Workers make decisions at all levels of the organization
Whether on the front lines, at the center, or somewhere in between. When working in various capacities, all staff are at risk of encountering ethical quandaries. Having the expertise and experience to solve ethical quandaries will greatly improve decision-making while holding the company on the right side of market opinion or the law. Any of the most popular ethical quandaries in the industry involves wrongful dealing in a distressing situation, which leads to wrongful decisions, balancing confidentiality with blowing a whistle on improper or illegal actions of others and dealing with pressure to act unethically, mainly with seniors who are dominant.
Managers are responsible for the success of the organization
They must ensure employees are empowered to perform their duties efficiently and even act ethically. The management must come up with values that employees are expected to follow. The managers at all level have the duty to maintain the highest ethical behavior. On a daily basis, the managers are faced with decisions that affect the community as well as the company where they work. The managers should know and adhere the legal and ethical standard to meet the needs of stakeholders and set an exemplary example for the rest. The ethical decision making demands that Kaitlyn considers the consequences of their actions before making any decision. For instance, Kaitlyn must deliberate on how the consequences of her actions will affect the employees, creditors, and shareholders.
Issues Presented
Kaitlyn is faced with various ethical issues. First, the company in which she is employed as the manager (Fidditch Lumber) does not have any identified values. The absence of value in any organization can be futile. Lack of values has an adverse impact on the performance of workers. In such a situation, an employee only thinks of how to make a profit or how to meet their targets ignoring protocols and procedures. This can lead to more errors that can make the company incur other expenses in trying to rectify the errors. Also, the workers who feel they are acting ethically will be demoralized and might even decrease their level of performance. Despite the fact the Kaitlyn has presented the issue to the management, Buddy feels adamant to accept the idea of discussing values.
Another ethical issue
that is presented in this case arises from Louis Company (Fidditch largest supplier) which produces woodlots using hazardous pesticides. Kaitlyn tries to convince the senior management about the implications of conducting business with Louis, but the management seems adamant. When she raises the issue on of the Buddy who is one of the managers shuts her down. Buddy is not impressed by her suggestion and even explains that Fidditch Lumber has never told their suppliers how to manage their woodlots and they aren't going to do it at the moment. The main issue arises because the two managers Buddy and Jade lack technical expertise in general corporate management. None of the two managers is a holder of a college degree. If consumers discover that Fidditch Lumber Company uses raw material from a supplier operating unethically, they will stop buying the finished goods.
Importance of Issues Presented To the Stakeholders
The ethical issues presented in this case will affect various stakeholders including customers, employees, and investors. When there is a lack of ethics in any organization, the business will lose credibility (Vazquez, 2016). Manufacturing products using poor quality raw material is likely to harm the customers who will eventually stop buying products from the company, or they might even resort to lawsuits. While the business might be lucky to escape public knowledge through advertising campaigns or reimage, many will eventually lose the market base. The business might not recover from such a situation or it might take a lot of money and time to regain consumer confidence. Keilylin is faced with a dilemma of trying to convince Jade and Buddy that its primary supplier of raw material is operating unethically.
Lack of ethics can also hurt employees' performance.
The business lacks values indicating that they might fail to play by the rules. When the manager of the business lacks technical expertise, they face losing the respect of the workers. Managers should have the technical expertise to offer guidance to workers. Jade and Buddy are the key decision-makers in this company but lack the necessary knowledge on how a business is run. It became hard to have the successful business without well-respected leaders. The absence of ethical guidelines can also cause tension among the workers. Unethical behavior at the workplace can also lead to stress among the workers who adhere to ethics which can be disastrous to the business because it relies on closer collaboration. The shareholders also stand a chance to lose if customers discover that the company has been using the uncertified raw material to produce finished goods. The company should also channel a portion of its funds to corporate social responsibility if it aims to create a closer relationship with the community where it operates.
What Should Kaitlyn Do?
Rallying Senior Management to Accept Change: Kaitlyn should rally the senior management to adopt the corporate code of ethics proposal. Coming up with the code of ethics will make future decision-making easier. Currently, the business works with an unethical supplier because it lacks values that guide their operations. The company's owners make some of the farthest-reaching decisions that contribute to the ethical dilemma. In this case study, Buddy, who is one of the owners of the company, refused to discuss social corporate responsibility despite the fact that the business should be responsible to the society where it operates. Despite the fact that Kaylyn presents some of the recommendations that are crucial for business sustainability, the business owners seem to ignore this decision.
Advantages of Rallying For Enactment of Code of Ethics
The company will have a set of guidelines that govern its operations, meaning that employees will operate appropriately. The existence of a code of ethics also means the suppliers will be forced to act appropriately if they want to conduct business with Fidditch Lumber.
Disadvantages
The code of ethics might not work if the business owners do not support them. It is important that the management supports the code of ethics and they should be part of the business culture.
Speaking To Colleagues
Katlyn can speak to the colleagues and peers of the business without divulging the firm's secrets. The manager should consider speaking to the specialists to gain a wider range of insights. The manager should also consider reading an article about other companies that faced similar situations and how they dealt with them. Reading about how other companies performed can give Kaylyn a glimpse of how to make decisions.
Advantages
Seeking guidance from external parties increases the depth of knowledge, meaning the manager will make accurate decisions that do not harm the company. Reading other similar ethical cases from other companies gives the manager confidence in handling this particular situation.
Disadvantages
Seeking guidance from external parties is likely to leak business decisions to outsiders. Leaking important business information can harm the operations because competitors will take advantage of them. Reading articles from earlier cases might not give the manager a specific solution that is similar to this case.
Alternative ways of acting in this situation
Negotiation is another strategy that can be adopted by this company (Moore, 2005). Through negotiation, the rules made can go a long way. The management should try to talk to the supplier to abandon the use of dangerous pesticides. This is the best way to solve this problem without arousing curiosity from members of the public or even customers. The organization's operations must also be guided by impartial standards of equity and fairness. Katlyn should also take some time and discuss with the company's owners about essential business practices such as corporate social responsibility and why the business should take part. In the case, the business owners lack the necessary expertise, implying that they might make wrong decisions. The executive team members should appreciate Katlyn's effort in trying to make this company up to standard and should provide unique insights into the problem.
References
Moore, G. (2005). The Institute of Business Ethics/European Business Ethics Network-UK Student Competition in Business Ethics. Business Ethics: A European Review, 14(1), 76-76.
Vazquez, P. (2016). Family Business Ethics: At the Crossroads of Business Ethics and Family Business. Journal of Business Ethics.
