Decision making Essay

Overview My experience in the business world has shown a variety of ethical decision making practices. The beauty industry has a somewhat skewed view of ethics as it appeals to the vanity and esteem of consumers around the world. The health care industry must provide health care to its customers yet maintain the business with the goals of making a profit. Yale University is known for its research in the fields of science and medical technology. All these companies practice ethics, but view ethical behavior in a different way. This paper will explore the definition and principles of ethics and discuss the impact of ethics on the decision making process in the work place. Definition Pearson Custom Publishing (Pearson, 1998-2002) defines ethics as the â€Å"standards of conduct and moral judgment. † Markula Center for Applied Ethics (1995-1998) defines ethics as those standards that compel one to refrain from committing crimes against another person such as stealing, murder, assault, slander, and fraud. It is also the standards that encourage honesty, integrity, compassion and loyalty. Ethics is not a religious principle, nor is it based on â€Å"feelings† about a particular problem. It cannot be defined as a legal practice because laws are created to protect rights, not manage ethical principles. While the definition may seem clear, ethics as a practice is somewhat ambiguous since interpretation plays a big part in how people perceive right from wrong. The Markala Center for Applied Ethics (1995-1998) states that in order to understand the meaning of ethics we must find answers the following questions, â€Å"According to what standards are these actions right or wrong? What character traits (like honesty, compassion, fairness) are necessary to live a truly human life? † Defining ethics is relatively easy compared to practicing ethics in the work place. Since the primary concern of most businesses is the bottom line, the ethical views may differ based on the type of business. Ethical views of employees may also differ from the views of the company. This can cause conflict among workers and management as companies strive to improve the bottom line. Personal ethics may be compromised in an effort to keep a job. In business, what are the ground rules? Since ethics is not an exact science it is easy believe that if it is legal it is ethical and therefore acceptable. This is not always the case and recent examples of Enron and Microsoft prove this point. Enron has shown us that greed can interfere with good judgment and the impact of their decisions was grave. Microsoft is another company whose ethics have been questioned as it strives to maintain its place as the software giant. Is it unethical for Microsoft to work towards the demise of its competitor Netscape? Or is this the normal competitive spirit. Another good example is the beauty industry that built a billion dollar business convincing consumers that cosmetics and perfumes will make them perform better, become more powerful and/or more popular if the products are used. Is this behavior legal, yes. Ethical, well, that is questionable and based on personal interpretation. So how can ethical behavior be judged? Markala Center for Applied Ethics (1999) provides the following questions to help us more clearly ascertain ethical behavior. â€Å"Is there something wrong personally, interpersonally, or socially? Is there conflict that could be damaging to people?to animals or the environment? to institutions? to society? Does the issue go deeper than legal or institutional concerns? What does it do to people as persons who have dignity, rights, and hopes for a better life together? â€Å" These questions will help us to get the facts necessary to understand the problem, but we also need to know the values. Markula Center for Applied Ethics (1995-1998) suggests asking these additional questions to further determine values; â€Å"Is the solution to this problem for the common good of the community? Does it violate any rights? Is it fair and non-discriminatory? Will it benefit the majority of the people? † So when a problem occurs that requires a solution, it is necessary to review these questions and ask ourselves, based on a desired approach, if the outcome is ethical. This can be a difficult decision since often there is clearly no right or wrong answer. How could ethics benefit the decision making process? Incorporating ethics in the decision making process could making the process easier or more difficult. Easier by providing an additional layer that would justify a difficult decision based on whether it was ethically right or wrong. Ethics could make the decision making process easier by helping to eliminate choices that would not benefit all parties involved. For instance, let’s say there is a company who produces steel wires for construction projects. They need to build a larger factory in order to keep up with the demand. They are a fairly small operation, but complex in that they use dangerous chemicals in the finishing of