APPENDIX B:

 

 

1983 BUSINESS LEADER

 

QUESTIONS


 

A.  The individual and the Group
  Strongly Agree  Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
1.  The individual is the most fundamental unit in our society.          
2.  Work ethics such as hard work, diligence, thrift, respect
for authority, etc. are the most important guidelines for
conducting our lives.		          
3.  All institutions in our society should seek to protect and
promote the interests of individuals.		          
4.  Individual freedom may have to be partly restricted in order
for organizations to function effectively.		          
B.  Equality
  Strongly Agree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
1.  All individuals deserve an equal opportunity to enter the higher
paying and more prestigious occupations.		          
2.  Government should intervene in education and in labor markets to
assure equality of opportunity.		          
3.  Income and employment should be determined by an individual’s
productivity.  Those who work harder and/or have greater natural ability
should earn higher incomes.		          
4. The existing range of incomes in the United States is, in general, a fair
distribution.		          
C.  Role of Government
1.  Government should redistribute income in order to assure a minimum
standard of living for all citizens.		 Strongly Agree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Government should not directly redistribute income.  Instead it should
try to make incomes more equal by promoting equality of opportunity and
a healthy economy.		          
3.  Government currently restricts individual and organizational freedom to
such an extent that efficiency is often sacrificed.		          
4.  In the future, government may have to restrict individual and organizational
freedom even more in order to promote the common good and solve society’s
major problems.		          
5.  Government should provide incentives for business to get involved in solving
social problems.		          
D.  Role of Technology
1.  The quality of life can best be improved by the effective application of
technological innovations.		 StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  The quality of life can best be improved by the effective application of the
kinds of knowledge which colleges teach in humanities, philosophy and social
science courses.		          
II.  YOUR VIEWS REGARDING THE SOURCES OF ETHICAL STANDARDS
Many factors can influence a businessperson’s ethical standards and ethical practice.
  Which of the following factors influence the average business executive’s ethical
standards? (Circle the number which best conveys your opinion).
To What Extent are Ethical Standards Influenced by
1.  Formal company policy and procedure StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Peer group pressure          
3.  Prevailing industry practice          
4.  Perceived preference of your boss          
5.  Family Experiences          
6.  Your church experiences          
7.  Your educational experiences          
8.  Your company’s ethical code or policy          
9.  Your professional ethical code          
10.  Society’s moral climate          
III.  YOUR VIEWS REGARDING THE ROLE OF THE CORPORATION
This section asks for your opinions regarding the role of the business corporation
in our society. ( Circle the number that best conveys your opinion)
1.  A corporation’s primary responsibility is to its stockholders. StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  A corporation is equally responsible to its stockholders, employees, customers,
and other interested parties.		          
3.  Corporations should take the lead in solving major social problems such as
pollution, discriminations and safety.		          
4.  Corporations should not become involved in solving social problems unless
doing so becomes a cost of doing business or an opportunity to earn a profit.		          
5.  Most corporations get involved in social responsibility projects because outside
pressures make such involvement a cost of doing business.		          
6.  Most corporations get involved in social responsibility projects because their
managements believe it is the right action to take, regardless of the effect on the
company’s profits.		          
7.  Most corporations get involved in social responsibility projects because of the
public relations value of such projects.		          
IV.  YOUR VIEWS REGARDING THE ETHICS OF BUSINESS PRACTICE
A.  General
1.  The typical business executive has two sets of ethical standards, one which
he/she applies to business activities and another which is applied to his/her private life.		 StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Ethical standards in business are lower than in government.          
3. Ethical standards in business are lower than in government.          
4.  Ethical standards in business are lower than in the typical American family.          
5.  The ethical standards I use in business are higher than the standards of my
supervisor.		          
6.  The ethical standards I use in business are higher than the standards used by
the people who work for me.		          
7.  The ethical standards I use in business are higher than the standards of my
counterparts in other companies.		          
8.  The ethical standards I use in business are as high as those I practice with
my family and friends.		          
9.  I occasionally make decision which are right for my business but which
are inconsistent with my personal ethical principles.		          
10.  Most ethical decisions which I encounter involve conflict between the
legitimate claims of two or more parties (e.g., stockholder vs. customer,
employee vs. stockholder, etc.)		          
B.  Customer Relationships
1.  Much advertising done by business is misleading to the consumer. StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Effective advertising may have to be somewhat misleading.          
3.  Some government regulation of labeling is needed to protect the consumer.           
4.  Government safety regulations are needed to protect the consumer.          
5.  Truth in lending regulations are needed to protect the customer.          
6.  Antitrust laws prohibiting price fixing benefit the customer.          
7.  It is in the long run self interest of business to protect the customer.          
8.  The average customer is less ethical in dealing with business than the
business is in dealing with that customer.		          
C.  Employee Relationships
1.  No employee should be required to engage in business practices which
that employee considers unethical.		 StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  In accepting an employment offer each employee implicitly agrees to
abide by the ethical standards of the employer, even if the company
standards differ from those of the employee.		          
3.  Lazy or incompetent employees should be fired.          
4.  Management should not fire lazy or incompetent employees, rather
they should be provided counseling in an effort to improve their performance.		          
5.  A company should have formal policies to guarantee that every employee
has an equal opportunity for promotion, pay increases, and other rewards
provided by the firm.		          
6.  Wages and salaries should vary according to an employee’s productivity.          
7.  Wages and salaries should vary according to both the employee’s
productivity an years of service with the firm.		          
8.  Wages and salaries should vary primarily with the employee’s years
of service with the firm.		          
9.  Government supervised equal employment opportunity legislation is necessary.          
10.  Labor unions serve a useful purpose by prodding a particular management
into fulfilling its responsibilities to labor.		          
D.  Stockholder Relationships
1.  The corporation should seek to maximize short run profits. StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  The corporation should seek to earn a satisfactory rate of return for
stockholders.		          
3.  The corporation should seek to maximize long run profits.          
E.  Relationships with Competitors
1.  The ethical standards in competition are determined by the least ethical competitor.  If one firm engages in unethical conduct the others will have to follow in order to survive. StronglyAgree   Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  The antitrust laws promote a higher standard of ethics among competing firms.            
F.  Relationship with the Community
The corporation has a responsibility to:
1.  Promote equal opportunity in hiring and promotion. StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Conserve natural resources, even if doing so means a reduction in
corporate profits.		          
3.  Promote conservation of energy even if doing so means a reduction
in profits.		          
4.  Clean up or avoid causing air, noise and water pollution even if doing
so means a reduction in profits.		          
5.  Contribute money and management time to civic activities in communities
where the firm has plants or offices.		          
6.  Help minority owned businesses.          
7.  Be truthful in advertising.          
V.  YOUR VIEWS REGARDING METHODS OF DEALING WITH ETICAL ISSUES
This section asks for your views regarding corporate policies dealing with
ethical issues.  There are two parts to each question.
A.  First indicate your feelings as to the importance of each (regardless of
whether or not your company currently uses it) in making corporations
moral.  (Please circle the number that best corresponds to your opinion.)
B.  Second, place a checkmark in the last column if that policy is currently
utilized by your company.
1.  Individual executives are assigned and permitted to handle issues as they arise. StronglyAgree Agree No Opinion Disagree StronglyDisagree
2.  Additional staff positions are created in order to take care of ethical issues.          
3.  A temporary takes force of executives and/or employees is formed to deal
with critical issues as they arise.		          
4.  A permanent committee, such as a “publicly responsibility” committee, of
senior officers handles ethical decisions.		          
5.  A permanent department is developed and assigned all recurring ethical
decision and recommends ethical policies.		          
6.  A person(s) has been added to the board of directors to advise the corporation
on ethical issues.		          
7.  The ethical responsibility task is delegated to the operating units as a part of
the jobs performed in running the business.		          
8.  An industry-wide code of ethics is developed and all managers at all levels are
made aware of the code through periodical educational programs.		          
9.  Socially responsible programs are incorporated into the basic company strategy
in pursuing other corporate goals in order to be successful.		          
10.  Executives monitor the social and political trends in order to properly respond
rather than wait for the legislature and courts to enforce public opinion.		          
11.  Participation of employees is sought and used in making decisions which have
strong social implications.		          
12.  Performance evaluations of managers give careful consideration to the
qualitative as well as future implications of the job performed.		          
13.  Reward and punishment systems are restricted so that they support
managers who pursue ethically responsible actions on their own.		          
                   

