Introduction
In today business, it is
important for a company to act ethically. As an ethic expert of a company, I
will focus on the work place for example moral agent, mechanism used to achieve
employee empowerment and involvement. These aspects will be analyzed for further
detail. Moreover, a code of ethic has been made for company to solve the
problems in this assignment.
3.1 Role of moral agent company
3.1.1 Moral agent
Moral agent is
ability of an individual who can make moral judgments and actions in a
self-govern manner, unrestricted by fear of their job and opportunities for
advancement. Moral agent will make an organization responsible for the expected
outcomes of its actions. This also mean that organization will liability to
society to behave morally.
Many problems
may occur such as financial problems, nuisance, bribery, scam…if a bad ethical
decision is made. Moreover, an ethical misconduct may also lead to an
interruption in organization operation and raise risk for organization. To
avoid ethical issues, moral agent need to do as following:
·
Write up and provide code of ethic for each
staff
·
Organize ethical training program for employees
and manager.
·
Ask employees to observe each other’s ethical
decision making
·
Set up an example for employees
3.1.2 Advantages and disadvantages of moral agent
Advantages of moral agent
·
Organization can build customer loyalty: Consumers
may enable an organization take benefit from them one time. However, if they think
that they have been treated dishonestly such as paying overpriced, they're not
going to use service and product again. A company’s good reputation with regard
to moral tendencies may also help it develop a better image on the market,
which will attract new customers by way of personal recommendations.
Keep good employees: Skilled people in any
levels of an organization need to be rewarded reasonably for their performance
and commitment. They would like to participate in an organization in which
management shows them certain fact regarding what is happening, for example
when downsizings or even reorganizations will be considered. Organizations that
are fair
·
and opened in their negotiations with staff will
have a greater opportunity of keeping the most skilled individuals.
·
Good work environment: Employees are responsible
on acting ethically as soon as they got interview for job. They have to provide
the truth about their abilities and experience. Employees who are detected to
lie will lose the opportunities of advancement.
·
Avoid legal problems: In certain cases, a
company’s management can be persuaded to reduce some standards in order to
increase benefit, such as not completely follow environmental policies or labor
regulations, overlooking employee safety risks or using low quality components
in their products. The fines if the organization is captured could be serious,
which includes legal fees and charges or sanctions by authority agencies.
Disadvantages of
moral agent
Moral agent will
decrease the maximization of organization’s profit. It is also time-consuming.
Complying full ethic principle such as such as improve living wage, guarantee
health and safety standard will increase cost that organization generate. It is
also time-consuming when complying ethical regular.
3.1.3 Moral agent at Google
Google is an
Internet company based in the United States, was founded in 1998. The company's
main product is Google search engine, is widely regarded as useful search
engines and most powerful on the Internet. Head quarter of Google called
"Googleplex" in Mountain View, California and the director of company
is Larry Page, one of the two founders of Google. Currently, Google is leading
company that have the best working environment in America.
Advantages
Google is famous
for its slogan “Don’t be evil”, therefore all company operations are
implemented ethically. For example, profit of Google mainly come from
advertisement however it refuse to advertise for product that have adult
content. Additionally, Google also hide all result that violate intellectual policy
on search engine. By completely follow ethical principles, Google has built it
positive reputation all over the world.
Disadvantages
Complying all
ethical principles is very costly and time-consumer. Each year, company donate
100 million dollars in grand, 1 billion dollars in product and 80,000 hours for
charity activities.
3.2 Development of mechanisms for
achieving employee involvement and empowerment
3.2.1 Employee involvement
Environment in
which employee have a considerable impact on organization’s impact and
activities that influence their jobs is called employee involvement. Participation
of employee is not considered as goal or tool, it is considered as practicing
in many organizations. Instead, it is about how employees are able to bring about
improvement and success for organization.
3.2.2 Employee empowerment
The thought of
employee empowerment stand for giving employees the right that they can be
autonomous and responsibility on decision-making relating to their particular
organizational tasks. It enable employees to make decision which they have
difference view of issues and problem experiencing.
3.2.3 Mechanism for employee involvement and empowerment
There are some mechanism that can
be used for employee involvement and empowerment
Suggestion scheme: allows employees to
contribute their constructive ideas to improve organization.
Team working: Team working is
considered as an essential section of the empowerment approach. Team members should
try to make decisions on their own in accordance with rules as well as
frameworks set up in self managing teams
Attitude survey: conduct employee
attitude to evaluate responsibility of employees to constantly behave in the
best interest of the organization.
Quality circle: groups of voluntary
employees who operate on the same tasks or have the same responsibility. They
consent to meet consistently to decide and solve problems relevant to work.