their products. They have found a couple of locations which meet their needs; one in a location that is isolated a far from any residential areas, the other is located directly on a river that flows into a lake used for recreational purposes. The first location is considerably cheaper and would add an additional 30 minutes to the current employees commute. The second is closer and less expensive. In making the decision on where to build, management must consider the ethical ramifications to the environment. If they were to build near the river there would be a chance of chemical run off that would pollute the river and ultimately the lake. The use of ethics in the decision making process would make it easier to eliminate this location as an option and help to justify the additional expense and commute. Ethics could also make the decision making process harder by adding another layer of complexity to the problem. Take for instance, the issue of stem cell research. The research is performed on human embryos which some say is an unethical practice. Others say that using stem cells for research will make technological advances in medicine that cannot be achieved in other ways. These groups are opposed to the ban on federal funding for research that involved human embryo research (Coalition of Americans for Research Ethics). In the meantime, there are many diseases in which the cure points to more search in the area of stem cells. This research could help to save lives, but it is being held up due to the ethical beliefs of opposing parties. How should ethics be used in business? Ethical decision making should be a method by which decisions are made for the good of all people. Ethics should provide a code of behavior that is used as a base for all decision making. They should provide specific guidelines that ensure that decisions are always made in the interest of helping or protecting the rights of people. Many professional groups had specific practices by which they are expected to adhere as stated by Larry Colero of the U. B.C. Centre for Applied Ethics; â€Å"professional associations have codes of ethics that prescribe required behavior within the context of a professional practice such as medicine, law, accounting, or engineering. † These types of associations lay the ground rules in the decision making process. What are the ethical implications of the decision? Ethical implications in the decision making process could have a positive and negative outcome. I do believe that if a decision is not made in an ethical manner, the outcome will be negative. Using ethical decision making will most likely provide a positive outcome. Although it may not benefit the bottom line, it will surely benefit the community and the company long term. The negative implications come from situations where the decision is made without consideration for ethics. A sales person who is desperate to make quota for the quarter sells a product to the customer even though the customer does not need the product at this time. The customer may feel that the sales person does not have their best interest in heart and take their business elsewhere. Initially, the sales person benefited from an unethical decision, but in the long run, this type of decision making did not pay off. From a positive perspective, if the sales person had used ethical decision making, his sales may have increased not only through this one particular customer, but also from referrals due to the excellent customer service he/she had provided. Initially, the numbers may not have been satisfactory, but the long term results might have overcome the initial down turn. Conclusion Utilizing the principles of ethics in the decision making process will help to ensure that decisions made are fair and respect the rights of those parties involved. Unfortunately, ethical decision making is only as morally sound as the person making the decision. If the person making the decision is does not live by an ethical code, the decision will be swayed in the direction of that belief. Therefore, in order to make sound ethical decisions, decision makers must constantly evaluate their own beliefs and strive to live in an ethical manner. References Coalition of Americans for Research Ethics, (n. d. ), On human embryos and stem cell research: An appeal for legally and ethically responsible science and public policy. Retrieved from the World Wide Web: May 18, 2002 http://www. stemcellresearch. org/statement/statement. htm Colero, L. , (n. d. ) A framework for universal principles of ethics. Retrieved from the World Wide Web. May 18, 2002 http://www. ethics. ubc. ca/papers/invited/colero. html Pearson Custom Publishing, (1999-2002) Ethics. Retrieved from the World Wide Web: May 15, 2002 http://www. pearsoncustom. com/link/humanities/philosophy/crithink/ethics. html Markula Center for Applied Ethics, (1995-1998) A framework for ethical decision making. Retrieved from the World Wide Web. May 15, 2002. http://www. scu. edu/SCU/Centers/Ethics/practicing/deci3sion/framework. html.

