Business Ethics
Businesses have a moral obligation to act and conduct themselves in an ethical manner.
This is one of the reasons that many of the organizations have come up with codes of ethics to
govern the conduct of member. Organizational policy as well provides a framework of dealing
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with unethical behaviors. The author deliberates on various aspects pertaining to ethics in
Barclays bank- a former organization I worked.
According to Baran, Galka, & Strunk (2008), an ethical dilemma is a complex situation
that causes mental conflict between various moral imperatives whereby a decision to obey one
result to transgressing on another. As a former employee of Barclay bank I have experienced a
number of ethical dilemmas during my service. One of the ethical dilemma I experienced was
when my colleague (John) I have worked with for quite some time also a friend told me that he
withdrew $12000 from a dormant account to cater for t medical expenses for his son. He did not
have an insurance account and therefore, took the money to enable the child undergo an
operation. The son is now feeling well and John assured me that he has already began paying for
the money till is all covered. This was a difficult situation for me and I did not know what to do.
This was an issue that was affecting the company as well.
Various ethical issues as well manifest in the organization that can be resolved by the
organizational policy (Hearst Newspapers, 2015). One example of such an issue is
discriminating against the African black employees in an organization by paying them less
money compared to their white counterparts despite the fact that they have equal production
capacity. This is an issue that an organizational policy can solve amicable. If the policy of the
organization is against discrimination of employees on grounds of their color then the people
responsible for perpetuating the same should be answerable.
The case involved various stakeholders. These stakeholders included, myself, my
workmate that withdrew the money, the immediate manager, the branch manager, the client-
dormant client also holder of the account and the bank in general. These stakeholders have
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different concerns pertaining to the act John did. My concern is that I will do disfavor to my
colleague when I report the issue. Furthermore, our friendship will end because my friend will
not see me as a friend but as a betrayer since his job will be at stake. My colleague concern is
that the information is not disclosed to other parties because he is guilty and fears the
consequences. The concerns of the managers are to ensure that the staffs below them do not
engage in such activities. The concerns of the owner of the account are to access the money any
time the account is activated. The concerns of the bank are to ensure that its image and reputation
is enhanced and not dented. Therefore, the bank concerns are to provide superb services to the
clients and ensure that all employees abide by the codes of ethics and its policy.
Organizational policy provides frameworks on the functioning of an entity. The policy
provides guideline on how employees should carry themselves. This issue requires
organizational policy to resolve because it affects the operations of the organization.
Employees are expected to act in modest way that can help to uplift the image of the bank. My
colleague violated the rules and the best source of reference to prosecute the matter is these
policies. The repercussion of the behavior of my college is that it has placed him at risk of losing
his job if the manager gets the information about the incidence. I also may face some
disciplinary measures if I fail to report the matter and when the matter comes to the attention of
the manager that I was aware about the same. The bank will also face negative repercussions as
its image is likely to be tarnished incase the client activates the account and finds out that the
money was withdrawn.
Resolving this ethical issue is important because, it will ensure that such incidence that
may have negative implication to staffs and the company does not happen. Solving the issue will
bring the issue in the limelight and as well will act as a learning platform for other employees
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that may have wanted to do the same (Mohapatra, 2008). Furthermore, it will help me and my
colleague to work without any fear or anxiety hence their productivity will increase.
One way of solving the issue is for my colleague to approach the immediate supervisor
and talk to him about the incidence. He needs to tender his apology and assure that the same
incidence will not happen again. The reasons that compelled him to do the act should come out
clearly. This will help the issue to be addressed in a good way. The second way to resolve the
issue is to remain secretive about the incidence and ensure that the money is paid in time. When
choosing this option, my colleague should understand the risks inherent such as losing his job.
The reason for choosing this issue was that it usually happens in many companies.
Furthermore, it is an issue that affects various stakeholders and can be handled or solved by
organizational policy. It is important issue because it affects the company greatly. The company
will experience severe decrease in its productivity if such incidences are reported to the public.
This means that the level of confidence of the investors and customers will go down.
This ethical issue is relevant in the sense that it affects the customers and the staffs as
well as the company. Customers deserve their rights and failing to providing better services by
trespassing and withdrawing money from customer accounts is not good as it has the potential of
harming the company and the future career prospectus of the staffs involved (Parboteeah &
Cullen, 2013: Baran, Galka, & Strunk, 2008). Example of the relevancy of the issue is the
ramifications it poses on the staff, managers and the bank.
The issue is not yet in the media spotlight. It can only be reported if I opt to report there
or if the bank and the client finds out about it and opts to report in the media. The issues was
sorted out well but the increasing incidents like this has caught the attention of the management
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and therefore resolved to report to the media as a way of informing members of the public and
other institutions to be vigilant.
Ethical practices should always be the norms of organization to ensure that people and
organization uphold to their moral obligations. An ethical incidence like this is costly to the
perpetrators and the banks at large. Appropriate measures should be in place to solve such
incidences in good time.
References
Baran, R. J., Galka, R. J., & Strunk, D. P. (2008). Principles of customer relationship
management. Mason, Ohio: Thomson/South-Western.
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Hearst Newspapers. (2015).The importance of business ethics in organizations.
