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Add ethics to your company’s New Year’s resolutions
By Lauren | December 29, 2008
It’s that time of year again. Christmas has come and gone, and the new year looms full of promise. People are making their lists of resolutions for 2009: get out of debt, lose weight, quit smoking, and so on.
It’s far less common for companies to make New Year’s resolutions than it is for individuals, but maybe the time has come for that to change. For many years, the bottom line has been the sole focus of far too many businesses. Yes, profits are important, but not if they come at the expense of customers, employees, and the company’s credibility.
Business executives may react to the recession by cutting ethical corners and pushing even harder for revenue. That may be an effective short-term strategy, but it’s bound to harm a company in the long term. Customers become disgruntled, talented employees find work elsewhere, the company’s reputation suffers and, if the ethical cuts are too deep, regulatory intervention and lawsuits ensue. Picking profits over ethics can be a very costly choice.
So, as businesses plan for the coming year, it might be a good time for management to think about how to function not only more profitably, but also more ethically. How about a resolution to improve customer service? To train employees in business ethics and legal compliance? To enhance the quality of goods and services offered? To treat employees with greater respect and compassion? To reach out to the community and share a portion of company profits with deserving community charities? All of those are resolutions that business executives can be proud to keep.
Topics: Business Ethics, corporate responsibility, customer relations, ethics |
February 1st, 2009 at 10:31 pm
[...] presents Add ethics to your company’s New Year’s resolutions posted at The Business Ethics Blog, saying, “Business ethics can teach your employees the [...]
May 2nd, 2009 at 1:41 am
[...] presents Add ethics to your company’s New Year’s resolutions posted at The Business Ethics Blog, saying, “Business ethics can teach your employees the [...]
August 4th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Hello,
What sort of literature are you looking for? I’d be happy to make some recommendations. Please contact me at Lauren@businessethicsspeaker.com.
Lauren Bloom