CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Ethics has become a major ingredient that makes any professional group credible and infact, it enablers any citizen or group conforms to the societal standard of exception. All person whether in business, government or any other enterprise are concerned with ethics. Webster Dictionary defines ethics as ‘the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation”.
Often ethical standards are created into laws but business ethics is just and fair conduct, which goes beyond observing law and government regulations. It means adhering to moral principles being guided by particularly values and to ensure that business is successful and fulfilling.
Adesola (2011) defined ethics as ‘a segment of philosophy concerned with values of human conduct. The term ethics refers to a code of conduct that guides a person in dealing with others. Ethics relates to the social rules that influence people to be honest in their dealing’.
Shower et al (1995) define ethics as “the study of people, right and duties of moral values that people apply in making decision and relationship among people”. The key terms of ethical language are; values, rights, moral values and human relationship.
According to Elegich (1996), “the focus of ethics is to determine how to behave in order to ensure that life is flourishing and worth living”. More so, ethics are concerned with what is deemed acceptable for, good or bad, fair or unfair, just or unjust, right or wrong, action by whom in a field or human activity in the realm of business action and decision making. (Omokutu, 1998).
Most definitions of business ethics relate to rules, standard and moral principles as to what are right or wrong in specific situations. For our purposes and in simple terms, business ethics comprises the standards that guide behaviour in the world of business. Whether the required behaviour is right or wrong, ethical or unethical is often determine by stakeholders, such as investors, customers, interest groups, employees, the legal system and the community. Although, these group are not necessarily “right”, their judgments influence society’s acceptance or rejection of a business and its activities. (Oni & Lawal 2006).
Today, experience has shown that business is inevitable to greatness; consideration has to be given to the ethics so that they will not hinder the growth of the organization profitability.
