School Business Ethics

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School Business Ethics

• SASBO
• April 2006

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Presented by

• L. Freeman Wish, CPA
• Clarksville School District
• 1701 Clark Road
• Clarksville, AR 72830
• 479-705-3200
• fwish_at_mail.cps.k12.ar.us

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Defining Ethics

• 1) the discipline dealing with what is
  good and bad and with moral duty and
  obligation
• 2) a set of moral principles or values
• 3) a theory or system of moral values
• 4) the principles of conduct governing an
  individual or group.

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What Attention is Given To Good Ethical Behavior

• Not Much

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What Attention is Given To Bad Ethical Behavior
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(No Transcript)
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Defining Ethics

• Ethics the rules of conduct or moral principles
  guiding individual or group behavior.
• Business Ethics ethics applied to the workplace
  emphasis on knowing organizational codes and
  guidelines and behaving within those boundaries
  when faced with dilemmas in business or
  professional work.

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Defining Ethics

• Ethics is not about definitions Its about the
  inner impulses, judgments and duties, of people
  like you and me.
• (Kidder)

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Establishing Context

• Three ways to be wrong
• Violation of Law
• Departure from the Truth
• Deviation from Moral Integrity

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The Ethic of Justice

• Focuses on rights and laws
• The individual gives up some rights for the good
  of the whole
• Communal Understandings individuals behaving
  within community

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The Ethic of Caring

• Focuses on the demands of relationships
• Establishes absolute regard for the dignity and
  intrinsic value of each person

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Organizational Values

• Core values
• Organizational mission and objectives
• Strategies and practices

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Its not enough
We Believe
to just establish ethics
or talk ethics
You have to DO ethics !
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Most Admired Top 25 Companies In 2001
FORTUNE
M a g a z i n e
1 General Electric 2 Cisco Systems 3
Microsoft 4 Intel 5 Wal-Mart Stores 6
Sony 7 Dell Computer 8 Nokia 9 Home
Depot 10 Toyota Motor 11 Southwest Airlines
12 Lucent Technologies 15 Coca-Cola 16 Charles
Schwab 17 Johnson Johnson 18 Citigroup 19
Ford Motor 20 Pfizer 21 Merck 22 Walt
Disney 23 American Express 24 United Parcel
Service 25 Enron
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Communication
Respect
Enron established good values
but
they just didnt WALK THE TALK
Excellence
Integrity
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The Andersen Lesson

• After a 6-week trial and 10 days of deliberation,
  a jury found Arthur Andersen guilty of
  obstruction of justice when it destroyed Enron
  Corp. documents while on notice of a federal
  investigation by the SEC.

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The Andersen Lesson

• The jury rejected Arthur Andersens defense that
  the documents were destroyed as part of its
  housekeeping duties and not as a ruse to keep
  Enron documents away from the regulators.

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The Andersen Lesson

• Arthur Andersen received the maximum sentence of
  5 years probation and a 500,000 fine.
• 35,000 people lost their jobs worldwide.
• Court recently overturned Arthur Andersen
  conviction, but it was too late to save the
  company.

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Everyday Stuff

• A recent CBS news report indicated that a survey
  of 1,000 job resumes revealed that 42.7 had at
  least one major falsified item. (3-30-06)
• NBC Today reported a story about man that found
  and turned over to the police a bag containing
  over a million dollars of cash and jewelry and
  the follow-up emails and phone calls revealed
  that 19 of respondents said that they would have
  kept the cash and jewelry. (3-30-06)

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Doing Whats Right
1 Check BEFORE you act! Ethical Action Test

• Is it legal?
• Does it comply with our rules and guidelines?
• Is it in sync with our organizational values?
• Will I be comfortable and guilt-free if I do it?
• Does it match with our stated commitments and
  guarantees?
• Would I do it to my family or friends?
• Would I be perfectly okay with someone doing it
  to me?
• Would the most ethical person I know do it?

