Lec 1 Code of Ethics PDF

H 201 Work Ethics Dr. Marwa Mostafa Lecture 1 Ethics in Information Technology  Year Work Assessment Grade Assignments/ Reports/ Presentations 20 Mid-term 20 Final exam 60 Total...

H 201 Work Ethics Dr. Marwa Mostafa Lecture 1 Ethics in Information Technology  Year Work Assessment Grade Assignments/ Reports/ Presentations 20 Mid-term 20 Final exam 60 Total 100 3 Ethics  Ethics Ethics – Standards or codes of behavior expected of an individual by a group Virtues – Habits of acceptable behaviour Vices – Habits of unacceptable behaviour 5  Morals One’s personal beliefs about right and wrong Morals may vary according to: – Religion – Cultural group – Age – Life experiences – Education – Gender 6  The Difference Between Morals, Ethics, and Laws Morals: one’s personal beliefs about right and wrong Ethics: standards or codes of behavior expected of an individual by a group Law: system of rules that tells us what we can and cannot do – Laws are enforced by a set of institutions – Legal acts conform to the law 7  The Importance of Integrity Integrity is a cornerstone of ethical behaviour People with integrity: – Act in accordance with a personal code of principles – Extend to all people the same respect and consideration – Apply the same moral standards in all situations Lack of integrity emerges if you apply moral standards differently according to situation or people involved Many ethical dilemmas are not as simple as right versus wrong 8  Why Raising Good Business Ethics Is Important To gain the good will of the community To create an organization that operates consistently To stand-in good business practices To protect organization/employees from legal action To avoid unfavorable publicity 9 Gaining the Good Will of the Community 10 Gaining the Good Will of the Community 11 Gaining the Good Will of the Community Organizations have fundamental responsibilities to society Making contributions to charitable organizations and non-profit institutions Providing benefits for employees in excess of their legal requirements Choosing economic opportunities (projects) that might be more socially desirable than profitable Socially responsible activities create good will, which makes it easier for corporations to conduct business 12  Good Business Practices Suppliers/business partners place priority on working with companies that operate in a fair and ethical manner Bad ethics means bad business (declining profits) – Bad ethics can lead to bad business results – Bad ethics can have a negative impact on employees 13  Protection From Legal Actions An employer can be held responsible for the acts of its employees (respondeat superior) Union of several legal organizations argues that the establishment of ethics programs should reduce criminal responsibility of organization 14  Avoiding Unfavorable Publicity Public reputation of company strongly influences: – Value of its stock – How consumers regard products and services – Degree of monitoring received from government – Amount of support and cooperation received from business partners Organizations are motivated to build strong ethics programs to avoid negative publicity 15 Establishing a Corporate Code of Ethics Corporate Code of Ethics – Highlights an organization’s key ethical issues – Identifies primary values and important principles – Focuses employees on areas of ethical risk – Offers guidance for employees to recognize and deal with ethical issues – Provides mechanisms to report unethical conduct – Help employees stand by the law, follow necessary regulations (rules), and behave in an ethical manner 16  Weak Corporate Code of Ethics Examples of unethical employee behavior. A company holds people accountable to meet “stretch” goals, quotas, and budgets, causing employees to think, “My boss wants results, not excuses, so I have to cut corners to meet the goals he has set.” A company fails to provide a corporate code of ethics and operating principles to make decisions so employees think, “Because the company has not established any guidelines, I don’t think my conduct is really wrong or illegal.” 17  Weak Corporate Code of Ethics A manager fails to act in an ethical manner and instead sets a poor example for others to follow so employees think, “I have seen other successful people take unethical actions and not suffer negative consequences.” Managers fail to hold people accountable for unethical actions so employees think, “No one will ever know the difference, and if they do, so what? 18  Creating an Ethical Work Environment Good employees may make bad ethical choices Employees need a knowledgeable resource to discuss perceived unethical practices – A manager – Legal or Internal Audit Department – Company’s legal counsel – Anonymously through internal Web site 19 Creating an Ethical Work Environment 20  Board of Directors Board of directors