In retrospect, ERON executives, one of the largest corporate organizations fell without mercy in December 2001 leaving no financial return for their long-standing employees. Enron employees blanketed their trust in an organization expecting to live comfortably throughout with their retired savings, 401(k) investments. Yet, they were ousted unexpectedly, just as their leaders. Baucus & Baucus (1997) states “”illegality takes money from strategic investments, hurts a firm’s image with its stakeholders…”" (Elkins, 1976). According to CBC News (2007), A British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) panel reports Eron executives relegated a carefully planned “”massive fraud”" on British Columbia residents (see it here). These facts substantiated that Eron Mortgage Corporation, Eron Investment Corporation, Capital Productions Incorporation, and Eron Financial Service Ltd. raised $240 million from investors by lying to them.

According to Rodrigues (2006) the mainstream of corporate social responsibility is to contend with intricate issues, such as environmental protection, human resources management, health and safety at work, relations with local communities, and relations with suppliers and consumers (Rodrigues, 2006). The assumption of CSR is that organizations can be trusted to address, on their own, any problems their operations may cause, without being bound by laws and regulations (Rodrigues, 2006).

References:

AmeriPlan Health (2007). click here.

Baucus, M.S. & Baucus, D.A. (1997). Paying the piper: An empirical examination of longer-term financial consequences of illegal corporate behavior. Academy of Management Journal. Briarcliff Manor: 40(1), 129,23. Retrieved October 16, 2007, capella.edu.

Brooks, D.A., & King, C.L. (2007). Civil service reform as national security: The homeland security act of 2002. Public Administration Review, 67(3), 399-407. Retrieved October 16, 2007, from ABI/INFORM Global database.

Eron Mortgage Executives. (2000). Retrieved October 16, 2006, from this website.
.

Rodrigues, M.C. (2006). Corporate social responsibility and resource-based perspectives. Journal of Business Ethics. Dordrecht: 69(2), 111. Retrieved October 16, 2007, from ABI/INFORM Global database.

Judith is pursuing her doctoral degree in Management of Nonprofit Organizations while attending Capella University. She has received her MA in Pastoral Counseling from Ashland Theological Seminary. Judith is a single-divorced parent of three teenagers, and is self-employed as a Consultant.

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Tags: unethical, behaviour, workplace, examples, legal

Here is a list of 103 types of documents that you may want to shared.

1. Account numbers
2. Account records
3. Accounting Files/Records
4. Addresses
5. Advertising misprints
6. All Employee Information
7. All Financial Information
8. Anything storing electronic data
9. Audits
10. Audits/Surveys
11. Bank Account Information
12. Bank Statements
13. banking or financial records,
14. Bids and Proposals
15. Billing Information
16. Brokerage account information
17. Business Plans
18. Canceled Checks
19. Cancelled Checks
20. CD’s
21. Class Rosters
22. Client Files
23. Client Lists
24. Competitive information
25. Computer Generated Reports
26. Computer printouts
27. Computer Reports
28. Confidential correspondence
29. Consumer Information
30. Contracts
31. Correspondence
32. Credit Card Information
33. Credit Card Numbers
34. Credit card receipts
35. Credit Cards
36. Customer estimates & quotes
37. Customer Lists
38. Debit Card numbers
39. disks
40. Doctor/Nurse Notes
41. Drivers License Numbers
42. Education
43. Employee Information
44. Employment Information
45. Executive Correspondence
46. Fax Machine Ribbons
47. Financial Data
48. Financial records
49. Financial Statements
50. ID Cards
51. Insurance Information
52. Insurance Policy data
53. Internal Memos
54. Inventory lists
55. Invoices
56. Junk Mail
57. Legal Documents
58. Magnetic media
59. Management Reports
60. Maps and blueprints
61. Market Research
62. Marketing Strategies
63. Medical Charts/History
64. Medical Records
65. Meeting notes
66. Memos & correspondence
67. Microfilm and fiche
68. Names
69. New product drawings
70. New Product Information
71. New product proposals
72. Obsolete Brochures/Stationery/Files
73. Obsolete Documents
74. Organization Charts
75. Outdated business records
76. Passport Numbers
77. Pay roll records
78. Payroll Information
79. Payroll Records
80. Personnel Files
81. Personnel Information
82. Photographs
83. Prescription Information
84. Presentations
85. Price Lists
86. Price Quotes
87. Printed e-mails
88. Product Design
89. Product Information
90. product prototypes
91. Profit & Loss Statements
92. Proposals and Quotes
93. R&D Files/Data
94. Receipts
95. Research Data
96. Sales Receipts
97. Sales statistics
98. Sensitive Correspondence
99. Social Security Numbers
100. Tapes
101. Tax Records
102. Telephone Numbers
103. X-rays

