Ethics Crisis Corporate Ethics Category RSS feed
Kiss Sarbanes-Oxley Goodbye?
When the new Congress began its session in January, two familiar faces were not present: Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes and Rep. Michael G. Oxley, who are both retiring (after 30 and 26 years, respectively.) Many companies think their main legacy, The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, ought to be retired with them.
Sarbanes-Oxley has seriously harmed American corporations and financial markets without increasing investor confidence, say critics.
Ethics, Schmethics!
Sadly, while more people seem to be talking about ethics, there is precious little sign that any of the talk is turning into action, says Leon Ho at Lifehacks.
Continue reading "Ethics, Schmethics!" »
Corporations, Not Government Need to Take the Lead on Social Responsibility
Jeff Swartz, CEO of Timberland, says corporations need to take the lead rather than waiting for the government to legislate social responsibility.
“Jeff could have inherited an ice-making company or a coffee house and he’d still have wanted to see how it could be used for a broader social purpose,” said Dave Aznavorian, Timberland’s global brand manager.
Schwarz acknowledges that he also needs to deliver results to shareholders. He says that changes in fashion have led to a downturn in Timberland sales that could result in selling the company. He says he'd give up control for more power, but that he'd never sell and walk away like Ben & Jerry's owners did. They sold the company and went home,” said Swartz. Swartz would have to be carried out with his [Timberland] boots on.
Are Corporate Ethics Codes Bunk?
"We hear that [ethics] codes are useless - hypocritical window-dressing to mask continuing corruption. We hear that codes are great - a crucial step on the way to enhanced corporate productivity, credibility and profitability," says Cornelius von Baeyer.
I've always wondered what you would need to teach honest people about ethics, and whether any code could make dishonest people more honest.
Building codes, health codes, fire codes have teeth. Violating them results in legal penalties. But nothing at all seems to happen to those who violate corporate or association codes of ethics, not even a slap on the wrist. If corporate ethics codes are to hold any meaning, they'll need the force of law behind them. Otherwise. what's the point?
Corporate Responsibility Spurns New Businesses and Conferences
Corporate ethics crises have turned corporate responsibility into a big business. It's got its own conference, and a directory of companies that provide services to corporate responsibility officers.
The first annual conference for Corporate Responsibility Officers will take place in New York City on November 1.
Featured speakers include: Vice Chair of Citigroup Lewis Kaden, Wall Street Journal Assistant Managing Editor Alan Murray, Bloomberg News Editor Marty Schenker, Def Jam Records and Comedy and Phat Farm Fashions founder Russell Simmons, and 20 other Corporate Responsibility officers telling their success stories.
Business Ethics Gurus' Business is Booming
It's a hot time to be a business ethics expert says the Atlanta Journal Constitution. One sign: the Atlanta for the Society for Business Ethics' annual conference workshops included their first-ever workshop for members on how to deal with the press. Other sessions included "Markets and Business Ethics," "The Corporation and Moral Agency" and one titled simply "Wal-Mart."
Need certified multilanguage translation of your company's Code of Ethics? Phone Sloan Friedman at SRF Global Translations.
Study: Two in Three Companies Don't Provide Ethics Training to Employees
A recent global survey of over 1,800 communication professionals, conducted by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Research Foundation, found that an overwhelming 65 percent of respondents had not received any formal ethics training -- such as seminars, continuing education or training workshops -- from their employers.
Many respondents cited in the IABC survey, The Business of Truth: A Guide to Ethical Communication, noted that ethics was never given more than a cursory mention in their organizations, usually on the first day of employment when company policy manuals were distributed. Additionally, 70 percent of respondents reported studying ethics “not at all” or at a basic level, as part of the coursework for their highest earned degree.
What if Enron Had Followed Pepsi's Ethics?
Pepsi's ethics are just, well, refreshing, says Doug Cunningham at the Times-Herald-Record in New York. He notes that when someone tried to sell Coke's secret formula to PepsiCo's headquarters in Purchase NY, Pepsi immediately turned the letter over to Coke and alerted the FBI.
"Clearly, PepsiCo has instilled a strong sense of business ethics.
Would that more companies had such a strong set of values. Any guesses ...what would have happened if a similar letter landed at Enron headquarters in Houston?"
Is Options Gate a McCarthy Era for Business Ethics?
Has Silicon Alley entered the McCarthy era for business ethics? A widening federal investigation into suspicious stock options allocations at least 57 companies, including 25 based in Silicon Valley is "rattling corporate boardrooms, entrepreneurs and rank-and-file workers alike," according to the San Jose Mercury News
Red Herring reports that "Investors are hammering the stocks of many of the companies affected by the inquiries and are asking questions about how well these companies have been governed."
