1. Running head: ETHICAL DECISION 1
Decisions made on Ethical Theory
Dawn M. Gibson
IP-2 Leadership and Ethical Decision Making- Jeoffrey Jenkins
Colorado Technical University
2. ETHICAL DECISION 2
Abstract
In business there can be many grey areas, where decisions have to be made. These decisions
should be ethical decisions and may need time to think the whole situation over. This paper will
talk about ethical decisions, what it is, how to determine which would be the right path to take.
There are some decisions that will be easy, and others which people are not quite sure. There are
times when decisions may be made because of pressure, threats, or other situations which may
push a person into the wrong decision. These are decisions each one of us will have to live with,
it is hoped that many will never have to face the life threatening one. Life threatening is probably
the most difficult decision people have to make; this paper will touch the subject but not go into
detail about it.
3. ETHICAL DECISION 3
The Situation
Joe Smith is working on a merger between UWEAR and PALEDENIM, which are linen
companies who deal with Bill Batemen (CEO for Peninsula Hotel). UWEAR (CEO is
TomTramlin) and PALEDENIM (CEO Mike Miller) are counting on Joe Smith to do the right
thing. Bill has told Joe that Threads4U (CEO Samantha) has made a 10% lower offer for their
services. The question here is, is this Ethical for Bill to be telling Joe this? Joe has gotten grief
from his boss the last time he closed a deal with Bill at a discount. Steve Maine has been hired;
he works for ALTAP Consulting, who is a mediator or consultant for these issues.
The second situation is that Bill has asked Joe and his family for a family outing on his
Yacht. This is the weekend before the final decisions are made. Bill and Joe apparently have had
friendly relations prior so the question would be would this be an ethical one?
This certainly is a grey area because many times, people in business form friendly bonds/
relationships. There is nothing wrong with it as long as you leave business aside. Business and
Personal should be separate in all things unless you are partners within the same company. This
is where it can be a dangerous or conflicting situation as information could be leaked. This is
how inside trading occurs “accidently” or not. It is best whenever negotiations, contracts or other
important decisions are being decided on, that there is no personal or private meetings going on
that could be misunderstood as a conflict of interest. Ethical Relativism can sometimes occur
when different cultures are conducting business, but there is no indication this is the situation.
(Andre, Meyer, Shanks, & Velasquez, 1992)
The Response
Joe must think of all possibilities before he answers this invitation. This could fall into
the professional gifting, which is a grey area. There may be not set boundaries or code of ethics
4. ETHICAL DECISION 4
given. Gifting could have its hidden agendas, and Joe must consider this. Joe has accepted gifts
in the past but he should reconsider. Their relationship has been strained during this, and Joe
should see that this may be due to Bill wanting a better deal and making Joe feel obligated by
being extra friendly. Joe should respond that although this invitation is very inviting, that he has
to decline for several reasons. One is that he needs to consider his family may have plans, and
two he really needs to review the offers and make sure everything is ready. It would be on both
of their best interests if they postponed this invite. Should Bill be angry, than is agendas are not
professional but selfish. Business meeting should occur within the office of business with all
involved and not in private meetings where suspicion can occur. This keeps everything
professional as well as ethical (Schultz, 2008).
Pillars of Ethical Decisions
There are six pillars of character to deciding the ethical decision one may make. These
are:
1 Trustworthiness
Honest
Integrity
Reliability (keeping promises)
Loyalty
2 Respect
Civility, Courtesy, and Decency
Dignity and Autonomy
Tolerance and Acceptance
3- Responsibility
5. ETHICAL DECISION 5
Accountability
Pursuit of Excellence
Self- Restraint
4 Fairness
Process
Impartiality
Equality
5 Caring
6 Citizenship
(Josephson, N.d)
Joe should review these characters and decide how he wants to be seen as. This is where he
decides to do the ethical decision making, while becoming a respected person. These characters
are very important for any business and should always be kept in mind.
The Conflict
What is the conflict? The conflict is while negotiations are going on Bill has asked Joe and
his family along on a family outing on their yacht. Will Bill benefit from this offer? Is Bill
seeking to benefit from this offer? While it seems that Joe and Bill have been friends, the timing
could not be more wrong. What we do know is that Joe and Bill have negotiations coming up
and Bill has hinted or stated he would like a better deal than Threads4U which offered a 10%
cut. This init self is a questionable act of ethical misconduct. We know this is the weekend
before the decision. This is where it should be decided if it is unethical to accept Bill’s offer. If
Bill and Joe are truly friend this could be postponed for a more appropriate time. This would be
like buying a teenager a mustang and telling them they couldn’t drive. You bought the car for the
6. ETHICAL DECISION 6
teenager, but yet you are not allowing them to drive, what would be the conflict. This teenager
would do almost anything to drive the car, even if it meant stealing the keys. They know it is
their car, and they will drive it one day. The issue becomes ethical when the child decides to steal
the keys, because if they are careful no one will ever know. The problem is they could have an
accident, someone may see them and report back to the parents, or perhaps everything turns out.
The point is the teenager would know inside and should feel guilty they betrayed a request from
their parents. They have betrayed themselves as well as now they know they cannot be trusted as
will the parents should they find out.
Style
Joes’ decision will be based on his style, Joe’s looks to be leaning on the accommodating
style, when he should be either collaborating or compromising. These are:
Accommodating (agreeing to make the other party happy)
Competitive (winning at all cost)
Avoiding (ignoring conflict or running from it)
Collaborating (assure both sides win)
Compromising (each involved gives up and item for a final outcome)
(Andre, Meyer, Shanks, & Velasquez, 1992)
Ethical Theories
Joe should be using the Utilitarianism theory, which is for the good of all involved. It sounds
as if he is using the care theory which is based on how much Bill will like these decisions. Bill is
using the Egoism theory as he only cares about his end. These are the Ethical Theories:
Egoism (oneself) [This is Bill]
Utilitarianism (The good for all involved)
7. ETHICAL DECISION 7
Deontology (By the book)
Care (Based on relationships) [Joe]
Virtue (moral values)
(Board, 2015)
Decisions should also be made on personal and organizational levels. Programmed are
guidelines and non- programmed have no guidelines. This is a decision now as many have grey
areas or loopholes that need to be closed and color coordinated. Group decision making should
be based on steps. Identify the problem/ situation, compose a list of pros and cons, access each
decision and the possible outcomes, decide on a certain path, select it and evaluate it for all
possibilities. Good and bad (Board, 2015). There should always be a backup plan when things go
wrong. It should be planned rather than experienced. There should be an outlet should things not
go according to plans, and there should be a failsafe avenue already planned. The better the plan
is looked at and discussed, the better the outcome. This should be Joe’ only focus, because this is
not just about Joe and Bill but all involved who a counting on him to make a great decision for
everyone involved!!
8. ETHICAL DECISION 8
References
Andre, C., Meyer, M.J., Shanks, S.J., Velasquez, M. (1992). Ethical Relativism. Issue of Ethics.V(5),
N(2), (Summer 1992). [2014]. Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University.
Retrieved from http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/ethicalrelativism.html
Board, E. (2015). Leadership and Ethical Decision Making. [VitalSource Bookshelf version].
Retrieved from http://legacy.vitalsource.com/books/9781938390708/epubcfi/6/14
Josephson, M. (N.d). Making ethical decisions. Retrieved from
http://josephsoninstitute.org/MED/#contents
Schultz, D. (2008). The Ethical Problem of Professional Gifting. [cover story]. PA Times, 31(6), 3.
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/http://justinsblogtime.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/cosores-ethical-decision-making-tree.jpg
