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Archive for April, 2009
« Previous EntriesHow financially savvy are your employees?
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009Employers have traditionally offered a tremendous range of benefits to their employees, from 401(k) plans to paid vacations, daycare, and even drycleaning pickup. With the recent economic downturn, many employers are looking for ways to trim expenses, so a lot of those benefits may vanish soon (if they haven’t already). But one thing [...]
Back to business as usual? Let’s hope not!
Monday, April 27th, 2009As the recession has deepened and bad news has continued to pile up, the optimists among us have been looking for signs, however tiny, that we’ve hit bottom and are on the road to recovery. And while the news has been mixed, there may be reason for hope. Economists are starting to predict [...]
Business ethics tip #4: Choose your medium wisely
Friday, April 24th, 2009Once you’ve decided that you need to apologize to an unhappy customer or client (and notified your lawyer if a potential lawsuit is looming), it’s time to consider how you’ll do it. Before you start thinking about what to say, it’s usually a good idea to consider how you’ll deliver your message.
Face-to-face apologies are [...]
How did your company celebrate Earth Day?
Thursday, April 23rd, 2009Yesterday’s Earth Day festivities were lots of fun, and reminded people of the importance of taking care of our planet. They also offered an opportunity for companies to step up and showcase their Earth-friendly products, services, policies, and practices … assuming, of course, that they had some.
How did your company measure up?
Frequent readers of [...]
Have you updated your company’s gift and entertainment policy?
Tuesday, April 21st, 2009AIG’s use of federal bailout money to pay lavish bonuses has made the embattled insurer a favorite target for public disgust over corporate excess. It’s not that AIG was doing anything illegal, you understand. It’s just that funding personal luxury with taxpayer funds is in very, very bad taste.
You’d think that other companies [...]
Business Apology Tip #3 - Consider calling your lawyer
Friday, April 17th, 2009My last business apology tip focused on the importance of investigating a customer complaint to find out what happened. You really can’t avoid this step. After all, how can you apologize if you don’t know what you’re apologizing for, right?
Once you’ve looked into the facts behind the incident that upset your [...]
Looking for business ethics tips? Check out the top 50 business ethics blogs
Wednesday, April 15th, 2009If you write about business ethics, there’s always something to say. It never makes sense to try to conduct good business with bad ethics but, for some reason, people keep trying. On any given day, the news almost always contains more business ethics issues than any one blogger can cover.
So I was delighted [...]
Goldman Sachs wants to repay its TARP money … are we okay with that?
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009The Wall Street Journal reported today that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has announced positive earnings ahead of schedule, hoping that its good news will provide a platform for a major stock sale. According to the Journal, Goldman hopes to raise $5 billion in stock to pay back the $10 billion in Troubled Asset Relief [...]
Business apology tip #2: dig in and don’t delay!
Friday, April 10th, 2009Once you decide to apologize to an unhappy client or customer, there are a few things you need to do before saying you’re sorry. You may only get one shot at apologizing, so it’s important to get it right the first time. But the clock is ticking, and every day you delay can [...]
In an economic downturn, business ethics also decline
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009As the U.S. and world economies continue to struggle, unemployment climbs, stocks tumble and consumer prices rise, it’s a disheartening but predictable fact that ethical lapses in the workplace are probably going to get worse before they get better. A new report issued by Vangent, Inc. summarizes applied research by sociologists, criminologists and economists [...]
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