Ethical Leadership and Decision Making in Education

Question: Discuss about the Ethical Leadership and Decision Making in Education. Answer: Introduction The modern business environment has become very much competitive because of the emergence of many competitive organizations in all sectors. There are many organization which has the similar purposes and operation which compete with each other in order to succeed in their business operations. When the organizations compete in the global market some of the organizations forgets ethics and the ethical considerations while performing the business operations (Bebeau, 2016). The generation of the ethical awareness, ethical judgment and the ethical action is very much relevant for the modern business organizations. The ethics and the ethical considerations in the business operations refer to the moral practices which may not harm an organizations business environment in any manner (Shaw, Carrington Chatzidakis, 2016). This report speaks about the ethical part of the business operation which highlights deciding what is right in the business practice. The global issue which has been discussed through this report is Is the organizations morally obligated towards its business environment. The organizations operating in the business environment holds some responsibility towards its stake holders, customers, society etc. This report highlights the ethics behind this global issue as there are many organizations which are operating globally. The ethical concepts which are associated with these issues are also discussed in this report. The business environment has been grown so vast that they can reach the customers at different part of the world. Now almost all organizations are operating globally and are having different branches throughout the world (Jackson Jackson, 2016). When the organizations operated globally it should also possess some moral obligations towards the business environment from where it is gaining the profit, revenue, reputation etc. H1. The multinational organizations are morally obligated towards the stake holders. The multinational organizations are not morally obligated towards the stake holders. H2. The multinational organizations should possess the corporate social responsibility. The multinational organizations need not possess the corporate social responsibility. H3. The organizations should have moral considerations about the environment and pollution. The organizations dont possess the moral considerations about the environment and pollution. Various controversies rise while considering the moral obligations of the multinational organizations in the business environment. Mr. Arnold (2016), through his research and findings highlights about the corporate organizations and its moral obligations towards the human right. The organizations are morally obligated to its stake holders and are certainly confined to the rights and privileges of the stake holders. An organization to be ethical and to be morally obligated should consider these rights. For example, the rights of the employees to express their ideas and opinions, the right of the share holders to know about the business operations, the rights of the suppliers and distributers to implement their own policies and procedures etc should be considered and protected by the organizations operating globally so as to be ethical. Mr. Buckler, S. (2017), States that the corporate social responsibility is directly linked to the value creation in the global business for the organizations as well as for the stake holders. He argues that the modern multinational organizations which operate globally should focus on developing the corporate social responsibility as it is an indirect method of branding the organizations products and services. From his findings it is evident that the people remind the organizations which show responsibility to the society. Such business operations can put the competitions into saturation and can enable a sustainable business operation throughout the world. According to Mr. Kolk, A. (2016), the environmental, ethical and the social concern plays a vital role in the international business. Harming the environment through pollutions or through non eco friendly business practices, exploiting the perceptions of the customer, ignoring the social conditions and situations of the society and running the business etc can certainly lead the organization to decline in the global market. Sustainability is essential for the successful business operations. He suggests that sustainability is obtained for an organization through the CSR and the moral obligations of the organizations. From the research and the findings of various authors it can be identified that the organizations which operate globally should be morally obligated towards the society, stake holders and the environment. Hence moral obligation is essential for an organization to achieve success. Explanation The ethics can be defined as the rational examination of the morality and the evaluation of the people behavior. Through morality it is mentioned that what the organizations or the people in the society should perform based on the values and beliefs. The ethical practice is generally implemented through the generation of the ethical awareness, ethical judgment and the ethical action. To be ethical the business operations have to follow the moral systems which include the rules, guidelines and the principles of evaluating the rules (Lee, 2016). An organization