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especially careful to avoid misleading messages. Advertisers of health-related

products must also take precautions against deception.

PRESSURES INFLUENCING ETHICAL DECISION MAKING

5. Relationships. Business ethics involves relationships between a firm and its

investors, customers, employees, creditors, and competitors. Each group has

specific concerns, and each exerts some type of pressure on management.
Investors want management to make financial decisions that will boost sales,

profits, and returns on their investments.
Customers expect a firm’s products to be safe, reliable, and reasonably priced.

Employees want to be treated fairly in hiring, promotion, and compensation.
Creditors require bills to be paid in time and the accounting information furnished

by the firm to be accurate.

Competitors expect the firm’s marketing activities to portray its products
truthfully.

6. Business ethics. Although there are exceptions, it is relatively easy for

management to respond in an ethical manner when business is good and profit is

high. However, concern for ethics can dwindle under the pressure of low or
declining profit. In such circumstances, ethical behavior may be compromised.

Expending international trade has also led to an ethical dilemma for many firms
operating in countries where bribes and payoffs are an accepted part of business.

In the U.S. government agencies have prosecuted several companies for “illegal

payoffs”, in spite of the fact that there is as yet no international code of business
ethics. Until stronger international laws or ethics codes are in place, such cases

will be difficult to investigate and effective prosecution is not possible.

ENCOURAGING ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR

7. Ethics. When no company policy exists, a quick check if a behavior is ethical

means to see if others –coworkers, and the like – approve of it. Openness will
often create trust and help build solid business relationships.