The rush to judgment is "a shame" Michael Gray, a certified public accountant, wrote in a newsletter. "We may be killing the goose that laid the golden eggs."
Continue reading "Is Options Gate a McCarthy Era for Business Ethics?" »
Moral Liability is Hidden Threat to Corporations: Fortune
Companies will pay a price if they fail to meet society's expectation that they act ethically. Merely obeying the law, or following compliance guidelines to the letter is not enough, writes Marc Gunther in Fortune. Companies need to meet their "moral liability" or face bigger threats from customers than from government or courts.
Sometimes the price will be damage to a brand or reputation. Other times, the cost will be more concrete, in the form of lawsuits, damage awards or lost sale," Gunther says. The good news is that "...all these social issues present opportunities as well as threats... the best way for business to avoid "moral liability" - become part of the solution instead of part of the problem."
Continue reading "Moral Liability is Hidden Threat to Corporations: Fortune" »
Diamond Industry PR Campaign Anticipates Impact from "Blood Diamond"
There were unethical practices in the diamond industry, Eli Izhakoff, chairman & CEO of the World Diamond Council told The Jerusalem Post, but that was "true for the 1990s." That was then, the industry wants the public to believe, and this is now.
In anticipation of the negative portrayal of the diamond industry by the upcoming film, "The Blood Diamond," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, The World Federation of Diamond Bourses is launching a pre-emptive PR campaign beginning with a new code of ethics. The ethics code, the Post reports, is "an effort to boost consumer confidence and restore credibility to the industry."
Continue reading "Diamond Industry PR Campaign Anticipates Impact from "Blood Diamond"" »
Japan's Top Banker Embroiled in Ethics Scandal
Revelations that the Japanese central bank governor, Toshihiko Fukui, owned $90,000 of a stock fund accused in an insider trading scandal have raised an ethics issues for the bank and helped cause not only the biggest sell-off in Tokyo's stock market since 9/11, but also a political firestorm, according to The New York Times.
A Bank of Japan spokesman, Takashi Yoshimura, denied that there is an ethics issue, saying that the bank's ethics guidelines only required employees, including Mr. Fukui, to report internally any purchases or sales of stocks, and any profits, and did not limit where they could invest their money.
In the most understated comment of the year, Mr. Fukui apologized during a meeting of Cabinet members. "I'm sorry," he said. "I have created a fuss."
"At the very least, it is a warning that the bank needs to tighten its ethical standards," said Naoki Iizuka, chief economist at the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute.
Ethics Awards Nominations Sought
The Ethics Web annual Ethics in Action Awards and Business Ethics Magazine's 2006 Business Ethics Annual Award are accepting nominations of companies that are "out ahead of the pack, showing the way ethically." Ethics compliance champions, start your engines!
Companies Tout Their Ethics Compliance in Enron's Wake - But Only in English
"Nothing focuses the mind like the knowledge you will be hanged in a fortnight," said Columbia University business law professor John Coffee.
He's talking about the way corporations are rushing to tout their ethics codes on their websites in the face of the Enron convictions. Unfortunately, they seem to be doing it in English only. Clearly, American companies still have a ways to go toward true globalization.
Continue reading "Companies Tout Their Ethics Compliance in Enron's Wake - But Only in English" »
Wal-Mart Expands Search for Global Ethics Director
Wal-Mart, which has suffered many an ethics crisis, announced recently that it's seeking a global director of ethics,. Now they've handed over the search to headhunter Martha Montag Brown & Associates according to Sox First blog.
"The mission of the Global Ethics Office is to promote Wal-Mart's ethical culture globally," the job description says, making it sound like ethics compliance is a PR tool.
The job description doesn't include salary, but says that the idea candidate will be responsible for "ensuring that ethics is embedded into key business processes" and must have:
Impeccable reputation for integrity and judgment; models ethics in all actions; objective and thoughtful. Ability to establish and maintain credibility and trust throughout the company.
Discreet and able to protect confidential information.
Able and willing to take a difficult or unpopular position if necessary.
Does PR News Survey Have an Ethics Problem?
PR News is taking a survey on corporate social responisibility for an upcoming report. Its focus: "How are you communicating your Corporate Responsibility activities and initiatives? "
PR News' Ethics problem: to answer the survey, you have to give your name, address and phone number. They do not promise to send you a copy of the survey results. They do not list a privacy policy. So then, it would appear that the information is taken so you can be hounded with subscription and spronsorship requests. That does not seem ethical.
Not to single out only PR News, because many companies use this ploy. In the age of transparency, it would seem a given that people would be given a choice of whether and how they wish to be contacted. Does Sarbanes-Oxley address privacy issues?
