business student ethics at ec.ppf

7/29/2019 Business Student Ethics at EC.ppf

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ENGAGING STUDENTS AT EDGEWOOD

COLLEGE IN CREATING

ETHICAL BUSINESSES AND

AN ETHICAL SOCIETY

Professor Denis Collins

School of Business

Edgewood [email protected]

http://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/
mailto:[email protected]://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/http://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/mailto:[email protected]


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My Philosophical Assumptions

Earth is spaceship circling sun for 4.5 billion years

Started as a floating paradise

Something happened

Now a floating purgatory

It is the planet where we are meant to practice how toexercise kindness. Some people havent realized that yet.

Of 6.8 billion earth inhabitants:

A small core are imperfectly good people creating a justsociety or heaven on earth

A small core are imperfectly good people doing really badthings

Many are imperfectly good people observing from the sidelines


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Theological Assumptions

Thy Will Be Done on Earth as it is in Heaven

We are all children of God

Everyone is my brother or sister (students asyounger siblings!)

Earth is evolving toward a more just society orheaven on earth


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Assumptions About Students

Emerging adults

Fear failure

Habituated to be educationally passive

Idealistic

Must be pushed out of their comfort zone


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Activities for

Traditional Undergraduates

Share a free meal at Luke House

Journaling about work-related ethical dilemmas

Consulting advice for non-profits

Good Samaritan Award Purpose in life essay

Truth

Justice

Compassion Partnership

Community

Manage campus-wide Eco-Olympics


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EDGEWOOD COLLEGE

ECO-OLYMPICS WINNERS

2007 Winners

Water Savings: Stevie Hall 21% decline in monthly water use

Electricity Savings: Marshall Hall 15% reduction in kwh

Heat Savings: Weber & Stevie Halls 44% reduction in therms

2006 Winners

Water Savings: Regina/Weber Halls57% decline in monthlywater use

Electricity Savings: Siena Hall 10% reduction in kwh

Heat Savings: Stevie Hall 22% reduction in therms


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Real-Time Ethical Decision-Making

Create and discuss real-life ethical dilemmas

based on their own work experience

Describe an incident at work that challenged yourconscience.

Describe an incident at work that challenged thecompanys code of ethics.

Describe an incident that seemed disrespectfultoward owners, customers, managers, employees,

suppliers, community or the natural environment.


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EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Students in Free Enterprise Competition

Project Management Market Economics International Business

Business Skills Financial Literacy Ethics

Ethics Bowl Competition

Entrepreneurship Club


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ACTIVITIES FOR

MBA STUDENTS

Apply concepts to work experience Successful and Unsuccessful Work Teams Communication Successes and Failures Organizational Change Successes and Failures

Environmental Management Project: The Natural Step Reduce Fossil Fuel and Mineral Use Reduce Chemical and Unnatural Substance Use

Reduce Encroachment on Nature (land, water, wildlife) Waste = Food Choose Low Hanging Fruit Initiate Change


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MBA Initiated Changes

Recycle and reduce use of computer paper

Provide healthier vending machine food options

Install energy efficient lighting and motion sensors

Eliminate hazardous chemical use in a research lab

Conserve energy by turning off computers at end of the day

Donate excess hospital supplies to developing nations

Develop a ride share program


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End Results

For the Next 40 Years

Students are Active Participants in Creating:

Efficient Organizations Effective Organizations and Ethical Organizations

Students are Active Participants in Creating:

Just Society/Heaven on Earth


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Teaching Publications at:http://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/teaching_articles.htm

Denis Collins (2008) Creating Environmental Change Through Business Ethics and Society Courses, pp. 243-263 in DianeSwanson and Dann Fisher (Eds.),Advancing Business Ethics Education in the 21stCentury, Information Age Publishers.

