Application of Business ethics principals

Application of Business ethics principals

Application of Business ethics principals

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The main function of the application of Business ethics principals is to bring profit to the firm while keeping in consideration the wellbeing of all the stakeholders. When it comes to the maintenance of a healthy relationship between the management and the worker unions there are many key aspects that are considered while moving on with decisions. The organization has to ensure that all criterions of ethical and legal bindings are covered. The principals of business ethics guide ev

Business ethics ensure that organizations make profit from the practices they adopt while promoting the wellbeing of their employees and consumers. Many potential risks are associated with product development. That is the case with regulations from authorities that enforce compliance in companies. The firm must ensure that ethical decisions are made to prevent legal action against the company. They should disable all causes of harm to human life. The moral principles guide people to make correct assertions when faced with a dilemma. This attitude contributes to the wellbeing of the community and maintains a good reputation of the company. Many organizations have engaged various processes that assess products and services to ensure that they conform to the laws. However, a significant difference exists between actions that are legal and those that are moral. Notably, the law does not restrict some activities, yet they are not morally correct since they confer potential harm to humanity. Therefore, while following the four virtues (prudence, temperance, fortitude, justice) on the ethics checklist and five P’s (purpose, pride, patience, persistence, and perspective.) it becomes necessary to evaluate different options.

The scenario under consideration involves Ruth, a group leader of the product development team in a company that sells a major food product. After carefully analyzing the constituents of the product, Ruth found that some natural occurring flavor components include minute quantities of pyrolysis. Research has shown that this product causes cancer to animals, particularly when given in large amounts over an extended period of time. Ruth’s company manufactures the food product in bulk and distributes it to a large population. Furthermore, it has been used for centuries around the world without implications of causing cancer to the consumers. These findings are disturbing since they require careful evaluation and consideration before taking action, as it might cause detrimental economic loss to the company. On the other hand, this information troubles Ruth since continuous manufacturing of the product exposes many people to cancer. Additionally, it was difficult to present the findings since the product complies with the current regulations instituted by the authorities. The Delaney Clause of the Pure Food and Drug Act cautions companies against adding synthetic components that cause cancer. However, regulations against the naturally occurring chemicals that lead to the disease are not established in the United States. As such, Ruth must decide concerning the best approach to address this issue without harming the company or the consumers.

The four moral virtues provide a foundation for universal morality that applies to every person in the world. It is based on principles, such as prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. Prudence allows people to make correct judgments by identifying the right and wrong in each situation. Justice ensures that individual functions establish fairness to others by honoring their rights. Fortitude provides people with the strength to act in ways that promote justice and prudence. Finally, temperance attempts to restrain individuals from over-reaching their desires, thereby, leading to adverse consequences. According to these virtues, it would be imprudent for Ruth to ignore or quash the report. This tendency fails to conform to the ‘right reason applied to practice’ since the findings indicate a potential threat to human life. If the report judges the situation incorrectly, it can have dire consequences to others. Additionally, it is unjust to suppress the information since it denies the consumers their right to purchase safety food products. In this regard, Ruth can develop a plan to remove the impurities from the final product to ensure the users are not exposed to the cancer-causing components. Therefore, moral virtues are imperative as they guide a person in an ethical problem and provide a fair solution to the involved parties.

The ethics checklist is a comprehensive document that helps researchers to address the conventions on legality and honesty. It is evident that some matters are not morally right even when they are legally acceptable. For instance, although it is legal to manufacture and sell cigarettes, it is morally wrong since they cause harmful health problems to their users. Similarly, Ruth understands that the food product complies with the current regulations and has been approved for consumption. She is well aware that although the organization is not legally accountable, it is morally guilty of distributing potentially harmful food products. Therefore, Ruth should submit a report to her superiors, detailing the whole problem and the possible consequences. However, since her superiors might decide to disregard her claim, she should be ready to notify a consumer-protection organization as a last resort. For Ruth, it is not rash to take the matter to her superiors since they have the authority to decide the best action for the company and the customers. Summarizing the compounds found in the food product and submitting the article to a reputable journal without mentioning cancer, does not provide an immediate solution to the problem. It is imperative that Ruth consider the ethics checklist to determine whether the project findings can alter the legislation concerning the food product.

The Five P’s are essential ethical tools that help an individual to make the correct decision regarding adopting the best alternatives. They include purpose, pride, patience, persistence, and perspective. The purpose of Ruth’s actions should promote the business ethics where the first move is to report the matter to the authority in the organization. Conversely, notifying a consumer-protection organization infers that Ruth is not a patient. Consequently, this situation can result in legal litigations that can lead to the closure of the company. However, she should be persistent in convincing her superiors to adopt an effective strategy that will eliminate the cancer-causing components of the product. Ruth can enhance her perspective on the issue by examining the situation exhaustively before making the decision. This approach will enable her to offer the solutions that protect the reputation of the company and prevent further customer’s exposure to cancer.

In conclusion, the moral virtues, including the ethics checklist and the Five P’s, are important ethical tools that can help to examine the credibility of various options when dealing with a moral problem. Ruth has found that natural chemical compounds contained in the food product that her company produces can cause cancer to their users. It becomes her responsibility to institute business ethics and ensure that consumer safety is maintained. The moral virtues are against quashing the report since it deviates from a correct judgment between right and wrong. Reporting the matter to her superiors is an excellent move to reconsider the production process and the probable mitigation measures. Submitting the findings to a journal without mentioning cancer fails to produce an immediate solution to the problem. The Five P’s can be instrumental in creating a process of delegation and plan implementation to ensure that both the company and customer are protected. Lastly, reporting to a consumer-protection organization should be the last resort after the superiors have refused to rectify the issue.