.
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