Business Ethics

Business Ethics..... an Oxymoron? Does it come naturally or is it something that you must educate people on? Can it be taught or are we born with a good ethical compass in how we conduct business?

Should it be "all about the money"? 


I recently had a long talk with a number of our franchise partners on the subject and here is my thoughts after all this dialogue 

.....
Wikipedia defines Business Ethics as such; 
 


Business ethics (also corporate ethics) is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It applies to all aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of individuals and entire organizations.
 Business ethics has both normative and descriptive dimensions. As a corporate practice and a career specialization, 
the field is primarily normative. Academics attempting to understand business behavior employ descriptive methods. 
concerns. Interest in business ethics accelerated dramatically during the 1980s and 1990s, both within major corporations and within academia. For example, today most major corporations promote their commitment to non-economic values under headings such as ethics codes and social responsibility charters. Adam Smith said, "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices."[1] Governments use laws and regulations to point business behavior in what they perceive to be beneficial directions. Ethics implicitly regulates areas and details of behavior that lie beyond governmental control.[2] The emergence of large corporations with limited relationships and sensitivity to the communities in which they operate accelerated the development of formal ethics regimes.[3] The range and quantity of business ethical issues reflects the interaction of profit-maximizing behavior with non-economical means.

We generally define business ethics along the same lines (being charitable in ones community is a pre-requisite to becoming a franchise partner in our system, having a social conscience, being true to yourself through all forms of Media and self or business descriptive dialogue of any kind are all things we rate franchisees on above and beyond their ability to manage a location effectively). 


But we feel there needs to be a set of virtues one always strives to have above and beyond this simple outline. If one uses the pursuit of and understanding of the importance of these virtues in business one would in theory will always conduct themselves in an ethical manner. Our main virtues we try to empower Franchisees with are; Perseverance (being steadfast in ones operations and its development, in spite of obstacle and challenges), Patience with all people (being a complex industry, if one is not patient with suppliers, customers, and employees we are lost before we even begin), Understanding of Structure (Structure and sales being the twin pillars of our company, one of these rarely has any importance without a good understanding of the other), Integrity (being honest and consistent with ones actions and values. This industry being so fast paced its easy to trade ones integrity in exchange for the "fast buck" but does not give any partner any longevity in their local territory), Measured (In business "what is not weighed is not measured". On that basis those who are constantly analyzing their sales, performance, operational standards, etc are the ONLY ones improving all of the above), Courtesy (regardless of what anyone tells you about the aftermarket automotive industry being cutting edge in its innovations its still a grass roots oriented industry that is built entirely around relationships. If any relationship does not start from a place of courtesy, respect, manners and proper treatment its really not going to end well, if it even starts. "Those who want respect, give respect" -- Period), Financial Acumen (Action and foresight of the capital structure and needed in flow and out flow to maintain facility/business operational standards. Regardless of the fact our industry is built around passion and monetary gain is more a by-product of that passion rather then the driving force, all businesses need to know their cash-flow requirements at all times. Without having a good Financial Acumen, the business will put itself under un-necessary pressure and negative and poor customer service relations could surface because of this negative Environment). And last but not least --- the Pursuit Of Knowledge (this industry has an immeasurable about of innovations rushing into it at all times, if one is not always pursuing more and more knowledge of the same they are not growing and in this industry more so then any other if you are not growing....your shrinking. Shrinking results in loses, loses results in a negative environment and a negative environment results in poor customer relations and a downward spiral of all business operations).

In a nutshell what does business ethics mean to me? Well that is most easily explained in the most rudimentary of cliche lines, "treat others how you want to be treated yourself".

But I think the inclination towards a high moral fibre is in us all, but living by a code or in the pursuit of certain virtues allows for that potential to be refined into a well rounded business person who is focused on building "his village" then being content with the fruits of those labours all without creating negative karma. 


Again treat everyone how you want to be treated yourself. The laws of cause and effect are a constant in any aspect of our life, so why not do our best to live by a code (especially in business), express these (and others) virtues or any other device needed to guide us to act in an ethical manner. Its only in everyone’s best interest and conducting yourself in a good manner, will have a direct impact on your economic prosperity.