That’s a lot of documents! Fortunately, you probably only deal with a handful of these types of documents on a regular basis. For home use, a good paper shredder will probably do the job. For businesses which deal with large amounts of data like this, a mobile document shredding service is recommended. To find a paper shredding machine or a suitable mobile shredding service near you, visit The Document Shredding Directory today.

G. Johnson works with the Document Shredding Directory . Visit today to find more information about mobile document destruction services in your area.

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Tags: identity, theft, unethical, examples, business

In businesses operating computerised payroll systems, it is not unusual for an occasional error to arise resulting in a mistaken overpayment to an employee. This might take the form of an overpayment of basic rate pay or overtime pay or commission/bonus. The payslip is often fairly complex and employees sometimes fail to thoroughly check its contents. It can sometimes be a matter of weeks or even months before the employee or the business realise that an overpayment has taken place. In this situation, the legal question is whether the company are entitled to recover the overpayment and, if so, by what means.

In order to show that an overpayment is not recoverable, then the employee must demonstrate three things. Firstly, it must be shown that the overpayment was the fault of the company and not the employee. Secondly, it must have been reasonable for the employee not to know that they were being overpaid. Thirdly, the employee must have acted to their disadvantage or the assumption that the payment of salary was correct (for example by spending the money!). The most common difficulty for employees is the second condition since it is often obvious when an overpayment has occurred. It is not acceptable for an employee to assume that they have received a substantial increase in pay unless there is some reason to believe that this is the case.

The Employment Rights Act 1996 provides that it will not be an illegal deduction from wages to recover an overpayment from salary. This means that an employer is not prevented from deducting the overpayment from future wages or salary provided that this is done reasonably over a period of time and not done in such a way as to amount to a breach of trust and confidence in the employment relationship. The interesting point about the Employment Rights Act is that overpayments can be recovered from future wages whether or not the overpayment itself is recoverable from the employee on the basis of the three point test set out above.

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Tags: accounting, ethics, article, examples, issues

Everyone, from the most powerful leaders and opinion makers, companies large and small, to three-year old children, make mistakes. It is probably human nature that, when an error is discovered, many of us immediately attempt to cover it up. We deny it, blame someone else or something outside our control (the dog ate my homework), we launch a smokescreen to avoid admitting our humanity and the fear of our inability to be perfect. The cover-up gets bigger and bigger, often becoming much larger than the original mistake. While many get away with the deception, some get caught and are destroyed by it.

Oprah triumphed because of her honesty and her integrity. For days after her admission of error the news media ran lead stories about the incident and the manner in which she faced this potentially career destroying event. This big flap will be over and done with in short order; probably by the time this column is published. Her audience will forgive and forget but her brand will glow, not because she is immune to error, but because she admits her human fallibility and didn’t attempt to hide it. With most people she has risen in stature because of her integrity and respect for her audience. Contrast the long term effect of this incident to that of political, religious, business, scientific, and athletic icons who made errors, denied them, attempted to cover them up, and got discovered in the deception. Not a pretty comparison.

This Oprah incident is a lesson for all of us. We all should remember it whenever we err. We can use this lesson to review our stand on personal and business ethics, to consider how we will react when we make a mistake. Once we know how we want to react, instill the Oprah ethos to the staff so we all can learn a lesson from Oprah.

