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Open Letter to those in Business and Professions

Written by: Andrew Campbell-Watt

Article Overview: The need for ethics today, in business and professions

Open Letter to those in Business and Professions

Open Letter to those in business and professions


Dear Sir/Madam,

The Need for Ethics Today.

It is with the deepest concern that this letter is addressed to the reader, as there appears to be growing lack of awareness, in every walk of life, in the need for ethical conduct. This letter is a commitment to ethics and the importance it has in the lives of all.

Anyone who has followed the Cole enquiry into the Australian Wheat Board’s wheat sales to Saddam Hussein’s Iraq; the earlier debacles brought about by financial malpractice at Barings Bank, Enron and WorldCom; the pure greed that has driven the US sub-prime meltdown; the penalties paid by Qantas and other airlines for colluding in an airfreight cartel; the international repercussions and financial scandal resulting from a whistle blower forwarding a disc containing sensitive client details from a bank in Luxemburg to US authorities and the various armament scandals that seem to erupt from time to time, will be reduced to a state of disbelief.

The litany of breaches of trust, greed, lack of honesty and flagrant disregard for the law is distressing. While it is appreciated that, fortunately, the vast majority of company officers and professionals are honest, hard working and deeply committed people, the stressful situations they may encounter and the opportunities for unethical conduct that inevitably present themselves may, over a protracted period, lead to such events as have been disclosed by various enquiries and investigations. The paradox is that some believe that the crime is to be discovered, not the act itself; apparently a state of denial exists.

The concern is that tightening the regulations and/or increasing penalties for malfeasance does not necessarily solve the problem. It is commonly reported today that there is less and less inclination to accept personal responsibility for questionable actions. The corollary is that moral standards appear to be in decline. Authorities therefore feel it necessary to step in and counteract this with more and more complex laws. The result is that there are more opportunities to break the ever more complex laws – and it must be remembered that no matter how complex, laws can never cover every human failing. So what is the likely outcome and what can be done about it?

It is suggested that, to prevent a descent into the maelstrom of ever more complex laws to counteract ever more malfeasance, it is necessary to go to the core of the problem and to remind people of the need for ethical conduct – at all times. To make them aware that ethics is not a disposable item to be considered only when deemed expedient.

In certain circumstances it may be beneficial for someone not trained in the specific business of any particular organization, to be called in to bring a fresh approach and to explain the basics of ethics. Once the basics are understood then they can be applied to business, as Business Ethics, or to Medicine or Sport – or to any field of human endeavour. If a code of ethics is prepared but kept in a desk drawer what good will that do? It can never be claimed that, “Our company is ethical”. A company is a legal ‘persona’ but it is also a legal fiction. Only sentient beings can be ethical, and a company is not sentient – only its officers are.

What is needed is to refocus attention on a generally forgotten area, that of the link between thoughts, which are the precursors to any action or deed, and the inevitable effects actions have on others. Any action will always affect someone, somehow, somewhere and at sometime – the Law of Cause and Effect cannot be avoided. There is also a moral cost to unethical behaviour that has to be paid by someone – which is always the perpetrator. The call is for everyone to be socially responsible at all times. Ethics must come from the heart.

Some twenty seven centuries ago the Chinese philosopher Confucius stated that:

“If you govern the people by laws, and keep them in order by penalties, they will avoid the penalties, yet lose their sense of shame. But if you govern them by your moral excellence, and keep them in order by your dutiful conduct, they will retain their sense of shame, and also live up to this standard.”

Ethics is not some esoteric subject to be passed by word of mouth from a guru. It is very practical and quite straight forward. If the following two questions can be answered in the affirmative then ethics is playing its rightful role in a person’s life, which in turn will lead to less stress and more work/life harmony:

1. Are you treating everyone as you would like to be treated?
2. If EVERYONE did what you are doing (or propose to do) would the world be a better place?

Yours faithfully,

Andrew Campbell-Watt

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Article Tags: code of ethics, ethical conduct, ethics today, moral standards, professions



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