Essays and Research Papers on Business Ethics

This is a 3 page paper discussing the methods of manipulation of financial statements companies have used to inflate profits. Within the last several years, large multi-billion corporations such as WorldCom and Enron have collapsed due to the misrepresentation of their profits. While misstating profits and earnings, the companies encouraged further investments but in fact ...

A 16 page paper that discusses different aspects of performance evaluation. Subtopics include: Appraisal used in the TQM framework; the purposes and uses of the appraisal, including administrative, development and documentation; Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales, MBO, and 360 degree appraisal models; negative impacts of employee evaluation; psychological effects; costs; validity, reliability, bias; and common errors, ...

A 7 page research paper that posits that globalization, per se, is not the problem, but rather how globalization has been mismanaged. The writer looks at the 1999 merger of Chrysler Corporation and Daimler Benz, as an example of how the corporate cultural ramifications of globalization have been overlooked and underestimated. Citing Waltz (1999), the ...

A 4 page paper outlining the method by which Wal-Mart enters a new market; undercuts prices on a scale that local mom-and-pop stores cannot match; puts those stores out of business; and then raises its own prices to pre-Wal-Mart levels when local consumers have no other choices available to them. Wal-Mart is not the ...

A 6 page paper which summarizes and analyzes Larry Julian’s book “God is My CEO.” Bibliography lists 4 sources.

A 13 page paper discussing whether insider trading is a made-up crime or is truly unethical. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) instituted its prohibition against insider trading after the crash of the stock market in 1929. The quarterly report was about the only vehicle to company – and investment – information available ...

A 5 page paper. In 1990, R.J. Reynolds Industries Inc. gained 58 percent of its income from the tobacco market. The company was maligned for its plans to market two new brands to narrowly-targeted segments of the US population, namely Black Americans and low-income, poorly educated women. The purpose here is to ...

A 10 page overview of child labor practices in Asia. Statistics reveal not only a heavy reliance on child labor, the highest in the world in fact in terms of the actual number of children employed, but also an encouragement of such factors by a western market for mass produced goods. Focusing primarily ...

The way in which businesses undertake their operations in terms of moral or ethical behaviour will vary according the underlying values of management. This 8 page paper considers the different approaches and if the corporation should be seen as an agent of society. The different schools of thought are examined before the best approach is ...

This 4-page paper focuses on the contention that ethical behavior is more than following a list of rules and regulations; namely that ethical behavior stems from a person's character and willingness to do good. Examples from Enron and Johnson & Johnson are cited to enforce this view. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

This 3-page paper focuses on the problem of job promotion based on employer favoritism vs. skill and merit. The paper discusses why promoting on favoritism is not a good idea, and provides suggestions on how promotions should be handled. Bibliography lists 1 source.

Many factors influence a business, some of these are within the control of the firm, whilst others are external. However, they can all be sources that can add value to a company. This 12 page paper will show how many factors, which are often seen as costly, may add value to a company. These ...

This 5 page paper discusses the statement that positive accounting theory can explain the greening of financial accounting disclosure but that it cannot provide a framework for improving it. The paper considers the link between positive accounting theory (PAT) and how it does or does not explain the increasing disclosure of environmental reporting and whether ...

A 4 page paper which assesses this position, along with its utilitarian and deontological implications. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 4 page paper discussing a Web-based interactive survey of the ethics of spamming, followed by implications of ethical behavior in the electronic environment. Increasing numbers of regulations against spam make it more difficult to continue to spam individuals, but real change can occur only with individuals choosing against its use. There are ...

This 6 page paper examines the Enron debacle and how the company could have been saved. The roles of key players like Lay and Fastow are examined. Recommendations are made. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

A 4 page paper comparing World Bank involvement with principle of the Tao. If a nation lacks capital in its own right, the next best source is that of foreign direct investment (FDI). FDI support depends on economic conditions and investors’ belief that they can realize financial gains on the capital invested in ...

A 5 page paper discussing the problems faced by Enron in the early days of the unfolding of the scandals that would end its existence. “Integrity … is what you do when nobody's looking” (Fisher, 2002; p. 40). Whatever the problems at Enron finally are revealed to have been, the fact is that ...

6 pages in length. The ever-changing landscape of contemporary business harbors a number of considerations when it comes to the concept of ethics. The extent to which ethics and business have become inextricable components of principled decision making is both grand and far-reaching; that ethics can no longer be ignored as a primary ...

This 24 page paper examines the approach that Shell, the well known petroleum company takes towards green or environmentalist issues and sustainability. The paper starts with a consideration of the different models that can be used when assessing environmental or sustainable practices. These are examined with examples, such as the Brent Spa oil rig disposal. ...

A 15 page paper that discusses the relationship between organizational culture and ethics. The functions of organizational culture are identified and different types of culture are reported, such as Handy and Harrison's model. The proposition that ethical standards are the core of a corporate culture with everything else built around them is made and explained. ...

This 3 page paper examines how change is sometimes made in the organizational setting. Ethics are considered and an example is used to illustrate how problems might occur during a transition. Bibliography lists 4 sources.

This 3-page paper focuses on the FCPA and discusses its competitive impact on U.S. firms. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

This 8 page paper discusses leadership and ethics in corporate America. Examples given, literature reveiwed, abstract provided. Bibliography lists 20 sources.

This 4 page paper looks at Merrill Lynch's involvement in the California government long after the 1994 scandal that plunged Orange County into bankruptcy. Is it ethical for the state of California to do business with the likes of Merrill Lynch? The answer is "yes." Bibliography lists 3 sources.