Wild Beasts

A general life in demons as ambivalent spirits or aspects of God was an original part of Israel's theology which in later periods became separated into -?good spirits (angels) and evil spirits (demons). † (Anchor Bible Dictionary, Demons, p. 1) As history went on, the stories about these ambivalent spirits were embellished and evolved into tales of angels and demons. The language used to describe the demons is incredibly poetic and uses references to natural phenomenon. This context raises the issue of how poetic references to natural phenomena should be interpreted-?as literal references to the physical phenomena, as poetic humiliations or personifications, or as references to actual demons or deities. Translation in general of terms dealing with demons is problematic. Translations are influenced by many factors: philological evidence and trends, theology, and previous decisions regarding understandings of the term demon and proper ways to interpret each particular text.Identi fications and understandings of demons in the Old Testament are strongly influenced by the wider context within which demons are discussed; past contexts have included magic and witchcraft, popular religion, official patriotic rituals, poetic symbolism, and religious psychology. † (Anchor Bible Dictionary, Demons, p. 2) Since the words surrounding these spirits have so many references to nature, they were often associated with destruction and blamed for natural disaster. The most generally accepted understanding Is of demons as evil spirits who live In ruins and the desert and are responsible for Illness and natural disasters. † (Anchor Bible When I think of ruins, I think of destruction and decay. When I look at Gonzales demons, they look as If they themselves are crumbling and decomposing. He very destruction they are known to cause Is represented through their gruesome appearance.I feel that the aspect of nature Is represented In his organic use of the animal bones, t eeth, and horns. There are a few specific, annalistic demons that nave Eden place together tongue various texts Dye Interpreters: â€Å"wool Deadest, howling creatures, ostriches, hyenas, Jackals. (Longboat 1949: 41-43)† (Anchor Bible Dictionary, Demons, p. 2) The term â€Å"wild beasts† reminds me of those snarling devil heads, and I can't help but think Gonzalez was inspired by these annalistic demons himself.

Happiness Advantage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Happiness Advantage - Essay Example However, for every success, goalposts are pushed further and further, and happiness is forced to the horizon. In a recent research that has been conducted in the area of positive psychology and neuroscience, there is evidence that in circumstance that the relationship between happiness and success works backward. Through this cutting –edge- science, it is now apparent that happiness is what produces success according to Achor. Dr. Achor argues that optimism and happiness gear to achievement and performance that result in competitive edge called ‘Happiness Advantage. The authors say, waiting to be happy limits the brain’s potential to success, while by positive minds results in more motivation, resilience, creativity, productivity and efficiency increase a person’s performance. The author says that is his discovery is based on a research he carried out in 500 companies worldwide and an interview with 1600 students in Harvard School (Achor 100). There are sev en main principles from the Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor that produce happiness. These principles include Happiness Advantage, The Tetris Effects, The Zorro Circle, Social Investment, The Fulcrum and the Lever, Falling Up, and The 20-Second Rule. The author was raised in Waco, Texas, and he never anticipated leaving the city. As he applied in Harvard, he wanted to train as a volunteer firefighter. He was unexpectedly accepted in the school, and this made him feel honored and privileged. After pursuing his studies, he becomes a proctor, hired to assist undergraduates navigate through the academic success and happiness. The author explains that his life in Harvard changed the way his brain processed his experience. Many learners in Harvard saw the school as a privilege, but others did not see this as they mainly focused on competition, workload and stress (Achor 120). The students felt inundated by every small challenge instead of being motivated by the opportunities ahead

E-Business security in your organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

