Finance & Accounting

Business Ethics Articles Folio

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Word Count

2250 words

Subject

Business Ethics

Deadline

3 Days

Assignment Criteria

Description and Requirements

This is an individual assignment

Requirements

In this assignment you will present a folio of two (2) articles that you have read and reviewed during the first half of the trimester. Articles must be print-dated after June 1st, 2016.

Each article must be from the print media (newspaper article, magazine article, internet article). The articles that you select must have at least 200 words of text. Please note that academic journal articles are not regarded as print media for the purpose of this assignment and if used you will be given a zero for that article.

The articles must be concerned with issues of a business ethics nature. If you are not sure of the article's applicability please think through the situation before using it, perhaps choose another one that you are sure fits what is required. The unit team cannot give you an assessment of the article's applicability. As this is a third year unit, we expect students to take responsibility for their own learning decisions, therefore deciding on the articles that you choose is a part of the assessment process. 

Please ensure that your articles are business ethics related and do not cover social, cultural or political issues. Sometimes there is a fine line and if you are not sure, then choose another article which clearly outlines a business ethics issue(s). 

The discussion of each article must contain:

  • the title of the article
  • the media from which it was obtained: i.e. newspaper or magazine name, internet site location
  • the date of the article (it must be after June 1st, 2016; if not that article discussion will score 0)
  • an overview of the essence of the article with a brief discussion of the identified ethical issue(s)
  • a discussion that links the essence of the article and ethical issues(s) to the theory (referenced theory to support your ideas is expected and will be deemed as essential)*. Here you also need to include your recommendations (that are realistic and practical) as a manager to resolve the issues identified in the article. If no resolution has been mentioned in the article, you can give your suggestions of how to resolve the issues here. If a resolution has been mentioned, discuss whether you would had resolved the issue in the same manner or other ways, and why.
  • Who are the stakeholders being impacted (now and in the future) by the issue and how? Briefly discuss impact (positive and/or negative) on each stakeholder. 
  • a conclusion in which you proffer an opinion on the article's ethical issue(s)
  • an academic reference list that is constructed correctly (using Harvard or author-date referencing style).

*as this unit is at 3rd year level, you can use any theory that relates to business ethics regardless of having already formally studied it in the unit schedule: i.e. you can read ahead and use ideas and theories from weeks outside of 1-7. 

You must include a scanned copy of the article with your assignment, else your assignment will NOT be marked until after the exams. In these circumstances, you will receive a maximum of 25/50.

You are to write 2250 words per article (10% +/– of the word limit is acceptable).

The reference list incorporating in-text references from both (2) articles should be included at the end of the last article following the Harvard referencing style.

Assignment: Frequently Asked Queries

Articles

  1. What should be the focus of business ethics?

The articles must be concerned with issues of a business ethics nature. For example, drinking is a social issue, but drinking in the workplace/ on the job is a business ethics issue as it can have an impact on your performance. Business ethics issues are those issues that have a direct bearing on the business operations of an organisation. The issues can be in either the corporate sector or the public sector, as long as you can demonstrate a business implication.

  1. Advice regarding suitability of an article.

If you are not sure of the article’s applicability please think through before you use it; perhaps choose another one that you are sure fits with what is required. The unit team cannot give you an assessment of the article’s applicability. As a third year unit, we expect students to take responsibility for their own learning decisions, therefore deciding on the articles that you choose is a part of the assessment process. 

We cannot comment on the suitability of your article choice. Your choice is a part of the demonstration to us of your understanding of the unit content.

  1. We would accept issues that have gone from business ethics issues to legal issues.

By this statement, we mean that often behaviour begins as unethical and over time may become illegal. Often people convicted of criminal intent continue to appeal and protest their innocence and still cannot see that they have done anything wrong. Nonetheless, you should still be able to clearly identify and discuss an ethical issue and differentiate it from legal aspects.