Larry Galler coaches and consults with high-performance executives, professionals, and small businesses since 1993. He is the writer of the long-running (every Sunday since November 2001) business column, “Front Lines with Larry Galler” Sign up for his free newsletter here

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Sometimes, an ethical dilemma might be easily solved once you have had a bit of time to think about it but in other cases, it might not be as easy.

Perhaps you have been put into a bad position where you need to make a decision that will most likely have consequences regardless of what you decide.

An example of an ethical dilemma is when a salesperson is guaranteed to make a big sale if they offer a kickback (ie. an illegal payment) to someone.

If they agree to the kickback, they get the sale but risk getting caught and getting into big trouble.

If they don’t agree to the kickback, they don’t get the sale and might end up looking bad in the eyes of their employer.

Also, should they even tell their employer about the situation or should they simply make a decision and live with the consequences?

Clearly, this is an ethical dilemma and although it’s easy to say you would do the right thing, when you are actually in such a position and are feeling pressure to act, you might not always be able to think as clearly as you would otherwise like to think you would.

Depending on the situation, how you react to an ethical dilemma might differ but at the end of the day, here are some things to keep in mind:

* Use common sense. If it’s clearly wrong or illegal, you know the consequences of doing something that could cost you dearly.
* Don’t let your self-interest get in the way and allow it to cloud your judgment. A short-term gain could be a long-term pain if you make the wrong decision and get caught.
* Don’t assume that your employer will back you up if you do something wrong and get caught. Referring to the above example of the kickback, don’t assume that if you decide to pay the kickback that this is what your employer would approve of. If you acted alone and get caught, don’t expect your employer to defend you because they may distance themselves from you to avoid further embarrassment or legal trouble.
* Don’t risk your credibility. It can take many good deeds to build credibility but only one seemingly simple indiscretion for it to vanish.

Depending on the specific situation, when an ethical dilemma arises, use common sense and think things through clearly before making a decision you may later regret. Not every decision is cut and dry and sometimes the grey area – the area that is somewhere between right and wrong – may not be as clear as you’d like.

Where possible, try to speak with your manager or someone else you trust when in doubt especially if the decision you have to make affects the company. Don’t assume your employer will tolerate you doing something wrong even if it benefits them.

Remember to treat others as you’d expect to be treated and don’t do anything wrong in anticipation of a short-term gain that could end up costing you in the long-term.

Carl Mueller is an Internet entrepreneur and professional recruiter who wants to help you find your dream career.

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The question, however, continued to reside nervously on the tip of my tongue, eager to fly out (particularly just after leaving my apparently mute colleague a fourth voice mail message). But it wasn’t until I read Keith Ferrazzi’s masterful book, “Never Eat Alone” that I summoned the courage to thunderously and openly inquire, “Are people, particularly those in business, much ruder than they use to be?”

And… “Have we become so numb to it that we actually expect – and worst yet, accept it as normal and okay?”

I think yes. I hope I’m wrong.

Let me, however, step back a bit… Why did Ferrazzi’s book serve as my catalyst?

The short answer is that it’s just plain good. It is a brilliantly written book – simple without being simplistic – in the same league as Dale Carnegie’s classic “How to Win Friends and Influence People.”
And in an age when everyone seems to be a marketing, internet or personal motivation coach it’s refreshing to read something so balanced and genuinely inspired. Most importantly, however, Ferrazzi reminds us that we’re not in this alone – people make business happen!

He reiterates what some of us already know. We’re all better off – emotionally, financially, and physically – when we take the time to build thoughtful, intimate (not in the “biblical” sense :>) and sincere relationships with others. Ferrazzi says that while our personal styles and levels of openness should be adjusted as appropriate, making strong human connections is essential to our well being. I couldn’t agree more! This is, after all, what it’s all about – and long overdue advice. Thanks, Keith!

But then it occurred to me. How can you develop relationships with people when they don’t call, email, or show up – even when they’ve promised to do so?!

And I’m not referring about those little, unintentional slip-ups that happen to all of us occasionally – like when you’ve forgotten your Aunt Hilda’s birthday; or waited until the last minute to send in your wedding RSVP; or failed to send a thank-you note.

