Business Communication Ethics

Includes material from Guffey text Ch 1

Examples of Dishonest Business Communication

Abflex claim that 3 minutes per day on the machine will

produce a “washboard stomach”

Publisher’s Clearing House use of large/small font sizes and tricky wording to

encourage recipients to believe they had won a prize and/or buying magazines increased chance of prize.

Beach Nut Sold baby apple juice with picture of apple on label,

but no apples actually used in the vitamin-enhanced sugar water

Discussion: Communication Matters

“The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing But The Truth…”Why do people lie?What did you find helpful

about this article?

Ethical Issue Exists When:

Violation of a behavioral normIntent/motive

Causing harm Physical, financial, psychologicalIndividual, group, societyHigher standard for defenseless

Five Common Ethical Traps (from Guffey)

1. The false-necessity trap(convincing yourself that no other choice exists)

2. The doctrine-of-relative-filth trap(comparing your unethical behavior with someone else’s even more unethical behavior)

3. The rationalization trap(justifying unethical actions with excuses)

4. The self-deception trap(euphemistic labeling, minimizing perception of harm)

5. The ends-justify-the-means trap(using unethical methods to accomplish a desirable goal)

Additional Ethical Traps(from Bandura, 1990)

6. Displacement of responsibility or attribution of blame

• just following orders, “he made me”

7. Diffusion of responsibility • if everyone is responsible, no one is

8. Dehumanization • objectification, stereotyping

(Arabs = terrorists)

Organizational Ethical Trap: Darley’s Law

Performance measurement systems can incentivise unethical behavior

Cheating/lying – to protect or advance self

Cheating/lying – to protect or advance organization (“cooking the books”)

Sub-optimization - Optimize metrics to detriment of overall organization

Goals of Ethical Communication

Telling the truthHalf truthsExaggerationsDeceptions

Video: Real Estate example

Goals of Ethical Communication

Labeling Opinionsdifferentiating between facts

(quantifiable and/or verifiable) and opinions (beliefs that are not verified)

stating opinions as if they were facts is unethical

Goals of Ethical Communication

Being Objectiverecognize your own biases and keep

them from distorting your messagehonest reporting means presenting the

whole picture and relating all facts fairly

Video: Advertising example

Goals of Ethical Communication

Communicating Clearlyuse language comprehensible

to average readershort sentences, simple

words, clear organization

Example: performance goals

Goals of Ethical Communication

Giving CreditReferring to originators’

names within the textUsing quotation marksDocumenting sources Verbal credit for ideas

from peers/subordinates

Tools for Doing the Right Thing

Rotary 4-Way Test

Of the things we think, say or do: Is it the TRUTH? Is it FAIR to all concerned? Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER

FRIENDSHIPS? Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?"

Framework for Identifying and

Resolving Ethical Issues (source: Dunn & Bradstreet)

1. Why is this bothering me? Am I genuinely perplexed? Am I afraid to do what I know

is right?

2. Who else matters? Implications for customers,

peers shareholders? How does the problem

appear from the other side?

3. Is it my responsibility? What will happen if I do/ don’t

act?

4. What is the ethical concern? Legal obligation? Honesty, fairness, promise-

keeping, avoiding harm?

5. Whom can give me advice? Supervisor, peers, HR, legal,

ethics hot line? 6. Am I being true to myself?

Consistency with my values and personal commitments? With company values?

Can I share my decision with family, colleagues, customers?

Can I see my decision on the front page of the newspaper?

Markkula Center for Applied Ethics (Santa Clara College)

1. What benefits and harms are produced which action best overall?

2. What moral rights to the parties have which action respects those rights?

3. Which action treats all equally?4. Which action advances the

common good?5. Which action develops

moral virtue?

Ethical Communication = Honesty/Integrity

“Being honest means more than not deceiving. For leaders within organizations, being honest means do not promise what you can’t deliver, do not misrepresent, do not hide behind spin-doctored evasions, do not suppress obligations, do not evade accountability, do not accept that the ‘survival of the fittest’ pressures of business release any of us from the responsibility to respect another’s dignity and humanity.”Dalla Costa The Ethical Imperative 1998

VIDEO