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Thesis

business ethics and values

Question 4

What impact do you think the company’s severance package to Mr. Edmondson might have?

The company’s severance package to Mr. Edmondson would have had a bad implication on the company’s employees.

A leader is the single most important influence on an individual‘s decision to act ethically or unethically. People look to see what those in authority are doing and use that as a benchmark for acceptable practices and expectations.

If top managers, for example, take company resources for their personal use, inflate their expenses accounts, or give favored treatment to friends, they imply that such behavior is acceptable for all employees.

Therefore, managers should lead a good example and show a strong cultural tone of the organization. If a manager is not reprimand or punished by his actions this will send a strong signal that this kind of practice is acceptable in the organization.

Nevertheless, why did the board approve such compensation? Researchers suggest that success may serve to excuse unethical behavior. Just think of the impact of this type of thinking. The danger is that if top managers take a more lenient view of unethical behaviors for successful employees, other employees will model their behavior on what they see.

Question 5

Could an organization ever prevent a situation like this from happening? Why or Why not? What could they do? How could the company’s Code of Ethics play a role? Go to the company’s Web site (www.radioshackcorporation.com) and take a look at its Code.

Organizations can do a lot to prevent unwanted situation from occurring. Relating to Edmondson’s case the main problem was his unethical behavior. Given the recent charges he faced for DWI, the board could have revised its decision and examine Edmondson’s character and judgment in light of the driving incident, and perhaps dig further into his overall...