No, what I’m talking about is far more baffling and egregious. I’m referring to the friends who call you one day before your big dinner party and reiterate how much they’re looking forward to seeing you – and then don’t show up – no explanation, no call, no nothing.

Or how about that real estate agent who promises to get back to you with a price no later than 2 pm, and you never hear from them again?

And what about that old friend or colleague who can’t wait to have lunch with you next Thursday and then doesn’t return your confirmation calls or emails?

Then there’s my favorite… you’ve killed yourself to help someone get something “urgent” done (usually a boss or co-worker) and even managed to save the day… You email “the document” before the deadline, sure that the recipient will be relieved and grateful. But you never find out. No “thank you”. No “way to go”. No nothing.

Or is it just me? Maybe so…

I was raised in a home where we were taught to treat everyone with the same amount of respect and kindness. Period. Behavior that didn’t measure up to this standard was not tolerated. We learned that the true measure of someone’s character rested in their commitment to do the right thing – even when they didn’t have to.

For example, whenever I leave a hotel room, I wipe off the counters; gather my towels together in one convenient spot; turn off the television, lights and air conditioning; return the iron to the closet; and make sure that all my scraps of paper are where they belong – in the trash can.

Why? Because it’s just the right thing to do (and my mother would probably rise up out of her grave and kick my butt if I didn’t :>). Yes, hotels employ a cleaning staff who “are paid” to clean up after me, but why should they? It’s my mess. I was responsible for making it, so I am responsible for cleaning it up – even if I don’t have to.

I have adopted my parents’ code and although I sometimes fail, I continually strive to measure up to those standards.

But what does this look like in the “real world”? It means you…

1. Return calls… even if it’s only to say “no”

2. Honor your commitments… if you tell someone you’re going to do something, you do it. If you absolutely cannot, you let them know beforehand.

3. When you’re asked to RSVP, you do so

4. Say “thank you” and “please”… to strangers, friends, family members, waiters and waitresses, taxi drivers, colleagues, children, teenagers… everyone.

5. Call when you’re going to be late

6. Return emails (unless it’s spam)

7. Welcome people into your home… do your best to make them feel comfortable and important

8. Clean up after yourself

9. Value other people’s privacy

10. Honor your parents

11. Respect elders

12. Chew gum quietly

13. Say “excuse me” when you burp

14. Open doors for others

15. Allow someone with only two items to move ahead of you in the grocery line

16. Respect other cultures, religions, ethnicities and the like.

17. Don’t push in front of someone… even if you’re in a car

18. Share your things

19. Don’t act like a pig… even if it’s at an All-You-Can-Eat buffet

20. Don’t brag

21. Never litter

Are these rules a thing of the past? Passé in today’s fast-paced culture? Old fashioned? Silly? Or am I just imagining things?

But if I’m not… why? Are we overloaded, overbooked and over committed? Has it become too easy to make excuses? Have we been forced into a “every-man-for-himself” mindset? Did our parents and teachers fail us?

Or is it that we just don’t care because they’re not important. What do you think?

Mary Eule specializes in helping small and medium-sized businesses get and keep profitable customers. Formerly a Fortune 500 marketing executive; founder of two successful small businesses and award-winning speaker, Ms. Eule is President of Strategic Marketing Advisors, LLC. and co-author of a new book, “Mandatory Marketing: Small Business Edition”.

She has a BA in Journalism/English from the University of Maryland and earned her a master’s degree in marketing from Johns Hopkins University. Log onto her website for free articles, newsletter and helpful marketing tools, tips and templates… and/or to purchase the book.

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In the era of marketing, advertising and consumpiton, it does not matter so much to get data collected about us. The heart of the mattter for the companies is what they could do with those data, how they could increase their sales and forecast future.

Data mining is a method became very popular in 1990s, which aims to reach optimum efficiency in planning and organization thru collecting data from gigantic databases and determining specific trends, allowing to forecast future. Having used artificial intelligence, this method is based on analysing “significant” data and trends by computers, which takes many years for an ordinary man to collect those data. In the beginning such significant data seem “irrelevant”, but following computer analysis, it could appear as “relevant” by comparing two parameters. For example, according a survey run in a supermarket chain, families buying nappies tend to buy beer as well. So, a promotion campaign is held with the concept of “Party Time for the Families with Kids”.