E-Business security in your organisation - Essay Example It has over 3 million accounts, a quarter of which are active, and has total assets of $61 million (e-gold 4). For a decade-long company, it has not grown much compared to the largest online payment system, Paypal, which claims to do $60 million worth of transactions daily. e-gold transactions are 100 percent backed by metal deposits and are not reversible, which means that unlike credit card transactions, once a transaction is made there is no possibility that it can be cancelled. e-gold can be used to pay for transactions over other merchant websites and makes its money from maintenance fees that range up to 1 percent of the total transaction amount. Based on personal experience, the website is easy to use, getting an account is fast, and the fees are reasonable. The website (www.e-gold.com) is open 24/7 so account holders can transact anytime and anywhere. Users avail of e-gold for several types of transactions. They can have funds transferred to their e-gold account, and then have it transferred to a bank account in any currency using a reliable third party site like OmniPay or The Gold Shop. A user does this by simply logging on to a personal e-gold account, "spend" the desired amount (say, $1,000 worth of e-gold) into OmniPay, take note of the spend batch number issued for the transaction, log out of e-gold, log in to OmniPay, and fill up a bank transfer form with instructions to OmniPay to transfer the $1,000 that was "spent" or sold less fees to any bank account anywhere in the world. The funds take anywhere from two to five days to reach the bank account. Users normally tested the system by transferring small amounts, and when it worked they began moving bigger amounts of money. When someone anywhere in the world wants to pay an e-gold account holder, they give instructions to pay via e-gold by buying the e-currency and "spending" the amount to the user's account. The user can check his or her e-gold account from anywhere, even from a hot spot on a beach resort in the French Riviera, so they will know whether the payments have gone through or the funds have been transferred to the specified bank account. The user can then do transactions from there. This writer has been using e-gold for over a year now, and is happy with the service. This is the reason why this analysis on e-business security was done on this company, which has been only too happy to oblige and share information with me for this paper. Choosing the Standard One problem with selecting a standard to evaluate the e-business security issues of a merchant website is that there are too many standards to choose from. The main reason is simple: the chosen standard becomes a cash flow machine for the firm that develops it. There are several companies like Verisign, Oracle, IBM, and a host of other for-profit and not-for-profit institutions known by their acronyms: SEI, IETF, NIST, W3C, SAI, ISACA. The list is seemingly endless. The Europe-based International Organization of Standards is known for its ISO standards, the more famous of which are the ISO 9000 series used by companies to document their total quality management programs (Arnold 15). The letters ISO/IEC prefix its standards, which are adopted in both the U.S. and Europe. The British Standards Institute (BSI) is a similar organization that has several years of experience developing working standards for many industries. For these

A Comparison of Watching a Movie at Home and Watching a Movie at a Essay

A Comparison of Watching a Movie at Home and Watching a Movie at a Theater - Essay Example A Comparison of Watching a Movie at Home and Watching a Movie at a Theater The Drive-in Theater has provided new dimensions in the movie-world. Don Sanders and Susan Sanders (2003) in their book, â€Å"The American Drive-In Movie Theatre,† elucidate, â€Å"The Drive-in theater idea virtually transforms an ordinary motor car into a private theater box†¦The younger children are not permitted in the movie theatres †¦. Here the whole family is welcome regardless of how noisy the children are apt to be and parents are further more are assured of children’s safety because youngsters remain in the car†(12). Watching a movie at home or at the theatre are thrilling experiences. It is an antidote to one’s weariness. It renews and provides new dimensions to friendship. The snacks that you share at home or at the theatre have a special meaning and taste, and one will remember such experiences forever. Comfort: Home An individual can make optimum use of the family time by watching the movie at home. One has the choice to watch. The family-members enjoy their private time, share the ideas, and comment on the acting, apparel, and the overall talents of the characters. The family relationship is improved. The family is in a secured environment, free from tensions. If one does not follow the theme of the story, one can consult other family members and get their versions. One can get rid of the tedious songs and sequences with the facility to rewind and fast forward. One can view the movie in causals, and need not follow and dress code. Comfort: Theater In the theatre, the atmosphere is dazzling and an individual or family member are surrounded by people and can engage in interesting conversations. If one attends the night show, the excitement is all the more. Experience in the movie theatres is always memorable and sometimes, one happens to meet the important personalities that have come to watch the movie. One disadvantage is that one does not enjoy privacy and does not have the freedom to scream, shout and expre ss emotions in loud overtones. The aggressive laughter may be considered as an indecent gesture. The posture of sitting has got to be disciplined and one cannot lie down on a cozy sofa. One cannot stretch the legs beyond the permissible limit and one is not expected to distract others by loud remarks. There are persons sitting in front and behind. No facilities for rewind and fast forward, in the group-viewing system. If one wishes to see a particular part of the movie that interests much, one has to patiently bear it. If one does not like the movie, one may walk out, with no entitlement for refund of the amount paid for buying the tickets. Also, be ready to shell out some good amount fort the food, soft drinks etc. If one gets the wrong seat, meaning a tall person is sitting in front, sitting in a slanting posture may be problematic. Price: Home The price and time factors are of utmost importance. No journey time is involved; no gas expenses are incurred, no waiting for the traffic jams, and one need not buy tickets for the show. Watching movie with low volume and through small screen is advantageous. Now, with the availability of the bigger screens one can have big or small screens. With the one-time investment on a big screen, one can watch the movie as if in a theater. Price: Theater The decision to view the movie at the theater means spending more, sometimes lavishly. Movie going is followed by the family dinner and such exercises for a

