185EW: Ch. 2

code of conduct

A code in which organizations (like companies or professional associations) lay down guidelines for responsible behavior of their members

professional code

Code of conduct that is formulated by a professional association

corporate code

Code of conduct that is formulated by a company

aspirational code

A code that expresses the moral values of a profession or company

advisory codes

A code of conduct that has the objective to help individual professionals or employees to exercise moral judgments in concrete situations

disciplinary code

A code that has the objective to achieve that the behavior of all professionals or employees meets certain values and norms

profession

Often mentioned characteristics of a profession include:
1) use of specialized knowledge and skills
2) a monopoly on the carrying out of the occupation
3) assessment only possible by peers. In addition the following two requirements are also sometimes mentioned
4) service orientation to society
5) ethical standards

To which 3 domains do most modern professional codes relate?

1) conducting a profession with integrity and honesty, and in a competent way
2) obligations towards employers and clients; and
3) responsibility towards the public and society.

integrity

Living by one's own (moral) values, norms and commitments

honesty

Telling what one has good reasons to believe to be true and disclosing all relevant information

conflict of interest

The situation in which one has an interest (personal or professional) that, when pursued, can conflict with meeting one's professional obligations to an employer or to (other) clients

corporate social responsibility

The responsibility of companies towards stakeholders and to society at large that extends beyond meeting the law and serving shareholders' interests

stakeholder principles

Principles that guide the relationship between a company and its stakeholders

What are the 3 most mentioned stakeholder principles?

transparency, honesty, and fairness

window dressing

Presenting a favorable impression that is not based on the actual facts

uncritical loyalty

Placing the interests of the employer, as the employer defines those interests, above any other considerations

critical loyalty

Giving due regard to the interest of the employer, insofar as this is possible within the constraints of the employee's personal and professional ethics

confidentiality duties

Duties on employees to keep silent certain information

What are the 3 reasons the book gives for saying ethics cannot be codified?

1) ethics requires individual moral judgment, instead of blindly following a code
2) codes of conduct are not morally binding
3) they presuppose that morality can be expressed in a set of universal moral rule

confidentiality duties

Duties on employees to keep silent certain information

external auditing

Assessing of a company in terms of its code of conduct by an external organization

global code of conduct

A code of conduct that is believed to apply worldwide

professional autonomy

The ideal that individual professionals achieve themselves moral conclusions by reasoning clearly and carefully