Why is it so important to connect medicine and insurance, public and private sector, automobile demand graphics with avocado and banana curves? Before answering this question, it would be better to check how such a thing could be possible.

The key concept of data mining is to purge specific data series by sorting and comparing among gigantic databases. Despite “Merge and Purge” and “Database Enrichment” methods remained out of fashion as compared to “data mining”, data could be really transformed into valuable information and automized easily.

It is not easy to set up such huge databases. Many legal and illegal companies and people appeared to collect databases, especially e-mails currently. Metromail is one of the largest companies collecting mail addresses, currently collecting and selling e-mails, established in 1948, hiring 3000 people with a sales turnover of over USD 281 million. It “hunts” data researching from different resources ranging from state records to surveys, which also include income, householding, marital status, age groups and even the team supported. So Metromail is the no 1 company as required specific name-address info. On the other hand, it has a gigantic database continously developing with data about almost every house in the USA . In addition to such legal companies, there are also pirate ones producing data for pirate CDs.

Cookies innocently embedded in our computers, security cameras tracing us on the streets, retina scanners at airports, mobile phone call centers recording what we said for us, machines recording what we wrote and tools registering our actions…It is a world that do not care about us, but our data.

There is a new possible future ahead in case there is not a social consciousness formed to pass the overseas laws protecting invidual privacy. That future is “profitable” for companies, “secure” for states but “nightmarish” for us, ordinary people.

Emre Kizilkaya is a journalist. He writes articles for a communication technologies magazine, Tele.com.tr.

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Tags: ethical, examples, issue, theories, dilemmas

Introduction

He was the least likely of neighbors to do this thing, a Buddhist turned Roman Catholic, patriarch of a California wine-growing clan.

I was a Southern Baptist youth, only recently learned how to shave, and served in the new “Korean War” as a sailor.

You know the rashness of youth. I wondered aloud, “How is it that you, a Japanese Buddhist, came to be sending your son to Mary Knoll Seminary to become a Catholic priest?”

The lesson he taught me about the important business of being a good neighbor has not been lost for more than fifty years. Here’s his story in his own words.

The Patriarch’s Story

At the beginning of World War II, I was struggling whether to enlist in military service. My struggle was not because I was Nisei. It was because I had a wife. I had three small children. How might I best serve my country, care for my young family, and manage my new vineyards? Even at home, I was struggling to maintain them. What would happen if I left to join the service?

I might well not have worried.

At 10:00 a.m. one morning three Military Police arrived at my home in a covered truck. They pounded on my door. They entered my house without permission.

“Pack one overnight bag for your family,” the leader told me. “Be quick about it!”

By 10:15 a.m. my family and I were in the back of the truck. We were on our way to what was called a “relocation center.” It was far from my own neighborhood. I never had time to call a neighbor, Nor was I allowed to contact anyone to tell them what was happening.

By evening we were in a fenced enclosure. It was to be our home until the end of the war.

He sipped his wine. I was a teetotaler, but because I was a guest in his house, and didn’t want to make a fuss, I had accepted a glass. I tentatively sipped a swallow and set the glass down.

“The wine is not good?” he had asked.

“Too good,” I had answered. “If I get started, I might not be able to stop.”

He smiled and nodded knowingly. He continued his story.

When we returned after the war–all Nisei returned to the area–we found our homes gone. Our businesses gone. Sold for taxes to our neighbors. The first year we were gone.

I couldn’t believe it. All the vines I had labored so arduously to plant, to nurture. All the contracts I had so carefully negotiated with the distillery. The home my wife and I had so lovingly remodeled. Evenings when it was too dark to work the vineyards. Gone!

We could lay claim to no part of our former possessions–property, furniture, jewelry. Nothing.

I walked the city streets in disbelief. I wondered how I could ever start over again. We were still despised as “Japs.” By both the local population and former neighbors. Finding even the most menial work was unlikely,

I was in tears. What would I tell my wife?

But she knew. Surely she already knew. Something of this magnitude could not be hidden.

