Business Ethics

Grammar: the Gerund.
At school we were taught that ethics are based on principles all men are created equal. The Golden Rule is «Do unto others as you would have them do unto you». So, one should follow certain rules:
• be honest;
• don't intentionally harm others;
• treat all equally;
• do not use people as a means to an end without their consent;
• compensate victims if you have caused harm;
• disclose information to others if they reasonably need it to make a decision.
Act in 3 ways:
• with good intent;
• with consistency;
• in a way that we would wish all other people to act.
What about business ethics? Is it an oxymoron? Like praying and research, they are thought to be a good thing, but people aren’t quite sure what is involved. There are different ethical positions. Each is based on ethical principles, just different ones. The conclusions derived from different principles are seriously different.
So what about sales ethics? Will Caveat emptor suffice as an ethical principle? Is it workable or wise from a business perspective? Probably not. Selling organizations live in a risk environment. They have to understand or make decisions about short-term and long-term risk. Countries, corporations and regulators often favour legalistic rule-following approach. But this often undermines the very essence of the whole enterprise, namely doing the difficult thinking for oneself. Ethical dilemmas are just that – dilemmas. Sales ethics involve resolving deeply conflicting issues and looking after the interests of different stakeholders. In sales these can be the customers, sales staff, suppliers, the after sales support staff and management. So what to do? Ethics are about applying principles or fairness, integrity and justice to everyday selling situations. They are the stuff of the moral maze.
Point 1. Ethical decisions are not simple. All parties have rights, but also duties – to tell the truth with no errors or omission or commission. Principles and guidelines need to be articulated in full. So ethics are difficult. For the dogmatic, deductive thinker, BE have to be boiled down to rules and regulations. You reduce, but never eliminate sales scandals by spending time on BE in training. Sales courses pay scant attention to BE, believing it to be a sort of fancy «add on» to teaching all that stuff about «closing the deal.» What are the consequences of a short-term, caveat emptor, sort-of-follow-the regulations approach? The answer is probably a flourishing website dedicated to exposing the organization.
And the consequences of enjoying a reputation for fairness and integrity? Customer loyalty which drives profitability. And sales ethics don’t have to be unethical! You can have highly successful sales people with an ethical sense and moral compass. Some would argue it’s the only way to have a long term career in sales. Perhaps that, in part explains the amazing attrition rate in sales staff. Ever thought BE plays a part in staff retention. Worth testing?
Перевод: В школе нас учили, что этика основана на принципах, согласно которым все люди рождены с равными правами. Золотое правило гласит: «Поступай с другими так, как ты хотел бы, чтобы поступали с тобой». Значит, нужно следовать определенным правилам:
- быть честным;
- не причинять намеренного вреда другим;
- относиться ко всем одинаково;
- не использовать людей как средство достижения цели без их согласия;
- выплачивать компенсацию жертвам, если вы причинили им вред;
- раскрывать информацию другим людям, если она разумно необходима им для принятия решения.
Действуйте тремя способами:
- с добрыми намерениями;
- с последовательностью;
- так, как мы хотели бы, чтобы поступали все остальные люди.