members of a company are expected to: – Conduct themselves according to the highest standards of integrity – Set standard for company-wide ethical conduct – Ensure compliance with laws and regulations – Create environment in which employees can seek advice, raise issues and report misconduct 21  Corporate Ethics Officer Corporate ethics officer – Should be well-respected, senior-level manager who reports directly to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – Ensures ethical procedures are put in place – Provides vision and leadership in business conduct – Creates and maintains ethics culture – Is responsible for key contact person for ethical issues 22  Ethics Training Comprehensive ethics education program encourages employees to act responsibly and ethically – Often presented in small workshop formats – Employees apply code of ethics to hypothetical but realistic case studies – Demonstration of recent company decisions based on principles from the code of ethics – Improves employee personal beliefs 23  Ethics Training Training increases the percentage of employees who report incidents of misconduct Employees must: – Learn effective ways of reporting incidents – Be reassured their feedback will be acted on without revenge 24  Including Ethical Criteria in Employee Appraisals Only 43% of companies include ethical conduct in employee’s performance evaluation Ethical criteria include: – Treating others fairly and with respect – Operating effectively in a multicultural environment – Accepting personal accountability – Continually developing themselves and others – Operating honestly 25  Social Audits Social Audit – Reviews how well organization is meeting ethical and social responsibility goals – Communicates new goals for upcoming year – Publicly shared with employees, shareholders, investors, market analysts, customers, suppliers, government agencies, and local communities 26  Characteristics of Successful Corporate Ethics Code – Employees willing to seek advice about ethical issues – Employees feel prepared to handle situations that could lead to misbehavior – Employees are rewarded for ethical behavior – Employees are not rewarded for success obtained through questionable means – Employees feel positive about their company 27 Microsoft’s Core Values 28  Microsoft’s Standards of Business Conduct 29 ITWORX Mission, Vision and Values 31  Case Study A staff member on the U.S. House Ethics Committee accidently leaked a sensitive document containing the names of over 30 lawmakers under investigation by the Ethics Committee and Office of Congressional Ethics. The staffer was working at home on a computer with file- sharing software that was not secure. The staff member’s innocent mistake gave others the opportunity to access the document without authorization. The list eventually found its way to the Washington Post. 4 6  Exercises: Replace With Key Term 1. One’s personal beliefs about right and wrong. 2. Enables an organization to review how well it is meeting its ethical and social responsibility goals and communicate new goals for the upcoming year. 3. Characteristic of an organization that strongly influences the value of its stock. 4. A principle that states that an employer can be held responsible for the acts of its employee. 5. Committee responsible for the careful and responsible management of an organization. 48  Exercise: Replace With Key Term 6. Habits of unacceptable behavior 7. A senior-level manager who ensures ethical procedures are put in place. 8. Highlights organization’s key ethical issues and identifies primary principles important to its decision-making process. 9. Set of beliefs about right and wrong behavior within a society. 10. System of rules, enforced by a set of institutions, that tells us what we can and cannot do. 49  Exercise: Complete 1. ----- emerges if you apply moral standards differently according to situation or people involved. 2. Bad ethics means bad business resulting in ----- profits. 3. Employees are ----- for success obtained through questionable means. 4. ----- increases the percentage of employees who report incidents of misconduct. 5. Organizations are motivated to build strong ethics programs to avoid -----. 6. Organizations favour economic opportunities that are socially ----- more than profitable. 39 The Ethical dimensions of technology Software Engineering Software engineering plays a pivotal role in shaping the modern world, with applications spanning across various industries and domains. Software Engineering Software engineers play a crucial role in solving complex challenges and improving the quality of life for people around the globe. Software Engineering Applications: 1. Mobile App Development 2. Web Development 3. Embedded Systems 4. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Software engineering ethics Research assignment Thanks