Background Information
In Romans 12:2, you are told "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will." The challenge for you as a student of ethics is that it often appears necessary to meet both the Christian and secular standards, as they may appear to be different. Followers of Christ can be assured that meeting His standard means meeting the highest standard, and any human standard that indicates otherwise is questionable at best.
Perhaps the notable effort made by secular scholars to determine a universal code of ethics is the Caux Round Table. Formed from a group of international business leaders and academicians, the Round Table created seven principles for business as an attempt to develop a shared perspective of business behavior that would be acceptable and honored by people from all cultures and background.
A number of biblical scholars have attempted to summarize what the Bible has to say about business ethics. One such scholar, Jerry White gives us five excellent guidelines for conducting our business activities.
First, there is the guideline of a "just weight" as found in Deuteronomy 25:13-15. The principle of a just weight calls us to make sure we give the purchaser what they are paying for or in other words, make sure it is a fair exchange. It is important that the quality of work is equal to the payment and that we fulfill our obligation to meet the advertisement of the services. You must remember that you are responsible for the business you conduct and the resulting reputation you gain. As the owner of a business, are you providing a fair representation of your product or service? Do you make sure you do a full day's work for a full day's pay as an employee? Colossians 3:23, reminds us that we are working for the Lord and not for our fellow man.
Second, the Lord demands our "total honesty." Ephesians tells us we are to speak the truth, in other words we need to be totally honesty in all our dealings. Jerry White reminds you that, "Although you will frequently fail, our intent must be total honesty with our employer, our co-worker, our employees, and our customers" (p. 65). We all find this difficult to accomplish. In the Living Bible, James 3:2 tells us that we all make mistakes but if you can control your tongue this proves you have control of yourself in other ways. The Living Bible states it clearly in Romans 12:17 saying, "Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honest clear through." When you look at your world of business, are you totally honest in how your report your use of time, money and achievements?
The third principle is "being a servant." Although Christians want to be known as servants, they do not always want to be treated like a servant. We believe serving the Lord is a wonderful thing but when we think about serving our fellow man, we have reservations. In Matthew 20:28 Christ is the example we should be following. He tells us that he was not put on this earth to be served but to serve. He goes so far as to tell us that he will give up his life for us. Businesses get their value from how they serve their clients or customers. This will determine the success of the business. Individuals who staff the business must be willing to serve. How well employees serve customers determines the value of the business. When we do this, we trust God to meet our needs as we put the needs of others first.
The fourth guideline is "personal responsibility." It is important that we take full responsibility for our decisions and our actions. What message do we give when we excuse our actions because we gave into the pressure, to do something illegal or unethical, from within the business or organization that employs us? Reality is we all fail at different times in our lives to do the things we know we should do. Character requires us to accept responsibility for our choices and decisions and to try not to pass the blame or responsibility for our actions on to someone else or some other circumstance. Romans 12:2 tells us not to conform to the designs of this world so that we may be able to test and approve the will of God.
Finally, there is the issue of "reasonable profits." Although the principle of reasonable profits can be difficult to understand, it is still necessary to follow the guidelines on it from scripture. First, we need to be able to define a reasonable profit. We must all determine this for ourselves. Luke 6:31 provides us with some basic guidelines on this. It states very clearly that we must treat others the way we wish for them to treat us. In other words, we need to attempt to look at things from the perspective of others and then determine how we would want to be treated in that case. From the business perspective, reasonable profits would be the price of the service or business above any costs that were incurred in the process of doing business. In the case of the employee, it would be their salary or wages for the service they have given to their employer. Luke 3:14 reminds us that we are to be satisfied with our pay. In 1 Timothy 5:18 the bible also reminds employers that employees deserve their wages.
We can easily justify why we do not follow these principles but we will be held responsible for our choices and decisions in the end. It is God we serve and it is God to whom we are accountable.
Instructions
1. Read the Principles for Business article.
a. As you read this web page and in particular, the seven principles for responsible business, think about the ethical problems you may have seen and consider if following the Caux Round Table principles may have eliminated these problems.
b. Use the Template for Analyzing the Logic of an Article to help you further analyze the article.
2. Review the summary of White's five principles for business drawn from the Bible, which was presented in this workshop. As you read this summary, think about the ethical problems you may have seen and consider if following these five biblical principles may have eliminated these problems.
3. Write a 800 - 1000 word paper to answer the following questions:
a. What differences and similarities exist between the guidelines offered by the Caux Round Table and White's Biblical principles? Use the Analyzing the Logic of an Article template to help in this analysis.
b. What principles or guidelines are there, if any, in Whites five principles that go beyond the seven principles of the Caux Round Table and what is the impact of these principles on the organization, the employees, the customers, and the other stakeholders?
c. How suitable is it to use Scripture as a basis for business ethical decision making for global managers and what challenges or problems might exist for the Christian manager using White's five principles as an ethical guideline?
4. Your answer to each question should provide a detailed evaluation that demonstrates clear, insightful critical thinking.
5. Be sure to use correct spelling, grammar, and APA format and at least five scholarly sources in your response.
6. When you have completed your assignment, save a copy for yourself and submit a copy to your instructor using the Dropbox by the end of the workshop (Turnitin will be enabled).