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Business Ethics Research

Management ethics looks at how managers may support (or not) business ethics. Please
elaborate on the following two interrelated questions:
What is meant by the terms code of conduct and code of ethics and what role do
they play in an organizational context?
How do they act as formal and informal means to manage ethical behaviour and
improve the ethical culture in organisations? Discuss on the basis of an example of
your choice.

The following notes are for helping you to gather ideas. You may wish to elaborate in more
depth on some of the following aspects (note that you do not need to discuss every single
point below; these are examples of issues that you might discuss in relation to your
examples. You should choose a focus and set priorities for your own arguments).

Difference between the codes of conduct and codes of ethics
Personal ethics theory
Workplace ethics (e.g. anti-discrimination policies)
Corporate Social Responsibility issues (e.g. with the community; government; etc.)
Complexity
Resistance of employees
The role of training
The role of the organisational culture influencing ethical behaviour
Enablers and barriers for changing the ethical culture
Ways in which organisational and individual learning about ethics complement each
other
The context and prevailing ethical cultures (sector/industry/country)
National cultures and approaches to change
The impact of new technologies

Notes - 1
The individual assignment is expected to cover the following issues:
Clear reference to literature on the concept and underlying assumptions of management
ethics
Reference to at least two ethics theories (e.g. virtue ethics; personal ethics theory;
stakeholder theory)
Reference to the requirements of training and development programmes in
organisations.
Reference to the role of interaction in teams and with stakeholders
Reference to case studies or illustrations from experience (either based on
secondary information or personal knowledge) to exemplify processes and to
interpret how different ethical theories may be implemented in everyday practice.
Students should be able to identify and critically review the impact on ethics of
todays wider influences of globalisation and internationalisation of business.

An essay (of no more than 3000 words) should demonstrate the knowledge and
understanding of the literature on the key aspects of management ethics. Students should
demonstrate an understanding of processes in the internal and the external context within
which organisations operate, and of the current opportunities and challenges for bringing
about a better ethical culture. The essay is designed to test the conceptual, analytical and
written communication skills of the students.
The essay structure should clearly outline an introduction, main argument and conclusions.
Notes 2: Writing an essay
(Excerpts from the Graduate Handbook)
An introduction to an
essay should address
the question or topics
you have been asked
to discuss.
The main section of
the essay should
outline the
argument(s) that
describe your
response to an essay
question. It might be
an idea or a notion
which is explored in a
discursive manner. In
this case the order of
the topics being
examined forms the structure of the essay argument. 3
The conclusion of an essay should draw together all the previous points of your argument
into one general statement, which is then directly related to the essay topic or the question
you have been answering.
Students are required to show evidence of an extensive use of various well established and
reputable literature sources (i.e. journal articles, books and other sources of information).
EBS, UoE
Dr. Manuela Nocker
October, 2012 LEARNING
OUTCOMES for essay MODULE
BE442
QUESTION NUMBER(S)
Obtain a critical understanding
of principal theoretical
approaches to ethical thinking
in business and organisations
Q1, Q2,
Examine key ethical concepts
(e.g. morality, trust,
responsibility, accountability,
sustainability)
Q1
Evaluate possible interventions
in the presence of ethical
dilemmas faced by managers,
professionals, and stakeholders
in business organisations
Q1 and Q2

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