operating in the global environment should possess a moral system which can lead the organization and its employees to exhibit ethics and moral in their business activities. Unethical business activities can be considered as a major challenge or issue in the global market (Papa, 2017). There is organization which generates profits through adulteration, duplication, generating negative perceptions, stealing the trade secrets, improper waste disposal causing pollution etc. These unethical practices gains value to the moral obligations of the organizations towards the stake holders, environment, and corporate social responsibility Moral obligations towards the stake holders The stake holders of the organizations include the employees, share holders, investors, suppliers, distributors, customers etc. The organizations hold some moral obligations and the responsibility towards them. For example: An organization is responsible for providing a safe and secured working environment for the employees. In a health care organization CC, the management failed to maintain the equipment based on the standards due to the cost incurring for it. This resulted in causing injury to the staff members while handling the equipment. This highlights the unethical policies and procedures practiced by the health care organization. The employees are the assets of an organization who works for the benefits and the goals of the organizations. To be ethical and morally obligated it is essential for the organizations to consider the health and safety of the employees. Similarly in the case of the other stake holders also the organizations should consider their rights (Brall et al, 2016). The ethical concept of thinking about the consequences of a business operation plays a vital role. The organizations are morally obligated for thinking about the consequences of their business activities. For example industrial development can lead to the economic growth of the nation but it can pollute the air, water etc. The fabric manufacturers when expels the dyes from their factories to the water can pollute water and can cause the death of the aquatic flora and fauna. The usage of the plastics by the retail shops for the packaging purposes can lead to the unwanted plastic disposal and can cause pollution (Ruepert et al, 2016). These all practices of the business organizations provide importance to consider about the moral obligations of the business organizations towards the environment. If the consequences or the outcome of the business operations doesnt harm the environment then the organization can achieve sustainability. Hence thinking about the consequences is essential for being morally obligated towards the environment (Hynes, Wilson, 2016). Corporate social responsibility The CSR is the responsibility which the business organizations show towards the society. Nowadays almost all corporate international organization possesses the CSR policies and guidelines which lead the organization to be ethical and moral. The organizations make the operational decisions based on these CSR policies. The ethical theory which can be applied here is the emotions while making the decisions. Through implementing the CSR policies the organizations considers the emotions and value of the society and acts accordingly (Zentes, Morschett, Klein, 2017). For example: Provision of the donations, funding or direct involvement in the rescue of people suffering from natural disasters etc. The production or the extraction of the hydrocarbon can be beneficial for the development of the nation but can ruin the daily living of the people surrounding it. While taking ethical decisions being empathetic and considering the emotional factors can add value to the decisions. Analysis and Evaluation The analysis of the moral obligations of the organizations while decision making highlights its obligation towards the society, environment and the stake holders. When considering this moral obligations there are various organizations which stick on to it. Consider the organization PG which is the manufacturer and the distributers of various products. This organization considers provision of high quality products and services to the customers which highlights its ethical considerations towards the customers (James, Klein, 2016). They provide safe and secured working atmosphere to their employees. They provide their employees with the rights to speak up with their opinion which can contribute to the business development. Apart from this the management of this organization focus on the maintenance of good stake holder engagement program through enable a good communication and information flow (Hayibor, 2016). The organization has introduced a go green program which makes use of the cl oth bags instead of the plastic bags. By considering all these activities it can be identified that when making decisions in the business strategy this organizations has focused on its moral obligations. Hence this organization can be considered to be morally obligated towards the stake holders, society and the environment. The case of the organization PG turns the following hypothesis true. H1. The multinational organizations are morally obligated towards the stake holders. H2. The multinational organizations should possess the corporate social responsibility. H3. The organizations should have moral considerations about the environment and pollution. The moral obligations of the organization enable the organizations to make decisions which are customer