How to Resolve Ethical Dilemma by Vikram Karve
HOW TO RESOLVE ETHICAL DILEMMA - a case study
Business Ethics
HOW TO RESOLVE ETHICAL DILEMMA
A CASE STUDY
CATWOE ANALYSIS
By
VIKRAM KARVE
[An updated excerpt from my Article titled PUTTING ETHICS BEFORE BUSINESS by VIKRAM KARVE published in the Journal INDIAN MANAGEMENT (The Journal of the All India Management Association) Vol 36 No 10 October 1977 issue pp 51-53]
Some people believe that ethics is of little concern to business people.
Ethics is ethics and business is business.
When faced with an ethical dilemma today, many upwardly managers tend to take the position that they must wear two hats and cloak themselves with two separate, conflicting codes of ethics. One ethical hat applies to the professional or technical aspects of their work (professional or technical ethics) and the other for their business behaviour (business ethics).
This leads to the development of a schizophrenic ethical personality, with the manager striving for professional excellence and high ethical standards for his own self, but resorting to unethical practices to achieve business success for his organization at all costs. Indeed this Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde approach is at the heart of many ethical dilemmas in managerial decision-making.
One useful technique to resolve such ethical dilemmas is the CATWOE model adapted from Systems Management. Ethical dilemma occurs due to mismatch in ethical perspectives of various stakeholders involved in the ethical situation. A CATWOE analysis helps the manager identify all stakeholders involved in a decision and their respective ethical perspectives.
CATWOE is an acronym to categorize various stakeholders:
CATWOE MODEL
C = CUSTOMERS, OR CLIENTS OF THE DECISION
A = ACTORS, OR AGENTS WHO CARRY OUT THE DECISION
T = TRANSFORMATION PROCESS, THE DECISION MAKER
W =WELTANSCHAUUNG, WORLD VIEW PREDOMINANTLY HELD
O = OWNERS / OWNERSHIP
E = ENVIRONMENT / ENVIRONMENTAL IMPOSITIONS
To
Business Ethics
HOW TO RESOLVE ETHICAL DILEMMA
A CASE STUDY
CATWOE ANALYSIS
By
VIKRAM KARVE
[An updated excerpt from my Article titled PUTTING ETHICS BEFORE BUSINESS by VIKRAM KARVE published in the Journal INDIAN MANAGEMENT (The Journal of the All India Management Association) Vol 36 No 10 October 1977 issue pp 51-53]
Some people believe that ethics is of little concern to business people.
Ethics is ethics and business is business.
When faced with an ethical dilemma today, many upwardly managers tend to take the position that they must wear two hats and cloak themselves with two separate, conflicting codes of ethics. One ethical hat applies to the professional or technical aspects of their work (professional or technical ethics) and the other for their business behaviour (business ethics).
This leads to the development of a schizophrenic ethical personality, with the manager striving for professional excellence and high ethical standards for his own self, but resorting to unethical practices to achieve business success for his organization at all costs. Indeed this Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde approach is at the heart of many ethical dilemmas in managerial decision-making.
One useful technique to resolve such ethical dilemmas is the CATWOE model adapted from Systems Management. Ethical dilemma occurs due to mismatch in ethical perspectives of various stakeholders involved in the ethical situation. A CATWOE analysis helps the manager identify all stakeholders involved in a decision and their respective ethical perspectives.
CATWOE is an acronym to categorize various stakeholders:
CATWOE MODEL
C = CUSTOMERS, OR CLIENTS OF THE DECISION
A = ACTORS, OR AGENTS WHO CARRY OUT THE DECISION
T = TRANSFORMATION PROCESS, THE DECISION MAKER
W =WELTANSCHAUUNG, WORLD VIEW PREDOMINANTLY HELD
O = OWNERS / OWNERSHIP
E = ENVIRONMENT / ENVIRONMENTAL IMPOSITIONS
To