Term Paper on "Values and Ethics"

Term Paper 8 pages (2454 words) Sources: 6

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Values and Ethics

Values, morals, and ethics are part of a system on which people base their conduct related to themselves or other people. Their actions are based on this code of conduct that incorporates a series of values, morals, and ethics that people consider to be the most suitable for them and for the situations they are confronting with.

The set of values that a person chooses to follow helps one make decisions about right and wrong, and figure out which decisions have greater or lesser importance and implications. Values are considered to be more personal and specific than morals and ethics.

Morals are more generally accepted. They refer to a wider range of actions. Mainly, morals tend to bring to attention right and wrong more than values. Morals are used when judging other people. Basically, morals represent the motivation based on which people take action and make decisions.

Ethics are established on an internal basis, in comparison with values and morals that are determined by the exterior environment of the individual. When referring to ethics, people mainly understand professional ethics. Also, referring to professional ethics, it is considered that ethics are not compatible with any type of gain.

Personal values

As a future manager, I intend to focus my actions and decisions on the code of ethics, on the values and morals that have always guided me. I developed this system of values, morals, and ethics based on the education I received and based on the positive influence that certain people have had over me.

In addition to this, I intend to further develop this system with other professional ethics, values, and morals that a manager, and especially a leader, must have.

In my opinion, it is important for a leader to show the values that he expects other people to show also. For example, competency is one of the values that are requested from both managers and their subordinates. If the competency level is a low or mediocre one, so will be the results of the efforts invested by the company into providing the products or services in case.

However, it is quite difficult to establish what type of leadership to develop and what type of leader to be in accordance with each company, each environment, and each type of work teams that the leader must take charge of.

The most value that must be showed by a manager and demanded from his subordinates is represented by respect. There is a whole argument on whether a manager, a leader, or any type of boss should be loved or feared by his subordinates. In my opinion, each manager must be respected. This respect is gained by respecting one's self and by respecting others.

In addition to this, respect draws a series of other qualities and benefits for the manager, the employees, and the company in case. A healthy work environment cannot function if there is no respect.

Another aspect that creates some sort of controversy is whether the manager must put the interest of the company he works for before the interest of the employees. It is a matter of shareholder theory compared to the stakeholder theory.

The shareholder theory states that the purpose of an organization is to generate profit for its owners and shareholders. Furthermore, by generating profit, the company helps the community in which it activates. Adepts of the shareholder theory consider that if the company is successful, it will create sustainable jobs in the area in case, therefore contributing to the welfare of the community (Smith, 2003).

The stakeholder theory has more complex implications, because of the fact that it states that a company should function in accordance with the interests of all stakeholders, like owners, shareholders, employees, managers, the government, customers, suppliers, the community in case, and others (Phillips, 2004).

In my opinion, both theories have parts that can be applied in order to successfully manage a company. Indeed, if the company's profits are maximized, then the company's presence on the market will be a more solid one. This would allow the company to develop and expand its activity, and to generate more jobs in the area in case.

Also, given the competitive context in which companies are currently functioning, they must involve directly in all kinds of aspects of the life of the community. Many companies, especially large corporations, develop campaigns that refer to the environment, pollution, campaigns that aim at helping disadvantaged social categories.

As a manager, I intend to put the knowledge, skills, and abilities I have in the service of my company, focusing at the same time on helping my subordinates develop their careers, and ensuring that the community in which our company activates benefits from our help in areas that necessitate it.

Organizational values

One of the most important aspects when developing the company's strategy or direction is represented by the identification of the values that the company in case stands for. Based on these values, the company can further develop the general strategic directions that are most suitable for the company in the context of today's globalized economic environment.

Our company has developed and implemented a strategy that is based on values like excellence, quality, diversity, innovation, and continuous development. Our company is aware of the fact that significant competitive advantage can be achieved by providing products and services of high quality for its customers. In order to achieve this objective, the company must maintain a good relationship with its suppliers also.

Organizational culture

The organizational culture of each company is reflected by the results of the company, in the products and services delivered by the company, and in the image the company has on the market and in consumers' minds. If the company's organizational culture is not a healthy one, it could be quite difficult for the company to stimulate and motivate its employees into achieving the performance standards established by the company, by its clients, and by regulations (Schein, 2004).

Our company does not employ a great number of employees yet, which makes it easier to develop a healthy, modern work environment. As mentioned above, our organizational culture is based on diversity. The company's managers consider that in order to achieve the established goals and objectives it is imperative that diversity is a part of each process and activity within the company.

Also, the well-functioning of our company is also based on feedback. In order to quickly identify and to eliminate existing problems, and to prevent potential ones, rapid feedback is required (Martin, 2002). The reason behind implementing a strategy based on feedback relies on the fact that the marketplace changes extremely rapidly during these times, and in order to maintain a stable position on the market in comparison with other competitors, it is necessary to quickly adapt to any changes imposed by the external environment. This can be achieved by using rapid feedback.

In accordance with Deal and Kennedy's theory on organizational culture, our company's organizational culture can be considered as a work hard/play hard culture (MindTools, 2010). Also, at the moment, our company does not take important risks, because of the financial and economic crisis. This also has an impact on the organizational culture, even if for short-term only. Our company organizes frequent meetings in order to develop sub-strategies that are intended to adapt to changes that emerge within the marketplace and that require rapid counteraction.

Also, our company has more of a task oriented culture. In such a culture, we delegate teams that must solve problems that emerge at certain points. Given the fact that our company intends to develop its activity and to expand its geographical area, such a type of culture seems to be the most suitable, due to the fact that it allows organizational structures to develop like a matrix, thus reducing bureaucracy and increasing efficiency.

As for Robert a. Cooke's theory on organizational culture, our company qualifies as a constructive cluster. This is because we encourage diversity and interaction between employees, in the attempt of increasing employee satisfaction and motivation (Cooke & Szumal, 2000). This is intended to lead to increased employee loyalty and to increased employee retention on medium term and on long-term.

The company encourages achievement, self-actualizing, humanistic, and affiliative values. A motivational strategy based on such an organizational culture is expected to produce better results than the simple focusing on financial motivation.

Company vision and mission statement

The vision that our company intends to transform into reality is a long-term one. We are determined to build a strong, successful company that will be present on the organic foods market for a long time, and that will become an international brand in this field. Furthermore, we intend to transform people's lives by helping them orient towards a healthy lifestyle that includes organic foods instead of the products that most people eat.

As one may observe, even the main object of activity, producing organic foods, is a very ethical one. Even if is takes considerably more effort,… READ MORE

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