Continue reading "Does PR News Survey Have an Ethics Problem?" »
Ethical Organizations Must Retain a Sense of Humor
No doubt about it. ethical issues in business are serious. But Ethics Crisis blog will mix the heavy and the light in discussing corporate ethics issues, for as Dr Simon Longstaff, Executive Director at St James Ethics Centre notes:
"Although the consequences of unethical conduct can be deadly serious, I suspect that the first step to creating an ethical organisation is to approach the task with a "light tough" [sic]. For a start, we need to learn not to take ourselves so seriously. We are, in many respects, delightfully ridiculous creatures. What often saves us from crossing the line and becoming dangerously ridiculous is our latent capacity to laugh at ourselves; to find humour in our worst moments of folly."
Blogosphere Buzzing About Ethics
Blogosphere conversation about business ethics issues is definitely growing. Andrea Weckerle's New Millennium PR has a post that summarizes recent ethics discussions.
ERC: Tone, connotation crucial in multi-language translations of corporate codes of ethics
In a statement about globalizing a corporate code of ethics, The Ethics Resource Center, the oldest non-profit in the United States devoted to organizational ethics notes:
"... a pure/literal translation of the [corporate] code [of ethics] may not be sufficient. Translating the code back to the original language might reveal inconsistencies.
Tone and connotation are fundamental to this technical and sensitive document.
Continue reading "ERC: Tone, connotation crucial in multi-language translations of corporate codes of ethics" »
Ethics is More Than Just Telling the Truth
"Being ethical is more fundamental than just telling the truth." says Australian publicist Trevor Cook in a podcast interview with Blog Forward about ethics in public relations.
"Don't just repeat what a client tells you to the media," Cook says. "Ask questions and make sure that what you are putting out is truthful. There is a broader social responsibility involved in PR than just putting forward the client's case like a lawyer."
MySpace Post: "bribery is an accepted and usual way of doing business"
On his MySpace Blog "Everything I Own is Broken", Gerry Alexander addresses the ethics (or lack thereof) of doing business in a foreign country where bribes are expected for accomplishing everyday tasks like getting a driver's license.
He writes:
"...If you were to personally pay the bribe, you have taken an unethical action.
If you go to your manager and he authorises then makes the payment, you have acted ethically.
This is wrong, foolish and completely unethical in either case as far as I can understand the concept of moral responsibility."
A similar issue is addressed in one of the anonymous confessions on Ethics Crisis, "We paid for new business in another country." Of the 296 readers who've rated this confession so far, the majority found the practice acceptable.
Resource: Over 800 Corporate Codes of Ethics
Over 800 Codes of Ethics in a wide variety of fields are included in the library of the Illinois Institute of Technology's Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions website.
SRF Global Translations specializes in the multi-language translation of corporate codes of ethics and other Sarbanes_Oxley (SOX) compliance materials for multinational companies.
Business ethics: Change the world
Good business ethics can change the world, says Wayne Hurlbert at Blog Business World.
"Practicing strong business ethics is the ultimate win win for everyone."
Yes Men Survival Ball Yanks Halliburton's Chain
The Yes Men, a group of environmental and corporate ethics activists pushing a "SurvivaBall", designed to save corporate executives from the effects of global warming, pulled a prank on Halliburton at the Catastrophic Loss conference held at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Amelia Island, Florida.
The group, which has pulled similar stunts on Dow Chemical Co. and the World Trade Organization, says it presented the phony global-warming-protection suits -- priced at $100 million each, nonetheless -- to show that corporations are more concerned about profits than taking expensive steps to reduce carbon emissions to reduce global warming.
Continue reading "Yes Men Survival Ball Yanks Halliburton's Chain" »
Coping with the Compliance Headache
CRMDaily.com reports:
"The truth is, companies cannot afford to have point solutions for the DEA, DoJ, EPA, FDA, OSHA, and SEC, not to mention state and local requirements. If it is true that more and more business will be driven by regulation in the future, then alignment of business and I.T. is more critical than ever. ...The question becomes how to minimize the impact on business operations."
The article does not mention
multi-language translation of corporate ethics compliance materials,, says
Sloan Friedman President of
SRF Global Translations, although corporations are required by Sarbanes-Oxley to translate codes of conduct, ethics codes and other corporate compliance material into the languages of the countries in which they do business and of all of its employees.
John Hagerty, vice president of research at AMR Research, says:
"the 'overlapping requirements' of the individual compliance mandates mean that the enterprise must have in place nine technologies: an integration infrastructure Relevant Products/Services from Insight; business process management and workflow; learning and education management; content and records management; a data warehouse; a rules engine; an alerting engine; identity and security management Relevant Products/Services from ; and management dashboards and analytics."
Better add certified multilanguage translation and make that 10!
