Ethical decision-making tests
Science
Some corporations and other organizations have designed ethical decision-making tests that incorporate some of the principles and systems described in Chapter 2. For example, Carl Skooglund, former vice president and ethics director at Texas Instruments, outlined the following Ethics Quick Test recommended for use by Texas Instrument employees:
Is the action legal?
Does it comply with your best understanding of our values and principles?
If you do it, will you feel bad?
How will it look in the newspaper?
If you know it’s wrong, don’t do it, period!
If you’re not sure, ask.
Keep asking until you get an answer.
Think about this list in terms of the decision-making guides discussed in Chapter 2. Which ones are being used here? Which are not? What recommendations, if any, would make to alter this list? If you had to make up a list for your company, what would be on it? Why?
Answer the same questions (listed in the previous paragraph) with the Rotary International Four-Way Test:
Is it the truth?
Is it fair to all concerned?
Will it build goodwill and better relationships?
Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
The Seneca (one of the five tribes of the Iroquois Nation) people’s guidelines for self-discipline also include these questions:
Am I happy in what I’m doing?
Is what I’m doing adding to the confusion?
What am I doing to bring about peace and contentment?
How will I be remembered when I am gone?
Could the Rotary and Seneca tests serve as guides for ethical decision making in business? Why or why not?
Your assignment should contain at least 375 words (Times New Roman, 12-point, double-spaced). Remember to proof your work for spelling and grammar before submitting.