These employees work on the standard that their involvement in making decisions
as well as finding solutions for problems will improves the quality of product
and work.
Work council: Are the groups of employees that nominated to
discuss about personnel decision of management. This help to reduce between
employees and managements within organization by improving and structuring
communication channels.
3.2.4 Employee involvement and empowerment in Google
Google motivate
and involve its employees by applying appropriate and up to date method to
performance, by engaging responsibility and involving employees in their own
decision making in important aspects of their working environment.
At Google, it
does not only provide its employees opportunity to be participated in decision
making process but Google also provide working environment that make employees
feel like their home such as food, kitchen, gym, professional development
training…This provide employees a strong feeling when working at good working
environment.
In addition,
Google also has a rule that employees are allowed to spent 20% their time at
company to do whatever project they want. When that project get well known,
they can keep focusing on the project as their main task. (Towers, 2006). This
help Google create innovating product and reach success (Towers, 2006). Because
of the 20%, employee can have more time to innovate new product, thus the
employees will be more empowered in the company (Bytes, 2005).
3.2.5 Maslow’s hierarchy of need
The hierarchy of
needs is one of the most famous theories of motivation created by Abraham
Maslow (1943). Typically everyone is motivated by needs, the theory will help
people to clarify how these kind of need encourage people. According to Maslow,
there are five level of hierarchy, they are physiological need, safety need,
love and belonging need, esteem need and self-actualization need.
Figure: Maslow’s hierarchy of need
4.3 Ethical conduct
4.3.1 Code of conduct
A code of
conduct is designed to be a main guideline as well as useful resource for
people to get daily decision making. It is intended to describe an
organization's vision, beliefs and standards, connecting them with requirements
of professional conduct. Being a guide, it could be used to determine
appropriate documents, solutions and other resources which is relevant to ethics
within the organization. The code provide observable rules for behavior. In
addition, a code is also a device to motivate consideration of ethics to improve
the way employees handle the ethical issues, bias and grey regions which are
experienced in daily work. A code is supposed to correspond to related standards,
policies and rules, not a replacement for them.
Codes of conduct
offer an invaluable opportunity for responsible organizations to create a positive
public identity for themselves which can lead to a more supportive political
and regulatory environment and an increased level of public confidence and
trust among important constituencies and stakeholders. Codes of conduct provide
an important chance for accountable organizations to develop a positive public
information for their own which will bring about more helpful policies and higher
public identify.
4.3.2 Code of ethic
Code of ethic is
considered as a part of code of conduct. It is a guide of standards created to
support authorities conduct business truthfully and with ethics. A code of
ethics may describe the vision and beliefs of the organization, the way in
which company staffs are meant to solve difficulties, the ethical standards
determined by the organization's key values and the requirements on which the
professional will use. Violating the code of ethics may lead to fire or
termination of contract from the organization. Therefore, it is important for
organization or employees to follow the code.
Code of ethic
|
Requirement
|
Serve customer
|
- All communication and interaction must increase
customer trust about company
- All products and services must be more useful
- Complying full privacy and security policy.
- Constantly improve product and service quality
|
Respect each other
|
- Provide equal opportunity of employment
- Strictly prohibit discrimination including race,
nation, color, sex.
- Committee to provide violate free environment
- Strictly prohibit harassment in any form
|
Avoid conflict of interest
|
- Avoid investing in Google’s competitors or
business partner
- Should not work at advisory for Google’s
competitors or business partners.
- New business opportunities or innovation will
belong to company first.
|
Keep confidentiality
|
- Make sure that confidential information are
kept secret which include user information, product and financial
- Don’t receive competitor’s confidential
information
|
|
Conclusion
In conclusion,
through the analysis, I can understand how moral agent influence success or
failure of an organization and importance of operate ethically in business. In
addition, employee involvement and empowerment also have an important
implication in term of ethic and business success. Moreover, using
understanding of ethical principles in business, I have I built a code of ethic
for company to solve problems.
References
Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological
Review, 50, 370 –396.
Maslow, A. H. (1954). Motivation and personality. New York:
Harper.
Maslow, A. H. (1969). The farther reaches of human nature.
Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 1(1), 1–9.
Susan M. Heathfield, Employee Involvement [Online],
Available at : <http://humanresources.about.com/od/glossarye/a/employee_inv.htm>
(Accessed on 27 Jan 2015)
EMPOWERMENT [Online], Available at : < http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/Eco-Ent/Empowerment.html
> (Accessed on 28 Jan 2015)
Google code of conduct [Online], Available at : < http://investor.google.com/corporate/code-of-conduct.html
> (Accessed on 28 Jan 2015)
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