Integrated Ethics Essay – Exxon Mobil David B. Dykstra Cornerstone University BUS-503 – Prof. James Fyock Introduction In order to operate ethically in a global marketplace, corporations like Exxon Mobil need to define the conduct that they expect from their officers, executives, managers and employees. Without a defined code of conduct, employees feel forced to use their personal mores to determine what actions they should take in ethically ambiguous situations. Like children on a playground, employees need to know where the fences are so that they can work effectively. The Eight Principles In order for the directors and executives in any company to know that their employees are acting in an ethical manner, they need a defined …show more content…
All officers, executives, managers, and employees should respect the privacy of all employees, customers, and other stakeholders. The dignity principle also explicitly forbids child labor and allows the employees to have the option to join a union for representation. Finally, this principle calls on all stakeholders to respect other cultures and beliefs (Stanwick & Stanwick, 2009). The fairness principle requires that all stakeholders be treated fairly and it defines fairness in four ways. Reciprocal fairness speaks to treating other parties fairly and having them treat the company and its employees properly as well. Distributive fairness discusses the proper allocation of limited corporate resources to maximize their benefit for the company as a whole. Competitive fairness involves interaction with existing and potential competitors. Competitive fairness must include fair treatment of your competitors and does not allow collusion, bribes, or other illegal relationships. Procedural fairness requires that the company and its employees treat all parties that interact with the firm properly and with due process, including any internal employees who notify authorities of any illegal actions taking place at the company (Stanwick & Stanwick, 2009). The key aspect of the citizenship principle is that every employee should be a responsible citizen in the community. All officers, executives, managers and employees
Furthermore, they give hope to children across the globe struggling with injustice and poverty. With justice being one of the five ethical principles that are critical for leaders to possess. In other words as Aristotle first proposed; respect to others, serves others, shows justice, manifests honesty and builds communities ( Northouse 2106) are key to companies being successful.
Chevron considers itself as an ethical organization. Among Chevron's basic code is Integrity and honesty, which they quote as:
Another important factor to consider is if each of the organization's employees is being treated fairly. An organization should ensure that they create and follow a code of ethics in which employees feel that both the employee and the employer are held accountable and encouraged to be ethical in treatment to one another. This translates as a feeling by employees that the employer trusts them in their jobs and professions and that all employees are treated fairly and justly in all actions and company pursuits. This means that each employee should be treated
ExxonMobil is the largest publicly traded oil and gas producing company. ExxonMobil does business in 200 countries world-wide (1). Some countries are designated for exploring gas and petroleum, and some are designated for manufacturing chemicals, lubricants, and market fuels (1). ExxonMobil's world-class petroleum portfolio gives access to proven reserves of 21.9 billion oil-equivalent barrels of oil and gas, which is the highest in the industry (1). The company's discovered resources consist of 72 billion oil equivalent barrels of oil and gas. On average, each day, they produce 2.5 million barrels of oil and 10.5 billion cubic feet of gas (4). Their asset base, includes more than 60,000 production wells in 1,800 fields in 25 countries.
Finally, I believe is important for companies to follow ethical standards that could assist them to make responsible decisions. The ISO 26000 standards is a document that addresses responsible practices related to organizational governance, human rights, labor practices, the environment, fair operating practices, consumer issues and community involvement and development (Ajeti, S. R., 2016, para. 2-4). for example, When Chevron faces difficult situations, they try to resolve them by answering four questions: (1) is it legal? (2) Is it consistent with the company policy, including human rights policy? (3) is it consistent with the chevron’s core values? (4) if it were made public, would be I be comfortable? (Chevron, 2015, p.
“Analytically, a corporation’s code of ethics is the documented, formal, and legal manifestation of that organization’s expectations of ethical behaviors by its employees” (Adelstein & Clegg, 2016, p. 55). The corporate credos and code of conducts provide employees with an understanding of the policies of the organization and the organizational ethical position. For these codes to be effective, all employees of the organization must be aware of them. The visibility of the code of conduct that enables the organization to be judged as ethical.
1. Consider and discuss the impact of the rising price of gasoline on as many other products and services as possible.
Ethics are very important in the business world and to the general public. Ethics is defined as a system of moral principles or the rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group. Using a moral compass should be a requirement for every CEO and executive. Any person who will have some impact on society needs to understand the difference between right and wrong. Since businesses touch such a large segment of our society, codes of ethics must be established and followed to protect the general public. In the following pages we will discuss the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster and examine how it relates to (1) the state of business ethics since 2000, (2) examples of the classic
This paper introduced Manuel G. Velasquez and his four ethical precepts in business. These four ethical standards are specifically discussed in Chapter 2 of his book, Business Ethics: Concepts and Cases. These four standards or principles are usually used as a guide for people to considerate in making business decisions, which are the utility, rights, the justice and the care. They are described and explained with examples respectively below to indicate basic principles that people should follow as a member of a group when working for a same goal.
In the workplace as well as one’s personal life is essential for ethics to be maintained; often taking the right action is not always the most popular choice. It is important for maintaining an upstanding ethical code of conduct to be a productive individual as well as function as an employee in the workplace.
The central moral issue addressed, in this case, includes the provision of a fair working environment for all employees without any form of discrimination. Worker autonomy, employee morale, and business development are the main factors at stake when an organization does not provide a fair working environment for the employees.
Citizenship Principle. It is based on the belief that every employee should act as a responsible citizen in the community. It is also expected that employees respect the laws of the community. Furthermore, it is expected that employees protect and preserve public goods or commons available to the community. It is also expected that employees should be cooperative with community officials.
Ethics are a great concern for professionals because a company 's behavior will have a strong influence on its reputation and its success. Moral issues arise in business when individuals face a decision that involves choosing between the right and the wrong. However, as simple as it may sound, making the right choice is not an easy task since moral law is not written down like legal law, and consequently each individual has its own view on the matter (Jenman, 2014). This is why firms implement ethical codes of conduct which have a strong influence on how employees act, since they will refer to it when facing a difficult decision.
Exxon-Mobil is the world’s largest privately owned multi-national oil and gas company (Skjaerseth 2003). For companies as large as ExxonMobil, which possess considerable capital resources and are able to exert considerable power and influence, society is increasingly demanding that they behave in a socially responsible manner (Diara, Alilo, and McGuire 2004). There is a growing expectation that companies will adopt a business approach that illustrates responsibility to society above and beyond the economic function and legal performance of the firm (Gibbs 2009). This expectation can be understood as an implicit social contract. One of the underlying
In their personal and professional lives, people can and, unfortunately, sometimes do go against their moral and ethical standards. Ethical standards are what it means to be a good person, the social rules that govern our behavior. Ethics in business is essentially the study of what constitutes the right and wrong or the good or bad behavior in the workplace environment. A business is an organization whose objective is to provide goods or services for profit. The organization has a group of people that work together to achieve a common purpose. The moral challenges that these men and women face each day along with a whole range of problems that could occur, are why ethics plays such an important