Perhaps in another part of the country I could get a job as a gardener.

“You know, lots of rich folks love to have a Japanese gardener,” he said bitterly.

I looked around. Invaluable appointments. Lovely brocaded furniture. Priceless wall hangings. Luxurious carpets. What did he mean by “rich folks.”

He sighed at the memory of his misery. He took another sip of wine. He continued.

As I stood there, tears in my eyes, someone called my name. I turned to face the voice. It was my old neighbor. He was a vineyard owner on the land next to mine–next to the land that used to be mine.

I had helped him irrigate his vines by hand one year when the drought threatened our crops. He had helped me choose the best stock to plant when I had first started. I thought we had been good neighbors.

When I returned to the area, I found that it was he who had bought my property. For taxes. My own neighbor! I tried to hide my bitterness.

“I didn’t know you were back,” my former neighbor told me. “Where’s your family?”

I told him. I explained there had been an addition since I left. He grinned and led me to his sedan.

“Hop in,” he said.

I couldn’t believe that this backstabbing neighbor could have the gall to act so friendly. I don’t know why, but I climbed in. He babbled happily, as if to a long-lost friend, as he drove to where my family was.

“Go get ‘em. Get ‘em all. I want to see the young’ns. And I have something I want to show you.”

We picked up my family and left. I recognized the route.

Two of my boys were in the front seat with me. The oldest, the seminarian from Mary Knoll, suddenly cried out.

“Father! This is the road to our house!”

I thought the grin on my old neighbor’s face was especially wicked. Why are you doing this? I wondered. Why are you torturing us this way?

We drove up to our old home. It looked well kept. Even lovingly cared for. Who lives here now? I wondered.

He jumped out and opened the car doors. He led us into the house and into this room where we are now sitting.

Everything was as we had left it. My wife lovingly ran her hand over the back of that teakwood table. The dust of years had not settled in. The carpets had been faithfully vacuumed. The windows regularly washed. The furniture carefully polished. Whoever lived here now must love the house as much as we did.

Seeing how carefully everything had been maintained, I couldn’t be too angry with my neighbor. After all, purchase of my property had been a business deal for him. I’m sure it wasn’t anything personal.

The old man took another sip of wine. He pointed at an elaborately carved, small desk with a drop down front that stood against a wall. He went on with his story.

My neighbor took me to that desk and opened a drawer. He took out a handful of papers and handed them to me. They were the deeds and ownership documents for my house and business.

I glanced at them, wondering how any one human being could be so heartless as to gloat before a family that had fallen to the depths I had reached.

“Look at them, read them,” he said when he noticed I simply stood there, stupidly holding them in my hand.

When I did, my heart stopped. My name was on the first paper I looked at. With trembling hand I looked at another. My name. And another. And another. On every document. My name. Just my name. Not his, not even as co-owner.

He unlocked the drop down front and opened a drawer inside. He took out a bankbook and handed it to me. I scanned it. I could not believe my eyes. The balance had increased significantly each year while I was gone.

“Business was good during the war,” he told me. “My only problem was finding labor to do the work. But I managed.”

“But- – -but these are your profits,” I told him. I shoved the bank book toward him. “Here. Take it. It’s your money.”

He laughed. “Naw. Your farm helped me. When we added our properties together, I got more ration coupons for gas. Negotiated better contracts with the distillery. Generally did better business. You won’t believe this. When I broke down the tax bill, even that was less. Naw. I got my pay. This is all yours.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. I wept openly. My wife and I hugged each other and cried. Finally, I looked at my old friend.

The old patriarch looked at me and said, “You want to know why I’m sending my son to seminary to become a Christian priest? Well, here’s why. I asked my neighbor, ‘Why did you do all this for me? After all, we were only neighbors’.

That’s where you’re wrong,” he told me. “You see, in my faith we are all God’s children. We are brothers, you and me.

Dr. Larry Winebrenner is a well-known, well-received public speaker. He has extensive background in business practices seminars, genealogical research, producing training materials, marketing consulting, nutrition studies, and religious studies. This article is located at this site.

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Tags: ethics, issues, standing, moral, examples