Organizational ethics case study.

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1. Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics.

We all have personal preferences and live our lives with different values from each other. I am a teacher and have seen clear examples of this in the teaching profession. Some teachers prefer to wear jeans while others prefer dressing up with dress pants and tie. I have seen the head football coach in a school I taught at in Tennessee, fall asleep at his desk while supposedly teaching a World Geography class. At the same school a college intern who was helping with the football program was unofficially dating one of the senior girls. This college intern was the son of the assistant football coach. In schools were there are dress codes in place for teachers, not all teachers observe them, choosing instead to follow their own personal preferences. Of course most teachers who do not observe the guidelines have tenure and so are insulated from the possibility of being fired. This sets a double standard or an environment of hypocrisy within the organization.

Whether intentional or not members of an organization play a role in the ethics of that organization. Their choice to abide by guidelines or not is important. The way in which they talk about their superiors and the customers or students they serve contributes to an ethical or unethical environment. The way in which students/customers are treated also plays a role. The key to developing a mindset of pursuing organizational ethics before personal preferences is to realize that I am not the ultimate authority. As a member of this organization I have agreed to abide by certain things in order to receive certain benefits in return. Each individual must choose to belong to the organization and abide by its guidelines or find a different organization whose guidelines they can agree with and work under.

2. Discuss how organizational policies and procedures can impact ethics.

While the individuals' preferences and values play a role in determining organizational ethics, the lion's share of the responsibility rests with the organization itself. Policies and procedures are a necessary tool for establishing rules and regulations under which the organization and its members will agree to function. However, it is vital to remember that policies and procedures will not ensure ethical behavior. Ethical behavior will only be the norm if policies ...