ethical dilemma

(noun)

A complex situation that often involves an apparent mental conflict between moral imperatives, in which obeying one means transgressing another.

Examples of ethical dilemma in the following topics:

  • Ethical Conflicts

    • A person who must choose between competing moral imperatives faces an ethical dilemma.
    • Several ideas from political philosophy can guide managers in resolving an ethical dilemma:
    • Justice: Another way to consider an ethical dilemma is by considering the principle that all people should be treated equally.
    • Common good: Finally, resolving an ethical dilemma might mean considering whether one choice is more in keeping with the long-term welfare of all affected parties.
    • Discuss the innate contradictions that often arise in an ethical dilemma, where two or more different moral imperatives conflict
  • Applying the Decision Tree

    • Decision tree analysis can be a useful tool for evaluating ethical decisions.
    • Decision trees can be applied to ethical considerations.
    • Consider an ethical dilemma involving a colleague.
    • The top box of the decision tree would state "Colleague Dilemma."
    • Decision trees therefore support the evaluation process and can help clarify often-complex ethical dilemmas.
  • Training Ethical Decision Making

    • Organizations use compliance and ethics programs to demonstrate and reinforce their commitment to ethical practices.
    • On a more practical level, a compliance and ethics program supports the organization's business objectives, identifies the boundaries of legal and ethical behavior, and establishes a system to alert management when the organization is getting close to (or crossing) a legal or ethical boundary.
    • Most ethics training focuses on clarifying and communicating an organization's ethical code so employees understand what is expected.
    • Some ethics training will also cover the resources available to help employees when they face an ethical dilemma or suspect that someone in the organization has made an ethical breach.
    • In every type of business, ethics are needed to keep business standards high.
  • Managers Role in Ethical Conduct

    • Managers are responsible for upholding the ethical code and helping others to do so as well.
    • Lastly, managers make themselves available as a resource to counsel and assist employees who face ethical dilemmas or who suspect an ethical breach.
    • Of course, managers are responsible for upholding ethical standards in their own actions and decisions.
    • In addition to following the organization's ethical code, managers may be obligated to follow a separate professional code of ethics, depending on their role, responsibilities, and training.
    • The manager has an important role in maintaining ethical conduct in a firm, but a firm's ethics cannot simply be based on a "manager to the rescue" approach.
  • Applying the Ethical Decision Tree

    • Decision trees are useful analytic tools for considering the ethical dimensions of a decision.
    • Ethics are moral principles that guide a person's behavior.
    • All decisions have an ethical or moral dimension for a simple reason—they have an effect on others.
    • Decision trees can be applied to ethical matters as well.
    • If confronted with an ethical dilemma, creating a decision tree is a useful method for analyzing what the potential outcomes of each action would be, and ultimately, how to proceed.
  • Ethics Training

    • Moral sensitivity, which is "the ability to see an ethical dilemma, including how our actions will affect others."
    • The ability to think through moral issues and dilemmas, then, requires an awareness of a set of moral and ethical values; the capacity to think objectively and rationally about what may be an emotional issue; the willingness to take a stand for what is right, even in the face of opposition; and the fortitude and resilience to maintain one's ethical and moral standards.
    • Explain the role of ethical moral reasoning in the business environment
  • Moral Leadership

    • The ethics leaders exhibit reflects on their organizations, as well on themselves.
    • Acting ethically preserves an organization's legitimacy as it uses societal resources to achieve its aims.
    • Laws establish clear boundaries of what is acceptable, but ethics often involves more ambiguous questions.
    • These dilemmas are where the judgment of a leader comes into play.
    • Apply ethical standards to leadership perspectives, explaining the relevance of integrity and responsibility to leadership
  • Defining Ethics

    • Ethics are the set of moral principles that guide a person's behavior.
    • Ethics are the set of moral principles that guide a person's behavior.
    • The phrases business ethics and corporate ethics are often used to describe the application of ethical values to business activities.
    • Ethics applies to all aspects of conduct and is relevant to the actions of individuals, groups, and organizations.
    • In addition to individual ethics and corporate ethics there are professional ethics.
  • Moral Principles in Management

    • Business ethics deals with the beliefs and principles that guide management decisions.
    • Business ethics (also corporate or professional ethics) is a form of applied ethics that examines the principles and moral beliefs that guide management decisions.
    • This person ensures their organization has statements of ethical principals, clear guideline about acceptable and unacceptable practices, and means of reporting ethical breaches.
    • Availability for advice on ethical situations (i.e., advice lines or offices)
    • Good leaders strive to create a better and more ethical organization.
  • Codes of Conduct

    • As part of comprehensive compliance and ethics programs, many companies formulate policies pertaining to the ethical conduct of employees.
    • There are three types of ethical codes: codes of business ethics, codes of conduct for employees, and codes of professional practice.
    • A code of business ethics often focuses on social issues.
    • The effectiveness of such codes of ethics depends on the extent to which management supports and enforces them.
    • State the importance of utilizing a code of conduct to outline and maintain ethical business standards within an organization
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