The cases of Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Adelphia, Rite Aid, Health South, Arthur Andersen, Earnest and Young, J.P Morgan, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Xerox, Boeing corporation, the most recent case of Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy of the 158-year old company, and the Rs.7800/- crore fraud by the former CEO, Satyam Computer System, clearly illustrate the perilous consequences of corporate misconduct. Financial institutions globally have been suffering write-downs and credit losses as the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis has engulfed other markets. The financial greed and lust for power in the last decade of 20th century not only ruined some organizations but also injured the society at large. They have done irrevocable damages to creditors, employees, and the share holders (particularly the small investor and community). The root cause of the problem lies in the ethical -break down of the organization.
Student Learning Outcomes
· Provide precise and better understanding of complex managerial dilemma · Provide conceptual clarity of ethical concepts, and the application of moral theories to business · Learn how to handle complex and tricky moral problems/dilemmas
Ethics and the Conduct of Business by : John R. Boatright and Bibhu Prasan Patra, Pearson, 2011 (6th Edition)
Adam Smith to Milton Friedman (Why Friedman was rejected?)
The Myth of Amoral Business
Reading: Ethics and Conduct of Business-Chapter.-1
Session-2Are profits and ethics truly related?
Surviving and Thriving in Business.
[Video-The Eagle’s Secret, by: David McNeil]
Quiz related to the video
(Student participation through case presentation Business ethics in practice
Some affirmative cases: Case discussion by students
1. Johnson & Johnson and the Tylenol Affair,
2. Malden Mills and 3.Infosys Technologies
(Student participation through case presentationBusiness ethics in practice
Some vicious cases: Case discussion by students
1. The rise and fall of Arthur Andersen,
2. Enron and 3. Satyam Computer (negative cases)
[Lecture]
Some conceptual clarifications:
Nature and scope of ethics., understanding moral conduct concepts
e.g. Fact and Value, Moral and Non-Moral Value Judgment, Morality and Law
Moral Development (Lawrence Kohlberg)
Yudhisthir, Draupadi, Arjun and Bhishama
Reading (prior to class): Difficulty of being Good by: Gurucharan Das
Video (in class): The Mahabharata–(From Bharat Ek Khoj Discovery of India, by:Jawaharlal Nehru
Ethical insight-1 and 2 (Class discussion following the video clip. It is expected that students will come prepared for meaningful discussion in the class.)
(Lecture plus 2 case presentations by students)
The Individual within the Organization
Values, principles and virtues in human action: The Socratic Dictum
The Man in the Glass By: Dale Wimbro
Case discussion by students (Introductory Case:The Parable of the Sadhu)
Case: Why Good Managers Make Bad Ethical Choices? [Three caselets and four rationalizations: Manville Corporation, Continental Illinois Bank and E.F.Hutton] (Groups 7 & 8)
[Lecture]An overview of mainstream ethical theories and their application
Practical rationality: Deontology, Immanuel Kant [ ET-1]
The Principle of Utility Teleology, J.Bentham and J.S.Mill[ET-2]
Ethical insight-3 & 4
Session-9
An overview of mainstream ethical theories and their application
The foundation of human character :Virtue Theory, Aristotle[ET-3]
Video - Character is Destiny
Free and Perfect market, fare competition and Market regulations,
Ethics in practice: Case: 1.Marketing Infant Food Formula in LDCS
Case:2.ToyWars (Danner’s dilemma)
Frequent Ethical Violations in Business:
Morality of bribery and extortion
Business contracts, misappropriation and fraud; Conflicts of interest
Case:1-2G Spectrum Scam; 2-HLL Insider Trading,3-Ford and Firestone
Milestone-2 (Mid-course review of projects. Deliverables: 2-page status report highlighting the work to be done)
Individual right and duty inside the firm: Whistle blowing
Responsibility, accountability and reliability
Judgments in Business (Clear conscience key to one’s moral strength),
Cases: Cynthia F. Cooper(WorldCom), Satyendra Dubey and S. Manjunath,
[Students could be selected randomly for presenting these cases]
Ethical Leadership
The firm as a community of persons: Moral character in leadership
Serving and fostering a sense of service in others:
Wisdom from leading organizations
HBR Article: Level 5 of Leadership [HBR-January-2001],[ Discussion by Faculty]
Insight: Parable of Leadership[July-August-1992]Student presentation Groups 1,2,3,4,5[There are five stories on leadership and each group will present one story]
Quizzes – 20( Two quizzes will be held)
Case Presentation (Group) -10
HBR, Article presentation (Group)– 10
Mid-Term – 20
End-Term – 40
6. Academic Integrity
Class Participation: The nature of the course is such that much of the learning comes from the students’ participation in the class discussion. Basically it is a critical thinking class. Better understanding of the course is possible through your thoughtful deliberations in the class. *Attendance is compulsory. **Any team member absent on the day of their group presentation will get 0 in the component. ***Violation of academic discipline (i.e. proxy in the class, cheating in examination etc.) may lead to “F” grade in the course. Created By: Debasis Mohanty on 12/14/2012 at 12:30 PM Category: PGDM-I Doctype: Document