Is Business Ethics An Oxymoron?

From the normal average person, business ethics sounds like fairytale concept with limited relevance to the real world. The practice of business is to buy cheap and sell at expensive price and will not bother in some instances whether the cheap price obtained or the selling price is ethical or not. From the pace, scale and complexity of modern business has forced a change in how business is done. While it is accepted, it is foolish to do business with someone who is cannot be trusted. A question arise when whether you can trust someone who is not ethical in all of their behaviour. Trust is built on expectations of truth in words and consistency in behaviour. It is impossible to do profitable business with someone who says one things in one day and does something different the next day. There is also exposure to a legal penalties. Companies involved in international trade have to represent their products to potential or current clients based on their expected inputs by the suppliers. A company that is involved in illegal activities, or in knowingly falsifies the information on inputs supplied can create serious problems for its business partners. Another issue challenging the practice of good business ethics is the values which employees bring to the work environment. It had been an issue for over the past years. The effect of low ethical work will results in low productivity owed to high levels of absenteeism, theft and acceptance of bribe taking. A company that wishes to be efficient and competitive in the future cannot accept this state of affairs. So, they need to follow a few ethical behaviour to support their company and also achieve their company mission and vision. These were the several ethical behaviour :

Enhanced Reputation and Goodwill
-  A reputation for integrity is important for securing the loyalty of customers, for recruiting and training the best staff, for winning community acceptance and accessing bank and also supplier credit.

Risk reduction
- The process of developing a business ethics program involves the company in identifying and assessing the factors that could pose risks to reputation and financial performance, and developing and implementing the business processes that reduce those risks.

Reduced costs
- Providing employees with clear guidelines of how to conduct day to day business such as where and when to obtain quotations, how to carry out tenders, how to conclude contracts and how to avoid conflicts of interest can reduce transaction costs and improve the supply chain function.

Protection from Unethical Employees
- A program would include clear guidance in respect of the misappropriation and unauthorised use of company resources, and the consequences that could flow from violations, information that employees with undeveloped values may not fully appreciate.

So I believes that the implementation of a formal business ethics program can contribute to an improved culture at a company, and improved overall performance. Ethics in business should not be taken lightly and we believe that such a programme is well worth practising for the growth and development of business.


Your Writer,
Akeem Mohamad

The Definitions ...

Business

- where an organization or economic system where goods and services are exchanged for one another or either for money. Every business requires some form of investment and had enough customers to whom its output can be sold on a consistent basis in order to make a profit. Businesses can be owned privately, non profit or state owned.

Ethics

- can be defined as the critical structured examination on how we should behave. In particular, how we should constrain on the pursuit of self-interest when our actions affect others.

Business Ethics

- can be defined as the critical structured examination on how people or the institutions should behave in the world of commerce. In other side, it involves appropriate constraints from the pursuit of self-interest, or profits, when the actions of individuals or firms will affects others.


Cooperate Governance
- The framework of rules and practices by which a board of directors ensures the accountability, fairness, and transparency in a company's relationship with its all stakeholders which is financiers, customers, management, employees, government, and the community. The corporate governance framework consists of explicit and implicit contracts between the company and the stakeholders for distribution of responsibilities, rights, and also rewards, This procedures is for reconciling the sometimes conflicted with the stakeholder interest with their duties, privileges, and roles. the procedures for proper supervision, control, and information-flows to serve as a system of checks and balances, also called corporation governance.


Your Writer,
Akeem Mohamad

About Me ...

Assalamualaikum and Salam 1 Malaysia to all readers .. This was my first time ever to have a blog and wrote it by my self .. haha .. i did this because of my homework given by Professor Sr Datok Dr Kamaruddin .. he's got so many title .. and for sure he's very talented .. he want's us to call him Pak Din .. and i think he were the coolest lecturer .. haha .. okay now i would like to introduce myself and tell a little bit about myself ..

My name is Azizulhakeem Bin Mohamad .. Live at Melaka or more detail at Bachang (near to Melaka Sentral) .. Age at 22 years old .. born on 12th December 1991 at Johor Bahru .. Diploma holder in Islamic Banking and Finance at Mara Professional Collegue City Campus Malacca .. Had 4 siblings and I'm the youngest .. Dreams to become Central Bank Governers .. haha .. what huge dreams right ? .. but nevermind .. works at banks also can .. like to play football or badminton .. and also bowling .. I'm ex student for Malacca High School which is my secondary school .. and my primary school at Sekolah Kebangsaan Duyong .. Used to represent my collegue before this in football .. playing for kasukma which is "Karnival Sukan Mara" .. Before I came in to Universiti Kuala Lumpur .. I had work at Royal Sporting House at AEON Bandaraya Melaka for a few month's .. and I change my job at Panorama Melaka Berhad .. work as ticket checker .. due to the salary payment and also working hour .. so now I continue my study in islamic finance field and I just realised that from this filed .. it has higher demand for workers which is I can get work easily after I finish my degree .. it also a new field that had been introduce to the world .. when my first time heard about this islamic finance .. i also think it can be a good economic side to the world and with a few information given from my father friend .. i had choose this field for a career to my life .. I hope I can get my degree with a great result so that I can achive my goals and make my family proud of me ..

So that was a little bit about myself and also the reason why I choose this field .. I hope to see you all next time .. thanks because spent a little time to read my blog ..

Your Writer ,

Akeem Mohamad