  1. Topics that you can use in your theory discussion. Should you confine it just to Topics 1-7?

As this unit is at third year level, you can use any theory that relates to business ethics regardless of having already formally studied it in the unit schedule: i.e. you can read ahead and use ideas and theories from weeks outside of 1-7, or use another textbook.

  1. The articles used must be print dated after June 1st 2016

The articles that you use must have appeared in the print media source after June 1st 2016. The articles can be about activities done pre-June 1st 2016. If the article header is dated prior to June 1st 2016, it will receive 0 marks regardless of the quality of content discussion.

  1. Journal articles: are they print media?

Each article must be from the print media (newspaper article, magazine article, internet newspaper or internet magazine article). The articles that you select must have at least 200 words of text.

Please note that academic journal articles are not regarded as print media for the purpose of this assignment.

  1. Can I use one source (eg., same Newspaper) for all of the articles?

Yes, you can, use the same source (eg., The Age website) for both the articles. Nonetheless, do note the articles should be about 2 different organisations and 2 different business ethics issues.

  1. Are overseas newspapers and websites acceptable?

Yes, they are – the only requirement is that they be printed or translated in English.

  1. Can I use Wikipedia for my assignment?

Wikipedia use is prohibited for this assignment. You need to search information about the various theories and business ethics issues from various textbooks, journal articles and other sources as opposed to gaining potential inaccurate information from Wikipedia.

  1. Can I use blogs for my assignment?

Whilst blogs can be part of the media source, we recommend not to use them as we are looking for your views on various business ethics issues than commentary by other people.

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Assignment Solution

Article 1

The article 'How Hochtief got the inside running' by Courts Ben Butler, was published in The Australian on 10 December 2016. The article demonstrates how a German construction giant, Hochtief, was involved in insider trading, by being involved in large purchases of the Leighton shares, almost a month prior to its $1.15 billion takeovers of Leighton. The event took place in early 2014, and the company was ultimately slapped with a fine of $400,000 by the corporate regulators. The German construction giant is also obligated to pay $50,000 towards Australian Securities and Commission Costs. They also have to pay $103,400 to the financial literacy group First Nations Foundation and Australian Shareholders' Association (Ben Wilmot, 2016).

 The report raises a very important ethical issue – insider trading. Insider trading has been there since for quite a long time now. Insider trading is defined by the Australian Stock Exchange as 'Insider trading is the buying or selling of a security by someone who has access to material non-public information about the security. Insider trading can be illegal or legal, depending on when the insider makes the trade (Harvey, 2015).' With respect to the second sentence in the above definition, the charges were imposed on Hochteif, because Justice Wigney found that the information was sent 'while it was in possession of the inside information.' (Butler,2016)

Secondly, it also highlights the ethical responsibilities that are associated with executive positions. The management roles are mainly defined by the responsibilities that come along with them. Responsibility is the cornerstone of ethics, and it is an inherent part of every position (Solomon and Martin, 2013). This becomes the basis of the question as to whether a person has been ethically responsible. “A fortnight before the 13 December audit committee meeting, Mr Sassenfeld and Hochtief's head of corporate finance, Carl Hoestermann, had issued a written order to MrLancero and another Harvey’s worker, William Somerville, asking them to buy up to 4.8 million Leighton shares by the end of January' (Butler, 2016). This clearly demonstrates the unethical and irresponsible behaviour by Carl Hoestermann.

Insider trading is a white-collar crime. White-collar crime is the one that is financially motivated and is non-violent in nature. The analysis of insider trading can be done from the perspectives of a number of justice theories, but the most notable is the theory of justice which is emphasized by John Rawls. It provides an understandable ethical framework which can help to evaluate one’s behaviour.

As per The Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), insider trading is defined as either legal or illegal: “Illegal insider trading generally refers to buying or selling a security, in breach of fiduciary duty or other relationship of trust and confidence, while in possession of material, non-public information about the security (Harvey, 2015)' However, SEC also states that the legal trading would be buying own company's stock which is reported to the SEC (Harvey, 2015).

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