 

VI. SOME BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND
A.  Did you ever take a formal course in ethics or moral philosophy?Yes_____                   No_____
B. Your present title or position:  ____________________________________
C.  a)  State in which you live: ___________________________________            b)  State in which you work: __________________________________
D.  Your company size by number of employees: (Check one)       1-99                 ______                             10,000-19,999     ______        100-499           ______                             20,000-29,999    ______       500-999           ______                             30,000-49,999    ______       1,000-4,999     ______                             50,000 or more   ______       5,000-9,999     ______
E.  Your company size compared to other firms in the industry:     One of the largest   ______                             Smaller than most        ______     Larger than most     ______                            One of the smallest      ______                                         About Average   _______
F.  Which of the following best describes the functional area in which you work? (Please check only one.)Accounting                      _______                                       Marketing                      ________Engineering, R & D         _______                                       Personnel or Labor                                                                                                     Relations              ________Finance                           _______                                                                                                                  Public Relations           ________General Management     _______                                                                                             Other (Please specify)   __________________________
 
In what general area of business is you company? (Please check the area generating the largest percentage
of you corporate sales.)Mining or Extraction; Oil                                          _________Construction                                                            _________Manufacturing Consumer Goods                            _________Manufacturing Industrial Goods                              _________Manufacturing, Other                                              _________Transportation; Public Utilities                                _________Public Utilities                                                         _________Wholesaling                                                            _________Retailing                                                                  _________Banking, Investment, Insurance                              _________Advertising, Media, Publishing                                _________Business Services                                                   _________Consumer or Social Services                                  _________Other (Please specify)   ______________________________
 
Which of the following best describes your corporate structure? (Please check the one most important only.)Functional                  ________                                                  Geographic Division     ________Functional with                                                                             Conglomerate               ________        subsidiaries        ________                                                                                                     Other (Please specify)  ________Production Division    ________                                                  ___________________________
AN OPEN ENDED INVITATION
A.  Is there anything else you would like to say on the topic of social responsibility or business ethics?
  If so, please make your comments below (or on a separate sheet of paper if necessary.
Are there any company documents dealing with ethics or social responsibility that you would like to share
with us?  We would be delighted to receive a copy of your corporate code of ethics or any other documents
illustrating your views on this topic.