business chapter 3

Who sets the standards of right and wrong as defined by ethics?

Society

How do the U.S. standards for ethics and social responsibility compare to those in less-developed countries?

The U.S. standards are stricter than those in less-developed countries.

What are two characteristics of businesses that practice corporate social responsibility?

They care about being fair and honest with their stakeholders They care for the welfare of society as a whole

How are U.S. companies likely to pressure foreign companies to change their standards of ethics and social responsibility?

They may choose to cancel orders when there are human rights abuses. They may choose to cancel orders when there are environmental abuses.

According to research, what are outcomes of companies that engage in corporate social responsibility? (Check all that apply)

They retain better employees. They draw more customers. They enjoy greater employee loyalty.

Which of the following are reasons a business should be managed ethically?

To avoid lawsuits To maintain a good reputation To attract customers

Which of the following facts best exemplifies the statement that "ethical problems are not unique to the United States"?

Top leaders from other countries have been charged with bribery.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and corporate profits can at times go hand in hand.

True

Whistleblowers are often concerned about retaliation.

True

Examples of how ethical standards differ among countries and cultures include

U.S. executives who complain that their businesses are at a competitive disadvantage when bidding against non-U.S. companies, since foreign companies don't abide by bribery laws

A systematic evaluation of an organization's progress toward implementing socially responsible and responsive programs is called:

a social audit

Many corporate executives reported that they use social media to communicate their socially responsible activities to customers because it:

allows them to connect directly with customers allows them to reach specific groups more directly reaches broad and diverse groups

Studies show that companies with reputations for good corporate social responsibility

attract and retain better employees

Many businesses believe that they should have an influential and important role in:

building communities

Effective ethics officers implement ethical standards in what two ways?

by maintaining confidentiality with employees by conducting objective investigations to ensure fairness

Ethics codes that emphasize control and punishment of wrong-doers are -ethics codes.

compliance- based

Corporate social responsibility is based on a __

concern for the welfare of society

The statement by Patagonia that "A love of wild and beautiful places demands participation in the fight to save them, and to help reverse the steep decline in the overall environmental health of our planet" is an example of:

corporate policy

The concern businesses have for the welfare of society, not just for their owners is referred to as

corporate social responsibility

The many small choices we make daily about working or goofing off, using company phones and computers responsibly, and following safety rules, make it clear that _ decisions start with each individual.

ethical

People learn their organizational _ from observing the standards, values, and behaviors of leaders and other employees.

ethics

An important factor in enforcing ethics codes is selecting a(n) __ __

ethics officer

A social audit is used by organizations to

evaluate its progress toward implementing socially responsible programs

True or false: Bribery is a business practice unanimously held as an ethical violation across the globe.

false

social responsibility and ethical problems exist primarily in the U.S. because we have more laws about those problems.

false

Many investors believe it makes __ as well as __ sense to invest in companies that plan to create a better environment

financial; moral

Efforts to improve labor conditions in foreign countries have not always been as successful as U.S. companies intended because in some foreign countries

government regulations are weak.

What motivated the unethical behavior of real estate agents, lenders, and borrowers that led to the financial crisis of 2008?

greed

Although definitions and means of measuring a carbon footprint aren't yet clear, many companies try to become more __ by claiming to reduce it.

green

Companies that try to act in a socially responsible way are likely to focus on which type of activities? (Check all that apply)

increasing the diversity of their workforce using recyclable packaging providing safety equipment and training for their workers

Responsible business behavior depends on the responsible behavior of each _____ in the business world

individual

Written ethics codes can be categorized as

integrity-based compliance- based

A business should be managed ethically because

it reduces employee turnover it reduces the likelihood of lawsuits by employees or customers businesses with good reputations attract customers

A company that has socially responsible human resources management is

likely to perform better financially

Economist Milton Friedman believed that a business's only social responsibility was to make __ for its owners and that anything else was socialism.

money

The emergence of the green movement has affected businesses by

offering consumers more product choices

Compliance-based ethics codes focus on:

penalizing wrong-doers increasing control

Corporate __ is the dimension of social responsibility that refers to a position a firm takes or statement it makes on social and political issues.

policy

To allow whistleblowers to come forward with information organizations should

protect them from retaliation allow for complete anonymity

Studies have shown that what most influences a company's effectiveness and financial performance is

responsible management of human resources

If the statement "ethics is caught more than it is taught" is true, then management facilitates this by:

setting a good example

Many companies believe they have a role in promoting ______ that goes way beyond simply "giving back."

social justice

A communication tool many companies use to inform diverse groups of their social responsibility efforts at little cost is

social media

U.S. economist Milton Friedman believed that the only social responsibility of the corporation was to its stockholders. He also believed anything other than that would be considered __

socialism

When it comes to ethics, _ sets the standards for moral behavior, that is behavior defined as right or wrong.

society or culture

When implementing an ethics code, it is important to share it with all ___ because pressure to act unethically often comes from the outside.

stakeholders or outsiders

Socially conscious investors insist that a company extend its own high standards to its

suppliers

According to recent U.S. Census Bureau research volunteerism is at an all time high, but

3 out of 4 citizens do not give any time to the communities in which they live

Many investors believe

that they can improve their own financial health by investing in companies whose goods and services benefit the community it makes financial as well as moral sense to invest in companies that plan to create a better environment

Which of the following behaviors are illegal in the United States, but potentially put our companies at a disadvantage in overseas markets?

Influence peddling Bribery

Top officials in countries like Japan, South Korea, and China have faced legal charges in what two areas?

Influence-peddling Bribery

A(n) __ __ ethics code creates an environment which supports ethically sound behavior by stating an organization's guiding values, shared responsibilities, and accountability.

Integrity based

The motives of those involved in unethical behavior that caused the financial crisis in the real estate, banking, and mortgage industries included:

the wish to inflate their own earnings greed

From the list below, identify the five groups considered to be a type of watchdog group.

union officials customers socially conscious research organizations environmentalists socially conscious investors

In the United States, many employees report that they are unethical at work because they:

violate safety standards goof off

Insiders, such as employees, who report concerns about a company's accounting or auditing practices are called:

whistleblowers

__ are insiders who report illegal or unethical behavior (answer is one word).

whistleblowers

Which set of ethics codes defines an organization's guiding values, creates an environment that supports ethically sound behavior, and stresses shared accountability?

Integrity-based ethics codes

Which of the following are true regarding ethical behavior?

It does not subtract from the bottom line; it adds to it.

Trust and cooperation between workers and managers must be based on which of the following?

Moral integrity Fairness Honesty

Which social performance dimension includes treating employees fairly and ethically?

Corporate responsibility

Which of the following are examples of outside stakeholders that must be told about a company's ethics program?

Distributors Customers Suppliers

As long as managers are honest and open with workers, their decisions do not have to be fair.

False