What is business ethics?

There’s no such thing as business ethics.

Terms like “professional ethics,” “work ethics,” and “business ethics” are misnomers. The principles we use in the workplace should be the same principles we use in other areas of our lives – they’re just applied to business situations.

Sometimes, due to workplace pressures and a lack of ethical behavior by competing companies, some people feel that ethical principles are open to a relative interpretation. i.e. “When they do it differently, we’ll do it differently.”

In “What Do You Stand For?” Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan makes clear, “I have found no greater satisfaction than achieving success through honest dealings and strict adherence to the view that for you to gain, those you deal with should gain as well. Human relations – be they personal or professional – should not be zero sum games.

“Trust is at the root of any economic system based on mutually beneficial exchange. In virtually all transactions, we rely on the word of those with whom we do business… Without mutual trust, and market participants abiding by a rule of law, no economy can prosper.”

If you value your reputation, and would like the trust of both clients and co-workers, a strong commitment to ethical values is essential.