An organizations managers instill corporate values and in employees by the examples they set.

Abstract

The authors explore corporate ethical values and organizational commitment in marketing. They (1) discuss corporate ethical values as a component of corporate culture, (2) review the literature on organizational commitment, (3) hypothesize a positive relationship between corporate ethical values and organizational commitment, and (4) empirically test the relationship with data from more than 1200 professional marketers, representing subsamples of marketing managers, marketing researchers, and advertising agency managers. The study results provide strong evidence of a positive association between corporate ethical values and organizational commitment. Given previous research demonstrating a strong link between commitment and specific organizational benefits, corporate ethics may be not only an important societal issue, but a key organizational issue as well.

Journal Information

The Journal of Marketing (JM) develops and disseminates knowledge about real-world marketing questions relevant to scholars, educators, managers, consumers, policy makers and other societal stakeholders. It is the premier outlet for substantive research in marketing. Since its founding in 1936, JM has played a significant role in shaping the content and boundaries of the marketing discipline?

Publisher Information

Sara Miller McCune founded SAGE Publishing in 1965 to support the dissemination of usable knowledge and educate a global community. SAGE is a leading international provider of innovative, high-quality content publishing more than 900 journals and over 800 new books each year, spanning a wide range of subject areas. A growing selection of library products includes archives, data, case studies and video. SAGE remains majority owned by our founder and after her lifetime will become owned by a charitable trust that secures the company’s continued independence. Principal offices are located in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Washington DC and Melbourne. www.sagepublishing.com

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"Controlling" is one of the four core areas of organizational management. As you operate a business or train managers, it is important to instill ethical responsibilities in company leaders. A manager must influence employee ethics and take the necessary steps to control unethical behavior.

Ethics Modeling

1. People tend to respond more to what they see than what you say. Thus, one of the more effective ways a manager controls unethical behavior is to model ethical standards. Operating ethically shows your employees how you expect them to behave. As importantly, when you model appropriate ethics, it puts you in a better position to teach ethics and address missteps on the part of your workers. You won't get much buy in if you are hypocritical.

HR and Culture

1. A key starting point is to hire ethical people. If you take a chance on employees with sketchy ethical pasts, you can more easily get burned. Thorough screening processes, including background and reference checks, are helpful in deciding whether each employee fits the ethical culture of your industry and business. You also need to develop a culture that encourages ethics. Rewarding employees who make effective ethical decisions encourages desired behavior. Encouraging peers to hold each other accountable for their actions can contribute to a cultural expectation of ethics.

Ethical Code

1. It is hard to convince employees to take ethics seriously without a formal ethical code of conduct. This code lays out ethical standards and consequences for those who violate them. You should have company-wide standards, as well as guidelines for workers in certain areas such as sales. The code should tell employees specifically what behaviors are unethical. It also should let them know ahead of time how you handle violations, which may deter some from contemplating unethical moves for short-term gain.

Evaluation and Enforcement

1. Regardless of the culture and example you set, employees still will make missteps or even disregard ethical directives. Ongoing evaluation and review of activities, processes and decisions helps you avoid being in the dark as to unethical behavior. When you do catch employees engaging in unethical activities, it is necessary to step in and enforce your ethical code. Some employees may respond when you restrict or suspend them from certain activities. At the extreme, you may have to get rid of an employee whose ethical nature simply won't fit into your organization.

What do strong managers help instill into the corporation when setting examples of ethical Behaviour?

What is the term used to describe a systematic evaluation of an organization's progress toward implementing socially responsible and responsive programs?

What is a systematic evaluation of an organization's corporate social responsibility efforts called?

What are the two primary categories of written codes of ethics?