Recently, there has been a lot of debate about the actual objective of “the organization.”  In the Western World, the prevalent view over the last decades has been that its objective was maximizing shareholder value above any other consideration. In other words, the HOW, (whether or not a company is virtuous in accomplishing objectives), did not…

What is an ethical free rider? Working in an ethically healthy firm has enormous benefits: at the internal level of the organization one may for instance have access to more information or enjoy more freedom and larger responsibilities due to an atmosphere of trust. At the level of external relations, the good reputation may attract investors,…

The first time I heard the term “corporate compliance,” I must confess it didn’t sit well with me.  The term seemed to transform social responsibility – or worse yet, ethics – into mere compliance with policy, norms and rules as dictated by law and regulation or corporate self-regulation. (An example of the latter would be…