oriented. This can enhance the reputation of the organization and also the ethical values. A positive perception will be formulated in the mind of the customers which can lead to the sustainable competitive advantage for the organizations. Personal Reflections / Implications for Business Practice Personally speaking considering the moral values, emotions etc in a business practice can sometimes puts the business into trouble. An individual runs a business in order to gain profit, so considering only the emotional part can cause damage to the business. Apart from this being ethical and thinking about the consequences of the business practices can certainly gain sustainability to the organization (Shapiro, Stefkovich, 2016). Decision making is a crucial part of the business practice and the ethical concerns can support managers to make good and sustainable decisions. Through following the ethical and moral decisions the organizations need not have to hinder with the legal obligations. There are many rule and regulations kept by the government and the authorities which ensure ethical business practices (Iphofen, 2016). Some of the recommendations which can be provided are mentioned below. It can be recommended that the management of the organization can develop certain ethical code of conduct which can shape the behavior of the stake holders. Hence the decision can be made based on this conduct. Participation of the organizations in the charity works, in the campaigns related to any social crisis, etc enhances the corporate social responsibility of the organizations. Thinking about the consequences of the business practice is an essential factor for making the ethical and moral decisions. When making a decision related to the business operations the management should ensure that the decision doesnt cause any harm to the stake holders, this will automatically ensures the ethical constraints. Conclusion Ethics and moral values are one of the most challenging issues which is faced in the business environment. Due to the competition and the strive for the organizations to survive in the competitive world the organizations forgets the ethical considerations while making the business decisions. This approach of the business practice can ruin the sustainability of the organization. This report speaks about the moral obligations of the organizations as the ethical issue which is sustaining globally. The obligations of the organization towards the stake holders, towards the environment and its corporate social responsibility etc are analyzed and evaluated through this report. The ethical concepts like the emotions while taking the business decisions, thinking for the consequences etc are also discussed with relevant examples. Specific recommendations are also provided for the decision making process. References Arnold, D. G. (2016). Corporations and human rights obligations. Business and Human Rights Journal, 1(02), 255-275. Buckler, S. (2017). Imagined Communities Incorporated: Corporate Social Responsibility and Value Creation in a Globalised World. In Corporate Social Responsibility (pp. 3-22). Springer International Publishing. Bebeau, M. (2016). Principle and Practice in Ethics and Morality--Part One. Northwest dentistry, 95(1), 15. Brall, C., Maeckelberghe, E., Porz, R., Makhoul, J., Schrder-Bck, P. (2017). Research Ethics 2.0: New Perspectives on Norms, Values, and Integrity in Genomic Research in Times of Even Scarcer Resources. Public Health Genomics. Hynes, N., Wilson, J. (2016). I do it, but don't tell anyone! Personal values, personal and social norms: Can social media play a role in changing pro-environmental behaviours?. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 111, 349-359. Hayibor, S. (2016). Is Fair Treatment Enough? Augmenting the Fairness-Based Perspective on Stakeholder Behaviour. Journal of Business Ethics, 1-22. Iphofen, R. (2016). Ethical decision making in social research: A practical guide. Springer. Jackson, K., Jackson, K. (2016). Cosmopolitan jurisprudence for economic governance. Society and Business Review, 11(3), 276-296. Kolk, A. (2016). The social responsibility of international business: From ethics and the environment to CSR and sustainable development. Journal of World Business, 51(1), 23-34. Lee, L. (2016). Ethics and Morality in International Relations. Encounters with World Affairs: An Introduction to International Relations, 63. Ng, D. W., James, H. S., Klein, P. G. (2016). Moral Awareness in Family Business: An Issue-Contingent, Socio-Cognitive Explanation. Papa, R. (2017). Classroom and Community Partners: The Ethics and Morality Inherent in Sustainable Practices. In Building for a Sustainable Future in Our Schools (pp. 45-58). Springer International Publishing. Ruepert, A., Keizer, K., Steg, L., Maricchiolo, F., Carrus, G., Dumitru, A., ... Moza, D. (2016). Environmental considerations in the organizational context: A pathway to pro-environmental behaviour at work. Energy Research Social Science, 17, 59-70. Shaw, D., Carrington, M., Chatzidakis, A. (Eds.). (2016). Ethics and Morality in Consumption: Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Vol. 8). Routledge. Shapiro, J. P., Stefkovich, J. A. (2016). Ethical leadership and decision making in education: Applying theoretical perspectives to complex dilemmas. Routledge. Zentes, J., Morschett, D., Schramm-Klein, H. (2017). Corporate Social Responsibility. In Strategic Retail Management (pp. 207-226). Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden.