Business Ethics

Business ethics has become extremely important and it is the base and guide in the decision making process within companies. Corporate ethics can be a source of competitive advantage, because through it, companies can attract more customers and have the best human capital.

The Scaffold Plank case illustrates an example of an ethical dilemma. Bob Hopkins has to decide whether or not he will sell a product to a client knowing it will be used for a purpose for which it is possibly not appropriate. White Lumber was going through a rough time and it was struggling to at least get to the break-even point. John White, who is the owner of White Lumber, explained to Bob who will be negatively affected if they decide to not process the purchase order. The owner is using the utilitarian criterion to make his ethical choice in this situation. According to Wright (2003), "Utilitarianism is the theory that the morally best course of action is the one that brings about the greatest happiness for the greatest number" (p.74). The owner thinks Bob should proceed with the purchase order because the benefits to the stakeholders (see Appendix A for a complete list of stakeholders) and the company will be greater than the costs. The Bob Hopkins and John White are the primary stakeholders involved. Both can benefit from the success of the company and may be harmed by their mistakes. Mainly, the employees' job stability and the company status are in danger. The utilitarian approach may have some disadvantage in this case. If people get injured because the product was not use appropriately, first, the decision will not benefit most of the people as the manager is predicting and second, the reputation of the company will be at risk.

Not only the employees and the owner as primary stakeholders will be affected by the owner's decision. If the company follows a Rights approach, first, they will need to make sure the lives and safety of the general public