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Doing Whats Right
2 Master The 3 Rs!
RESPECT
RESULTS
RESPONSIBILITY
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Common Rationalizations For Not Doing Whats Right
Everyone else does it Theyll never miss
it Nobody will care The boss does it No one
will ever know I dont have time to do it
right Thats close enough Some rules were
meant to be broken Its not my job
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Doing Whats Right
3 Remember that little things mean a
lot!
Examine your own ethical make-up to see where you
stand and where you need to improve.
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Doing Whats Right
4 Know what is not to be compromised
While different organizations provide different
guidelines on operating latitude, there are
several universal areas where zero tolerance for
violations is appropriate
Laws and Regulations Public and Employee
Safety Truthfulness of record and statements
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Doing Whats Right
5 Say NOwith Tact
Heres How!

• State your objection and concern without
  indictment.
• Propose an alternative action that you feel is
  ethical.
• Ask for the persons help and agreement.
• Seek assistance from a higher authority (if
  the person doesnt agree).

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Doing Whats Right
6 When in doubt, ASK!
Forgiveness is easier to get than approval
But on Ethical Issues Approval is easier to
get than forgiveness
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Doing Whats Right
7 Check yourself out!
Ethics Self-Assessment
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Managing Competing Rights Ethical Dilemmas
Right vs. Right
Its right to
BUT
Tell the truth
Be considerate
Create job security
Be profitable
Be concerned with short-term results
Focus on long-term growth and stability
Others?
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Managing Competing Rights

• Eliminate the conflict
• Decide whats more right
• Seek assistance

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The most challenging Right vs. Right of all
To be a good friend and team player AND To be
willing to speak out when someone acts
unethically.
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Everything Counts
Universal Ethics Principle
Ethics is displayed in everything you do and
everything you do counts
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10 Reasons Why Leaders Should Model Ethical
Behavior

• It reduces pressure on employees to compromise
  ethical standards.
• It increases employees willingness to report
  misconduct.
• It improves trust and respect at all levels.
• It protects the positive reputation of the
  organization.
• It encourages early detection of problem areas
  and ethics violations.

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10 Reasons cont.

• It fosters a positive work culture and improved
  customer service.
• It provides an incentive and framework for
  ethical decision making.
• It increases pride, professionalism, and
  productivity.
• It enhances your ability to attract and retain
  high-quality and diverse employees.
• It helps ensure the long-term viability of the
  enterprise.
• Bonus Reason,
• 11. Its purely and simply the right thing to
  do!

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Ethical Issues in Business
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What Would You Do?
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(No Transcript)
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Educational Institutions have established ethics
codes for their students, e.g. the U.S. Air Force
Academy
"We Will Not Lie, Steal Or Cheat, Nor
Tolerate Among Us Anyone Who Does" -- Which
do you think is the harder part Line 1 or
Line 2? Why?
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Is there an ethics crisis in America? One
recent national election day poll indicated that
56 percent of voters thought that Americas
problems are primarily moral and social. Only
36 percent thought that the nations problems
were primarily economic.
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Can ethics be taught? Teddy Roosevelt said, To
educate a person in mind and not in morals is to
educate a menace to society.


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Be sure you are right, then go ahead. Davy
Crockett 1786-1836
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When the situation needs improvement, Gandhi
offers guidance You must be the change you wish
to see in the world.
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To see what is right and not to do it is want of
courage. (Confucius)
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Leadership is a potent combination of strategy
and character. But if you must be without one, be
without strategy. General H. Norman Schwarzkopf
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President Lincoln said Honor is better than
honors.
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A nation or a culture
cannot endure for long
unless it
is undergirded
by common values such
as
valor, public
spiritedness, respect for

others and for the law It cannot stand unless it
is populated by people who will act on the
motives superior to their own immediate interest.
Chuck Colson, Against the Night
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• One man practicing sportsmanship is far better
  than 50 preaching it.
  
  -
  Knute Rockne

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Remember Some Things Are Not As They Appear
Would you trust this group with your future?
Microsoft 1978
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• GOOD LUCK
• ALWAYS REMEMBER THIS!
• IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO HAVE A HAPPY CHILDHOOD