Answering economics questions Explain why each of the following Essay

Answering economics questions Explain why each of the following statements is false. For each write the correct statement - Essay Example Thus, competitive profits are only those which are excess profits after the total costs are covered. Q7) Banana computer company has fixed costs of production of $100,000, while each unit costs $600 of labour and $400 of materials and fuel. At the price of $3000, each $10 reduction in price, banana computers increases 1000 units, calculate the marginal cost and marginal revenue for banana computers and determine is monopoly price and quantity. Q9) Explain the error in the following statement: "A firm out to maximize its profit will always charge the highest price that the traffic will bear". State the correct result, and use the concept of marginal revenue to explain the difference between the correct and the erroneous statements. It should be noted that the aim of the monopolist is not to maximize profit and not maximize the price. Monopolists can only do this by identifying the price level which yields the highest profits. This occurs at MC = MR which is not often the highest price that a monopolist can charge. Charging an overly high price reduces the quantity demanded and will increase the marginal cost resulting into a shrink in profit. Q1) Review collusive oligopoly and monopolistic competition, which are two theories of imperfect competition discussed in this chapter. Draw up a table that compares perfect competition, monopoly, and the two theories with respect to the following characteristics: (a) number of firms; (b) extent of collusion; (c) price vs marginal cost; (d) price vs. long run average cost; (e) efficiency. Factors Monopolistic competition Collusive Oligopoly Number of Firms Large number of sellers Few large producers Extent of Collusion No collusion Control over price but mutual interdependence Price vs. Marginal Cost Price increase will lead to a substantial decrease in demand, thus, higher MC Price increase wi

Supplier Evaluation Processes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Supplier Evaluation Processes - Essay Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that in order to improve the management of wider supply chains, academic writers have suggested a number of new and modified managerial practices and tools, which a multitude of practitioners are implementing. Further suggestions by numerous authors point out that previous performance measurements which solely focused on internal factors now need broad and drastic changes otherwise they might limit the possibility of optimizing dyadic relations or rather the supply chain of every organization. Ideally, investigating how performance information travels between the evaluating supplier and the evaluated buyer and how the shaping, as well as reshaping of information in the evaluation process, is imperative. Relying on longitudinal and multiple case researches as the methodology to obtain findings, this essay will bring out the practical implications, originality, and value of evaluation of performance measurement in a supply chain. Several studie s brought forward that studies based on the development of systems aimed at addressing performance measurement outside legal company boundaries are three in classification. They are supply chain evaluation, buyer-supplier relationship evaluation, and supplier evaluation. Technical rationale particularly applied by econometrics tends to dominate in cases where improved systems and measures align with the strategies set by an organization. Additionally, this dominance goes ahead to appear in other areas where the set systems align strategically with optimum performance measurement as well as in areas where it results in improved performance especially in the activities measured.