A Manager's Guide for Ethical Decision Making

This book will provide much needed guidelines for ethical decision making in business that are philosophically sound and strategically advantageous. The work will begin by recognizing that managers are morally and legally obligated to efficiently increase corporate profitability. At the same time, it is critically important to understand that there are moral constraints on this pursuit grounded in the basic rights of shareholders and other company stakeholders. The first objective of the book is to define and explain the concepts of basic and derivative rights in a way that will enable managers to identify those ethical duties that must be met in order to morally justify the pursuit of profit. Yet, while efficiently increasing corporate profitability is certainly valuable, it alone is insufficient for achieving corporate and individual excellence. That which is required for a more robust and meaningful account of organizational and individual flourishing is a sense of ethical integrity ultimately grounded in socially responsible behavior. As such, the second objective of this work is to develop a morally imaginative and socially entrepreneurial decision making process that is driven towards generating and sustaining social value. Drawing on principles from contemporary, cosmopolitan ethical theory will help to frame and inform this endeavor. Finally, ethical decision making must not be viewed a separate, standalone, or solitary activity, but must be regarded as a core and vital component of a company's overall management system. The final portion of this book will then provide managers with some recommendations on how to connect ethical decision making with strategic business planning and how to design and develop corporate structures that help to promote an ethical organizational culture.

Abe Zakhem South Orange, NJ; Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy; Seton Hall University. Daniel Palmer Warren, OH Associate Professor, Interim Assistant Dean Kent State University.