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Ethics
Today Online This newsletter
is published by the Ethics Resource Center. ============================================================ Ethics
Today Online This newsletter
is published by the Ethics Resource Center.
** Why Ethics? Why Now? The transition between calendar years is traditionally a time to reflect on the past and renew for the future. We will remember 2002 as a year in which well-publicized scandals diminished investor confidence and raised concerns about the erosion of corporate responsibility, non-profit agencies violated their donors' trust, multinational corporations collaborated with corrupt and ineffective governments and schools struggled with issues of violence, respect and bullying. It would be disheartening if we could only see a series of dismal ethics failures, but here at the threshold of the new year, we can also see the hope offered by emerging corrective measures and increasing public outcry for ethical accountability in organizations and governments. The ERC is proud to be a continuing part of these efforts. As I write this, I am in Turkey helping to launch the Turkish Ethics Values Center (TEDMER), whose purpose is to develop, promote understanding of, and evaluate ethical values in corporations and business relationships in Turkey. The center's evolving capacity to raise public awareness and support organizational ethics programs will help create stability through predictable business environments and transaction costs, resulting in more open and transparent systems. And while there will always be bad actors, the increased transparency and higher ethics standards will allow us to isolate and expose them. Closer to home, the ERC has recently joined with Thelen Reid & Priest LLP to submit comments to the Securities and Exchange Commission concerning a provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that deals with code of ethics disclosures. We are honored to have this opportunity, and others like it, to contribute our experience designing, assessing, and improving ethics initiatives to these efforts to forge new standards for ethics in business. There remains much to be done -- and a substantial part cannot be achieved solely through government-imposed regulations or even the best conceived programs. As we concluded in the SEC letter, "An effective ethical program requires continual reinforcement of strong values. A code of ethics or detailed procedures designed to encourage full disclosure alone is not a substitute for good and honorable management, employees, and directors working to the best of their ability for the benefit of shareholders and others who have entrusted them with responsibility." As we step into the new year, we see not failure but promise. The events of the past year offer an unequaled opportunity to increase ethics awareness and promote ethical behavior within organizations and institutions. At the same time, our work with leaders who are committed to ethics and integrity -- in business and education, both here and overseas -- has taught us to think more effectively about a wide range of issues and values, from private ethics and corporate culture to national and international laws and codes. As the year unfolds, we plan to share this knowledge through our publications, e-newsletter and web site and to serve as a unique resource for all who seek information about ethics best practices. Why ethics? Why now? The time has never been better to re-evaluate and rebuild on the foundations of honesty and integrity, to hold ourselves, our corporations and our governments to higher ethical standards, and to demonstrate that businesses that adhere to ethical values can be successful by any definition of the word. This is our goal and our challenge. We invite you to join us. Stuart C. Gilman, President ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** SEC Needs to Recognize that Sound Corporate Ethics Requires Active Participation of Top Managers and Directors The Securities and Exchange Commission will take action this month to fortify the ethical climate of all public companies by effectively requiring companies to adopt codes of ethics. In a detailed comment letter on the SEC rulemaking, the Ethics Resource Center, together with the law firm Thelen Reid & Priest LLP, stressed that more important than having a code of ethics is undertaking an effective program to communicate the code's values within the company and ensure that those values are understood and applied in difficult situations. Assuring an appropriate ethical climate within a public company requires the active involvement of senior officers and boards of directors. SEC Today (CCH Washington Service Bureau) highlighted the ERC/Thelen Reid comment letter and a similar letter from the Ethics Officer Association in its cover story on January 6, 2003. Read the Press Release at: Read the ERC/Thelen Reid comment letter
at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Ask the Expert: Defining Ethics, Morals and Values "What is the difference between ethics, morals and values?" In answering what seems like a simple question for which there must be a simple answer, Principal Consultant Frank Navran explains that the way you answer is a function of the academic discipline that shaped your thinking and the religious, theological or philosophical underpinnings of your personal belief system. Even among those who believe they know the answer to this question there is not total agreement and so, this definition is a work in progress, encompassing an ongoing and evolving dialog. Read Frank's answer at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Spotlight on Professional Ethics Editor's Note: The following articles sample the ethical issues and trends in the professions. We have chosen to focus on accounting, health care, law and engineering, while recognizing that there are a vast number of other professions. In addition, we note that there is much overlap, and thus, much to be learned, between the ethical issues faced by these individuals and organizations and those faced by organizations generally. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** No Virginia, There is No Such Thing As Independence Principal Consultant Frank Navran considers the issues of independence, conflict of interests, individualism and transparency, using Boards of Directors and auditors as timely examples. He posits that Independence cannot ever be absolute because any decision is made in a societal context and society has standards and expectations. Our independence is limited by what society deems reasonable -- by the values and principles, which define 'appropriate'. Thus we can understand independence not as the freedom to do whatever we want, but rather freedom to do what we ought. We are free to act in ways that are consistent with society's definition of what is right or best. "We cannot escape the reality that every pragmatic, altruistic or idealistic action and decision has the potential for personal impact," he says. "Therefore absolute independence is a myth." Frank does not suggest that individualism is necessarily bad. Indeed, he says, "when personal goals are congruent with idealism, pragmatism and altruism it strengthens one's resolve to do the right thing" Read the rest of this article, including
a few solutions proposed for discussion, at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** New American Rules for Business Recently Wharton's Reginald H. Jones Center for Management Policy, Strategy, and Organization, together with Wharton's Financial Institutions Center, hosted a conference on "New American Rules for Business? Post-Scandal Directions for Policy and Governance." In a special section of their website, they consider whether recent accounting and auditing reforms address deeper concerns about corporate governance and business behavior. The special section includes five articles:
Access the special section with links
to all five articles at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Farewell to The Prime Directive? "Strong forces are at work in America that threaten to weaken an attorney's traditional duty to protect a client's confidences, one of the most basic tenets of legal ethics. The recent corporate scandals have intensified calls for corporate attorneys to become watchdogs on their own clients, and the new Sarbanes-Oxley bill is pushing the profession in that direction." So begins this provocative article by attorney Jack Marshall in which he expresses his views about the impact of recent actions on the ethics of the legal profession and, specifically, on the duty of an attorney to keep a client's confidences. Mr. Marshall is the President of ProEthics, Ltd., a legal ethics training and consulting company based in Alexandria, VA. Read the rest of his essay at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Ethics and Integrity: Big Engineering and Big Science On Friday, December 13, 2002, Stuart Gilman gave a colloquium to a group of engineers, physicists and mathematicians at The Applied Physics Laboratory of The Johns Hopkins University in which he discussed the application of ethics to the scientific and engineering tradition. Beginning by saying that the problem for most engineers and scientists is that there is no certainty in ethics - certainty being the thing that attracts many of them to science and engineering. The irony, he noted, was that ignoring our values actually limits our ability to do excellent science and engineering. He urged them to focus on the insight of Norm Augustine "Most of the engineers whom I have seen get into trouble on ethical matters did so not because they were not decent people but because they failed to recognize that they were confronting an ethical issue." Mr. Augustine is chair of the National Academy for Engineering's Committee on Engineering Ethics and Society, former chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corporation and founding chairman of the ERC Fellows Program. A good ethics background lets one both recognize ethical issues and ask the right questions, he explained. Your greatest nightmare, he continued, is not in the calculations or experiments, but lurks in the underpinnings of unexamined values and principles that are the foundation of your work. During his presentation, Stuart referred to the efforts of NAE President Wm. A. Wulf to focus and develop the discussion on engineering ethics in the 21st century, including the appointment of a Committee on Engineering Ethics and Society. The NAE also dedicated its Fall 2002 issue of its quarterly journal "The Bridge" to engineering ethics. Read "The Bridge" articles
on engineering, including an enlightening essay by Norm Augustine
entitled "Ethics and the Second Law of Thermodynamics",
at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** A Profession Under Siege? Medical Practice and Ethics in South Africa In 2000 the Ethics Institute of South Africa (EthicSA) conducted a survey in order to gauge various aspects of the business (not clinical) ethics of medical practice among a representative sample of medical practitioners - general practitioners as well as specialists - in South Africa. The "overwhelming impression" according to the study "is of a profession caught between its traditional commitment to ethically sound practice, and growing demands of financial survival. South African doctors very clearly recognise and subscribe to an ethos that observes the best interests of the patient. At the same time, they are increasingly frustrated and constrained by unrealistic medical aid tariffs, government demands and the conflicting interests of various other role players." Read the executive summary at: Get a full text PDF copy of the report
at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital Ethics Audit EthicSA also recently conducted a survey at the request of senior management of Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital (CHBH) in order to gauge the ethical status of affairs at the hospital. Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital is the largest public hospital in the world and is located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The specific objectives of the study were:
The results of the survey conducted in 2001 exposed "the precarious state of public hospitals" in South Africa. Read the executive summary at: Get a full text PDF copy of the report
at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** The Intersection of Health Care and Organizational Ethics The overlap between organizational ethics and health care ethics seems to be growing as the field of health care becomes ever more complex, the relationships between and among the various actors get increasingly complicated, the amount of money spent on healthcare grows daily and the pace of change seems to accelerate constantly. ERC International Programs Consultant Cheryl Raven discusses a combined approach to these issues. "The majority of bioethics decisions are made by or within organizations or institutions of one sort or another. It is both worthwhile and important to examine the organizational environment within which these decisions are made, and the impact that organizational climate must surely have on them. It is also important to consider a broad range of ethical issues and challenges which, while not bioethical or healthcare specific, nonetheless have a dramatic impact on the provision of healthcare services." Read the rest of this article at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Report of UAE International Conference on Healthcare Ethics The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Health organized the "UAE International Conference on Healthcare Ethics" from March 10 to 13, 2002. Convened under the high patronage of H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Head of the Executive Council, the conference brought together close to a thousand registered guests and delegates. A number of international, regional and local organizations collaborated in the organization of the conference on the general theme of "Cross-Cultural Dialogue on Ethical Issues in Healthcare" including the World Health Organization, the Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences, the International Association of Bioethics, the Emirates Medical Association and the Gulf Centre for Excellence in Ethics. Thirty-five speakers from fourteen countries contributed papers. Read the post conference report of
the UAE International Conference on Healthcare Ethics at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Links to Online Codes of Professional Ethics Major professional associations for accountants, physicians, lawyers and engineers publish their ethics codes online. See the following links for more information and to read their codes.
Many other professions have enacted mandatory or voluntary codes that regulate the conduct of their members. The following web sites contain links to a number of these organizations and their codes.
** PEEC Conference on "Ethics Across the Professions" The Program for Ethics in Education and Community (PEEC) at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg is holding a colloquium and conference on "Ethics Across the Professions" from March 19 to 21, 2003. Fifteen scholars, including 10 media ethicists, will meet on March 18 and 19 to share ideas and present papers comparing issues in journalism ethics with issues in other fields of professional ethics. Keynote speaker and tobacco company whistleblower Dr. Jeffrey Wigand opens the public conference on the evening of March 19. On Thursday March 20 journalists, doctors, lawyers, business leaders, environmental scientists and others will discuss professional issues and seek common ground. Friday is devoted almost entirely to journalism ethics, and features papers and panels on media ethics teaching and research. The second part of the conference, beginning with Mr. Wigand's address, is open to the public. Get more information and register
for this conference at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **Opinion Poll: What Criteria Do You Use When Making Business Decisions? Our poll this month stems from Frank Navran's article "No Virginia, There Is No Such Thing as Independence" Sanford Krolick in his Ethical Decision Making Style Survey suggested there are four sets of criteria, which are considered every time any employee (at any level up to and including members of the Board) considers a business action or makes a business decision. To which of these criteria are you most attentive in your business decision-making?
Take our January poll at: Last Month's Poll: In December we asked you to select someone in your organization to whom you would give an award for ethical behavior. 60% of the respondents answered "a peer", 15% answered "your supervisor" and another 15% answered "someone else". 10% answered "your CEO or president." See the results of last month's poll
at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** ERC Works with Transparencia Por Colombia To Develop Comprehensive Ethics Programme for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Comprehensive Ethics Programme for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), Colombia, which was developed by Transparencia por Colombia in alliance with the ERC with financial support from the Merck Sharp & Dohme Foundation and the Corona Foundation, is one of 28 new tools included in the 2002 version of Transparency International's Corruption Fighters' Tool Kit. As stated in the report, the objective of the program was to design, implement and monitor a comprehensive program to promote ethics at SMEs in Colombia. The project aimed to improve relations between individual companies and the different interest groups they interact with by promoting a more ethical approach to business. The specific objectives of the project were:
Get a copy of the Comprehensive Ethics
Programme for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises at: (click on "VI. Business Ethics") Transparency International's Corruption Fighters' Tool Kit is a compendium of practical civil society anti-corruption experiences described in concrete terms and accessible language. It presents innovative anti-corruption tools developed and implemented by TI national chapters and other civil society organizations from around the world. Review Transparency International's
Corruption Fighters' Tool Kit 2002 at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Transparency International Integrity Awards 2003 Call for Nominations Transparency International is now calling for nominations for its 2003 Integrity Awards. The TI Integrity Awards were created to recognize the courage and determination of the many individuals and organizations exposing and fighting corruption around the world. Deadline for submissions is 31 January 2003 1700 GMT. Read the guidelines available in English,
French, and Spanish at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2002 The National Center for Education Statistics has released its report, Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2002. The report, which actually covers data collected for the year 2000, indicates that student safety is an issue for concern outside of school as well as on school property. Among the significant findings were that in 2000:
The nonfatal victimization rate for students ages 12 through 18 actually decreased from 1992 to 2000. The percentage of students reporting that they were victims of crime at school also dropped from 1995 to 2001. However, the prevalence of other problem behavior at school, such as bullying, has increased. According to the report's Executive Summary, "The data shown in this report present a mixed picture of school safety. While overall victimization rates have declined, more work needs to be done to address the issues related to school violence and safety. Get key findings, downloadable versions
of the report and associated data tables at: For more information on school safety, including drug and violence prevention programs, visit the web site of the newly created Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS) at the US Department of Education. OSDFS also administers the Department's programs relating to character education. Find out more about the Office of
Safe and Drug-Free Schools at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** The Emperor's Club: Ethical Issues on the Big Screen In the movie "The Emperor's Club," Kevin Kline stars as William Hundert, the beloved classics teacher at a traditional boys' school who faces a series of ethical dilemmas even as he strongly supports the notion in his teaching that "a man's character is his fate". His foil is a bright and charismatic, yet disrespectful and rebellious Senator's son who continually disrupts classes with his provocative behavior after arriving at the school in mid-term. Eventually, his attitude changes and Hundert makes a decision to reward him, by assuring that he qualifies for the end of year Latin competition in which the students with the three best grades are chosen to compete. Many years later at a reunion of his students, Hundert is faced with the consequences of his earlier failure to live up to his own ethical standards. After seeing the movie, ERC Fellows Chairman Stephen Potts gave it high marks, both for a fine performance by Kline and for its portrayal of ethical issues that pervade the story line, from an early scene involving a baseball and a car window to the selection of competitors and eventually the competition itself. Without giving away the ending, Steve said he thought the film effectively demonstrated the long-lasting moral impact on both teacher and student when one is not made to pay the consequences of his actions. The movie was released in November 2002 and is based on the title story in Ethan Canin's collection of four novellas "The Palace Thief". Read about or buy "The Palace
Thief" on Amazon.com at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Publications & Media Coverage -- What The Schools Can Teach Us About Nurturing Values When the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires CEOs to attest to their companies' financial statements, it is in essence asking high-level personnel to certify the behavior of others. The cumulative effect is that organizations must now teach employees about ethics and encourage ethical behavior-and they must be more effective than ever before. Fortunately, there is no need to reinvent the proverbial wheel. By looking at the successes and failures of the educational world's efforts to impart values and nurture ethical behavior, business can discover which strategies work and which do not. When it comes to the teaching and learning of ethics, there is something CEOs can learn from elementary and secondary school teachers. ERC Programs Director Patricia J. Harned, Ph.D. and Associate Consultant Kathryn M. Sutliff, M.A.T., discuss the seven deadly sins of any ethics initiative along with lessons that business can learn from the schools in the January 2003 issue of Ethikos, a bi-monthly publication that examines ethical and compliance issues in business. For more information about Ethikos,
visit: In November Sen. John McCain, R-AZ, and Patrick Leahy, D-VT, called on US Attorney General John Ashcroft to provide an update on the US government's findings in a two year sealed investigation into the possibility of illicit payments from an American company to members of Kazakhstan's government. In a Eurasianet article, ERC President Stuart Gilman said "It would stun me if Justice doesn't have a response by December 16", he said. (His emails jumped considerably when December 16 passed with no response.) "But even if there is a response by Justice, don't expect much detail." Read the full article at: The thousands of small businesses that run ethical companies were featured in the December 2002 issue of Costco Connections, published by Costco Wholesale for its members, in an article on the "the flip side" of the recent business scandals. The author interviewed a number of small business leaders about the rewards of having a well-stated set of ethics, including business success, highly motivated employees and a good reputation in the community. Several members also focused on the importance of making a code of ethics an integral part of the corporate culture. ERC Director of Advisory Services Lee WanVeer is quoted in a sidebar giving advice on developing a code of ethics. Some of the tips include:
The article also includes a sidebar interview with Costco President and CEO Jim Sinegal, with his remarks on five key components of Costco's ethics policy: obey the law, take care of members, take care of employees, respect suppliers and reward shareholders. In relation to the last item, Mr. Sinegal explained, "As our code indicates, following these other value statements naturally leads to success and our ultimate responsibility of reward for the shareholder." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** News from the ERC -- The ERC added two new staff members: Communications Manager Nicole Germain and Senior Consultant Anita Baker - As Communications Manager for the Ethics Resource Center, Nicole Germain will be responsible for developing and implementing ERC communication strategy in close coordination with the Director of Development. In this capacity, Nicole's responsibilities include managing public relations, marketing and communications activities, including media relations. Additionally, Nicole manages internal communications. Prior to working for ERC, Nicole was Communications Associate for Catholic Relief Services in Maryland, a Director of Publications with the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Marketing and Public Relations Assistant with Professional Consulting Services. Nicole has a B.A. in English from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and an M.A. in Public Communication from American University. - Dr. Anita B. Baker joined
the Ethics Resource Center as Senior Consultant after working at
the World Bank Group (WBG), Washington, DC, as the Manager, Office
of Business Ethics and Integrity. She comes to the ERC with significant
practical experience in implementing ethics programs, and will be
assisting in developing ERC international programs. Before joining
the WBG in 1998, she held various senior management positions with
the Lockheed Martin Corporation, was an Associate Professor and
Director of International Education, The University of Utah and
Assistant Dean Undergraduate Faculty, The University of Maryland
University College. She was also Chairperson, Advanced Scandinavian
Area Studies, School of Area Studies, Foreign Service Institute,
US Department of State, Washington, DC. A native of Denmark, Baker
attended Baltimore Friends School, received her B.A. from Goucher
College and Princeton University, and her Ph.D. from Cornell University.
She was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow, a Fellow, the Russian Research
Center, Harvard University, and a Fellow, the Kennan Institute for
Advanced Russian Studies, Woodrow Wilson Center. Read more
about Anita's background and experience at:
The ERC's "Business Ethics Timeline"
has been updated to reflect the events of 2002. This chart, which
follows the development of business ethics through five decades
by examining ethical climate, major ethical dilemmas and business
ethics developments, is part of the ERC's online Ethics Toolkit.
See the timeline at: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** Offering Our Thanks As a nonprofit organization, the Ethics Resource Center depends on contributions from many generous donors. Without their dedication and trust, many of the programs and projects highlighted in this newsletter would not be possible. The ERC would like to thank the following for their recent contributions for general support:
We invite you to join our loyal contributors
in lending your support. To find out how to contribute or to donate
online, go to: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Ethics Resource Center (ERC) is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization exempt from taxation under the Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. All gifts are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
Copyright (c) 2002 Ethics Resource
Center. All rights reserved. Please contact ethics@ethics.org for information about reproducing any of the information contained within this newsletter or on our web site. Back issues of Ethics Today are available online at: /today/et_archives.html The Ethics Resource Center, 1747 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW, Suite 400
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