AASCB Conference: Ethics in Business Schools
Integrity is Everything: Ethics and Governance Conference of the AACSB presents an opportunity to hear, compare and analyze the critical role of ethical practices in today's modern business schools.
Dilbert's Worried About Ethics Too
Like SRF Global Translations, Scott Adams's Dilbert has ethics on his mind too.
How Deep is the Ethics Crisis?
John Bogle, the founder of Vanguard Group, maintained that unethical executives are not just "a few bad apples," in a prescient 2003 Forbes article by Stewart Pinkerton.
Bogle contends "the barrel itself--the very structure that holds all these apples--is bad."
Bogle concedes a call for virtue in corporate and investment America may sound hollow. But in the long run, he says, taking the high road is the only alternative.
Ventura Paper Uproar: Ethical Lapse or Business as Usual?
The newsroom at the Ventura County Star is in an uproar about an ethics violation by Managing Editor Richard Luna, The issue forced a mass meeting with the publisher--and prompted the paper to bring in parent company E.W. Scripps' human resources director.
Luna's ethics transgression?
"He put pressure on a sports reporter to obtain press credentials for him to attend two Final Four college basketball tournament games. He did not report on the games, and would not ordinarily have qualified for the credentials."
Continue reading "Ventura Paper Uproar: Ethical Lapse or Business as Usual?" »
Welcome to Ethics Crisis Blog
Welcome! This is SRF Global Translations new Ethics Crisis Blog, written by well-known blogger B.L. Ochman.
SRF Global Translations specializes in mindful, nuanced multilanguage translation of ethics compliance materials for multinational companies.
Ethics Crisis Blog will cover global business ethics issues, with a bit of a twist. Please subscribe to the Ethics Crisis Blog's RSS feed so you can read and rate the ethics confessions, which are already getting juicy.
Thank You,
Sloan Friedman, President
SRF Global Translations
Business Ethics Magazine Lists '100 Best Corporate Citizens' for 2006
Business Ethics Magazine has released its annual survey of the "100 Best Corporate Citizens". The closely-watched survey has gained national recognition as an indicator of best practices in the area of corporate social responsibility.
The top 10 companies are:
* Green Mountain Coffee Roasters of Waterbury, Vermont, which has been among the top 10 companies on Business Ethics' list for four years running.
* Hewlett-Packard (No. 2) is enjoying its seventh time in the top 10,
* Advanced Micro Devices (No. 3) makes its first appearance on the list.
* Motorola (No. 4) is enjoying its third time in the top 10,
* Agilent Technologies (No. 5) its second time.
Others in the top 10 are list newcomers:
* Salesforce.com (No. 7)
* Cisco Systems (No. 8). Dell (No. 9) leaped from No. 71 last year,
* Texas Instruments (No. 10) moved up from No. 50.
Dupont Requires Vendors to Follow WOMMA Code of Ethics
Dupont has become the first Fortune 100 marketer to require its employees and vendors worldwide to follow the Word of Mouth Marketing Association's (WOMMA) Code of Ethics
The WOMMA code demands that consumers disclose their relationship with marketers; that they be allowed to form their own honest opinions; and that everyone discloses their true identity.
Gary Spangler, DuPont's representative to WOMMA, said, "DuPont's proactive adoption of this ethics code is a leading example of self-regulation in this emerging field."
via MarketingProfs Daily Fix Blog
Three Plays on Business Ethics Highlight Milwaukee Rep Season
The Milwaukee Journal reports that the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre is doing three plays on business ethics this year! "They are all about business and how the dynamics of business works," says the theater's artistic director Joseph Hanreddy.
The trilogy features Garson Kanin's 1946 comedy "Born Yesterday," about an uncouth business tycoon going to Washington, D.C., to buy political favors; David Mamet's comedy "Glengarry Glen Ross," about a "shark tank that masquerades as a real estate sales office"; and "The Voysey Inheritance," a 1905 drama that looks at a family's lucrative business and the attempts by a member of the younger generation to reform the company's dishonest practices.
Business Ethics: Not to Get Caught vs What's Right
Bruce Weinstein PhD, syndicated "Ask the Ethics Guy" columnist, disagrees with a recent study that says businesses are getting more ethical.
"I think in general the ethical standards in the business world have slipped in recent years. I believe that often the standard operating procedure is "not to get caught" rather than "to do what's right." I'm not sure why acceptable business ethics standards have changed, but the faster pace of life and the greater tendency for executives to move around the country and the world seems to have created an era of less accountability."
And, he says, "even in the post-Enron era, boards of directors are still reluctant to exact punishment on executives who misbehave but escape legal prosecution."
Posted by SRF Translations Global
Google Lists Unethical Businesses
Here's a Google listing no company wants to find itself on!
Permalink
Email this