Reply to 3 Classmates Posts for Business Workforce Development Course

REPLIES TO CLASSMATES INSTRUCTIONS: Please reply to AT LEAST two initial posts of classmates who analyzed OTHER case studies no later than midnight SUNDAY. You will click on a classmate’s thread to read their initial post, and then formulate a substantive response by clicking the “Reply” button. ALSO, please respond to any classmates who replied to your initial post.

1. REPLIES TO CLASSMATES will be graded for promptness and content. You will be expected to reply to at least two classmates by the deadline with substantive replies that add value to the discussion (more than just “good job” or “I agree”).
2. Please do NOT wait until right before the deadline to begin replying to classmates. Please access BlazeVIEW as early in the week as possible in consideration of your classmates.
3. There is no minimum or maximum word count requirement for REPLIES TO CLASSMATES, but use enough words to formulate a “substantive” reply.
4. REPLIES TO CLASSMATES are not graded for grammar, mechanics, etc., but please make sure they are readable.
5. REPLIES TO CLASSMATES do not need to use KEY TERMS.

PLEASE DO NOT WRITE TERMS LIKE “THE STUDENT SAID, OR I AGREE WITH THE STUDENT”…INSTEAD SPEAK AS IF YOU ARE ME…WRITE “I AGREE WITH YOU WHEN YOU SAID”, OR “WHEN YOU SAID“

POST 1:

Case Incident 5.2 – Padding the Expense Account?

Quick overview: Rick’s boss Stan asked him to pad his expense account with his expenses because his expenses exceed the amount it should be. Rick asked, in hypothetical way, Stan’s boss, Mr. House, what would he do in a situation such as this.

Case Questions: What would you have done if you were Rick? Do you agree with Mr. House’s response to Rick?

If I was Rick, I would have told Stan, in a professional manner, that I could not do what he was asking of me. I learned at an early age that a man is only as good as his word. If I believe there is truth to that then falsifying an expense record is a lie. “ONE OF THE WORST ETHICAL LAPSES AN EMPLOYEE CAN COMMIT IS FALSIFYING RECORDS (Rue, Byars, & Ibrahim, 2012, p. 104);” therefore, when Rick refused Stan was asking him to do, Rick could refer back to the company’s “CODE OF ETHICS (Rue, Byars, & Ibrahim, 2012, p. 103),” where this very act is stated as a violation. Rick could explain to Stan how this violation could not only effect both his and Stan’s job. Furthermore, Rick could explain that no matter your position in a company, one should feel that their integrity and ethics should be more important than the compromise it may cause.

Rick discussed this situation with Mr. House, in hopes of some direction and insight. I feel like Mr. House handled the situation poorly. As the text points out, “ETHICAL CODES THAT ARE NOT ENFORCED PROPERLY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD (Rue, Byars, & Ibrahim, 2012, p. 103).” We as managers have a moral responsibility to our employees to guide and teach them. In this particular situation, one could even assume that ethical issues are a problem in all levels of the company.

References:

Rue, L., Byars, L., & Ibrahim, N. (2012). Management: Skills and Application 14th Edition. New York: MGraw-Hill.

POST 2:

Do you believe the practices of these organizations are ethical? Explain.

What are the pros and cons of these practices?

I believe the practices of these organizations present an ETHICAL DILEMMA and can be viewed as ethical or unethical depending on your perspective (Rue, Byars, & Ibrahim, 2013, p. 105). From the point of view of the customer, Mr. Smith, the manner in which he is approached by the salesperson, Sam, could be viewed as deceptive. Sam immediately identifies himself as a handicapped person before he even identifies his business or explains the reason for his call. This script could create an assumption that a purchase would be in support of a charitable organization. Sam’s failure to identify his business as for-profit furthers this supposition. The organization which employs Sam could also be EXPLOITING the handicapped community for the sake of profit (Rue et al., 2013, p. 102). Even though the business pays an hourly wage and/or commission to its employees, it is using handicapped employees as a gimmick to appeal to the emotions of customers in order to make sales.

For the business, the primary pro of this arrangement is, of course, profit. It is also possible that the business promotes this practice as a form of PHILANTHROPY (Rue et al., 2013, p. 111) because they are employing and empowering the handicapped community. Sam and other employees of these businesses are also on the ‘pro’ side of the arrangement; they are being paid wages and commission. The loser of this arrangement is the customer. Mr. Smith may decide to make a purchase in the belief that he is helping a charitable organization. He has now purchased items at bloated prices which he could buy locally for much cheaper. Perhaps the only pro for the customer is the idea that they have helped someone in need by making a purchase, and therein lies the unethical behavior on the part of the business.

References

Rue, L. W., Byars, L. L., & Ibrahim, N. A. (2013). Management: skills and application (14th ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

POST 3:

Case Incident 5.2 Padding the Expense Account

Questions
1. What would you have done if you were Rick?
2. Do you agree with Mr. House’s response to Rick?

Padding an expense account is both EMPLOYEE THEFT and FALSIFYING RECORDS, whether it is a manager or a subordinate. One in this situation should consult the company’s CODES OF ETHICS’ document for guidance, even though this document cannot anticipate every situation that presents itself. However, it does contain values and guidelines governing ethical behaviors that are expected of all employees. Used as a sound document, the codes of ethics document covers a variety of topics and is very helpful in making ethical decisions. If I were Rick, I would govern myself according to the company’s codes of ethics, BEHAVING HONESTLY and not putting myself in a compromising position (Rue, Ibrahim & Byars, 2013, p. 104).

I do not agree with Mr. House’s response to the residence accounts manager, Rick. Mr. House presented an ETHICAL DILEMMA to Rick by presenting different scenarios of what could happen for different choices. As the division director, Mr. House had an ethical obligation to state that this violates the company’s codes of ethics because padding an expense account is clearly falsifying records and stealing (Rue et al., 2013, p. 104).

OSHA’s Whistle-Blowing Protection Program enforces the SARBANES-OXLEY ACT, which makes it illegal to retaliate against whistleblowers, thereby protecting Rick if he chose to report the violations (Rue et al., 2013, p. 106-107).

SOURCE:
Rue, Leslie W., Ibrahim, Nabil A., Byars, Lloyd L. (2013). Management Skills and Application (14th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.