Denis Collins (2006) Taking Business Ethics Seriously: Best Practices in Teaching and Integrating Business Ethics Within aBusiness Program, pp. 319-349, in Robert DeFillippi and Charles Wankel (Eds.), New Visions of Graduate Management

Education in Research in Management Education and Developmentseries, vol. 5, Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing.

Denis Collins (1999) The Dollar Game: Questioning the Ethics of Capitalism and Bargaining,Journal of ManagementEducation, 23(3), 302-310.

Denis Collins & Laura Page (1997) A Socrates/Ted Koppel Paradigm for Integrating the Teaching of Business Ethics in theCurriculum, pp. 221-242 in Research in Corporate Social Performance and Policy, vol. 15, Supplement 2, special issue on

Teaching Business and Society Courses with Reflective and Active Learning Strategies, edited by Sandra Waddock.

Denis Collins (1996) Distributive Justice and Capitalism: A Rawlsian Exercise,Journal of Management Education, 20(1), 82-

86.

Denis Collins (1996) Serving the Homeless and Low-Income Communities Through Business & Society/Business Ethics ClassProjects: The University of Wisconsin-Madison Plan,Journal of Business Ethics, 15(1), 67-85.
http://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/teaching_articles.htmhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/EC%20Enviro%20Projects.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Business%20Ethics%20Teaching.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Business%20Ethics%20Teaching.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/The%20Dollar%20Game.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/A%20Socrates.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/A%20Socrates.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Distributed%20Justice.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/ServingtheHomeless.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Distributed%20Justice.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/A%20Socrates.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/A%20Socrates.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/The%20Dollar%20Game.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Business%20Ethics%20Teaching.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/Business%20Ethics%20Teaching.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/pdfdocuments/EC%20Enviro%20Projects.pdfhttp://business.edgewood.edu/dcollins/teaching_articles.htm


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Reporting Business Results

In February 2001, after fourteen years as Enrons CEO, Ken Lay retired. He promoted Jeff Skilling, the founder of Enrons innovativeGas Bank Division, and Enrons Chief Operating Officer since 1996, as Enrons new CEO. It was a dream come true for the 48 yearold Skilling. But just six months later, in August 2001, Skilling unexpectedly resigns. He is replaced by Ken Lay, who had remained asChairman of the Board despite being in semi-retirement.

The accounting books for the third quarter close on September 30. Chief Accounting Officer Richard Causey informs Lay that Causey

and Chief Financial Officer Andy Fastow, with Skillings knowledge, had hidden losses totaling nearly $7 billion the past few years. AsCEO, Lay was responsible for these numbers, but he simply hadnt been paying close attention, preferring to let others he trusted,such as Skilling and Causey, manage the details while he lobbied politicians and potential customers around the world.

Third quarter results must be publicly released on October 16th. Wall Street analysts predict that Enron has about $2 billion in lossesbecause the United States is in a recession, some of Enrons major customers in the dot.com industry are bankrupt, and the WorldTrade Center tragedy occurred just three weeks ago.

Lay meets with several trusted Enron executives. They recommend that Lay should report only $1.2 billion of the $7 billion in losses

because that amount could be reasonably explained without damaging Enrons already falling stock price too much. In addition,beating Wall Street expectations might attract new investors.

They also point out that if Lay reports all $7 billion in losses on October 16th, Enrons stock price would collapse from a massive stocksell off, causing Enron to default on its loans and a resultant government investigation that could quickly bankrupt the company. Thiswould be risking the jobs of 5,000 employees, many of whom have pension plans loaded with Enron stock. The employees had beentold many times to diversify their pension plans, but Enrons stock price had been rising for about a decade, and nearly trip led invalue the previous five years.

DECISION CHOICE: I f you were Ken Lay, how much of the hidden losses would you report to the public when you announce thirdquarter results:$7 billion in losses and risk financial collapse$2 billion in losses to match Wall Street expectations or$1.2 billion suggested by other Enron executives

Why?

business student ethics at ec.ppf

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