Making Ethical Business Decisions

Businesses have very complicated problems and ethical decisions may be very difficult to take that do not conflict with someone or something. Business owners are expected to make decisions for several issues if the times are tough, the decisions could be tougher and not very popular. In many cases, business dilemmas may be solved quickly and the action that will be taken can be considered to be ethically correct or not. Whatever the consequences of the decision, the businessman should learn from past mistakes when facing similar situations. Managers and business owners should always be on guard and seriously think about the consequences of their previous decisions before making another one.

It is very normal that there is no one who can make perfect decisions time after time but when one makes consistently profitable decisions, he or she stands a better chance to move heights in the business. Usually, competitive pressure is the greatest problem and the person might be faced with making an instant decision or lose his money, or if he is an employee, his job forcing them to compromise on their business ethics and ideals.  The best ethical decisions are made by businesses when there are no undue pressures or too much competition. As a business consultant advising a client on ethical decisions, it is important to look at all the aspects of a situation before advising him of the decision that he must or must not make.

Ideally an ethical business decision should be one that helps him personally, his business and his clients Making ethical business decisions again and again is the reason for  long-term success for any business, although ethical decision makers may, at times, achieve weaker short-term business  results than their dishonest competitors  Knowing how to make ethical business decisions can help you to set the standard throughout your organization, helping your company to garner a strong, positive reputation in the marketplace while securing a loyal customer base. A recognized code of ethics can help you and everyone in the organization make decisions more quickly by adhering to a prescribed set of rules to which everyone agrees.

Review the results of your past business decisions, and learn from your mistakes. According to scu.edu, managers should always reflect on the outcomes of their decisions. No one can make perfect decisions all of the time, although making consistently ethical decisions is more easily accomplished than making consistently successful or profitable ones. If you have made and implemented a decision with questionable ethical implications, act quickly to resolve the matter by making restitution to everyone affected and work to counteract the decision’s effects.