Business ethics sample

Ethics in business constitute a set of accepted code of conduct in running a given entrepreneurial prospect.  These principles provide clear guidelines on the management of an enterprise. The codes define the business relationship with the prospective customers, how the corporate interact with other companies and the concept of the corporate social responsibility. Unethical business practices as witnessed in a wider spectrum entail the unlawful use of copyrights, employee mistreatment in the aspect of payment and work environment, use of child labor, bribery and corruption (Cunningham23). Moreover, unhealthy competitive practices, production of products with compromised quality standards, products hoarding and exorbitant pricing also form part of unethical practices. In addition, the impact of business practices on the society and the environment at large also constitute business ethics. Environmental regulations in the running of a given business prospect must take Centre stage. The business should not damage the image and reputation of a given society in a given region. Corporate social responsibility, therefore, must be embraced by the enterprise in a bid to enhance environmental and sustainable development (Delamaire37).The subsequence discussions delve into in-depth discussion of business ethics about credit cards. A case study in which a business involvement with the sale of the address of the credit cards of their clients is the major focus. With the ever-dynamic business environment, the introduction of credit cards has tremendously revolutionized the speed of business transactions. Credit card mechanism is the cashless transaction that uses an electronic platform with the reference to an individual profile. The credit card outlets include the bank ATMs, and Visa branded outlet stores. They are convenient to use and saves a lot of time. The benefits of the credit use are numerous. Safety in carriage forms a major important factor as their sizes and weight prompt their storage in lighter materials such as pockets and wallets (Cunningham65). The cards enable one to know and manage monthly balances hence important in financial planning. Moreover, some cards earn points based on the number of times one uses them. Despite the advantages, unnecessary troubles exist in the use of these cards. Unless the outlined terms and conditions of usage observed to, then one can come into the wrath of these highly publicized materials (Dirk60). Exceeding the credit card balances nullifies a transaction hence may inconvenience a user. Unless one keeps a constant track of the transactions made, then it can lead to too much expenditure. Their convenience in use and accessibility, therefore, encourages unplanned expenditure hence limits savings. Confidentiality on the credit card customized data is paramount. When this confidential information becomes availed to unwarranted parties, then one risks losing the amount saved in the account. All these confidential data remain custody of the original owner. They include personal address, name and the type of the card used. Some cards are Visa branded and, therefore, find a wide usage in many outlet stores. Credit cards exist in various types. Standard retail and charge cards form the major categorization of the credit cards. Standard credit cards fall into two categories that include secured credit cards and unsecured credit cards. For the secured credit cards, you deposit a specified amount in your savings account, and you get credit based on the amount saved. For the unsecured, up to a specified limit and pay the minimum balance every month. It forms the most common credit card. For one to obtain this card, the card company reviews your credit history coupled with monthly income (Andrew24).  Retail cards find wide usage in specific retail outlets and petrol stations. The card, however, tends to charge exorbitant interest rates compared to the standard card. Charge cards on the other hand operate the same as the standard card only that it demands full payment of minimum balances on the monthly basis. Higher limits in credit coupled with charges on late payments and high-interest rates make the use of the card minimal compared to the other cards. The convenience in the credit card usage supersedes the disadvantages. Due to their flexibilities, businesses and individuals have inclined positively on them. This has led to a positive shift in demand for credit cards prompting the card companies to increase their supply to affect the demand (Gordon47).  Despite their benefits, blame posted on the financial institutions and credit card companies for increased fraud on the use of these cards increased.  Technology plays crucial roles in fueling these frauds. Alternatively, loopholes in the confidentiality of personal details given during the acquisition of these cards from financial institutions also form part of the blame in fueling the rampant card fraud. Ethics and morally accepted standards must follow in the credit card use. This applies to the card company, the outlet card recipient, and the cardholder. For one to obtain a credit card, then the financial institution demand full disclosure through feeling an application form. Most mandatory information required includes information regarding your identification, location confidential data and other information. The bank then provides a password to all the confidential information provided to safeguard them. The leaking out of this information raises questions about the moral standards of the institution in upholding integrity. 88% of frauds in credit cards attributed to identity crime. Counterfeit fraud is one of the most common disadvantages that accrue due to unethical practices by the financial and card companies. It means the use of the card of another party without the later knowledge. Normally, one party obtaining confidential personal data regarding the card occasions these (Delamaire42). Mostly, fraudsters use this kind of mechanism by obtaining a copy of your card’s detail and use them to transact business where one’s physical address and signature are not required. This offers a threat to the account holder in that the all these losses must be incurred. Otherwise, the bank will list you as bankrupt. Furthermore, fines remain incurred to offset the minimum balance regulations. The chargebacks incurred while offsetting the lost money makes the cardholder incur many unplanned expenses. The financial institution fails to acquaint their customers with necessary information in the event of occurrence of this scenario. Failure to provide all the terms and regulations that follow the credit use pits the clients ignorant and hence fall trap of manipulation regarding the same(Littwin33). Alternatively, they change their rules and manipulate their ARPs in a bid to confuse these consumers more. They also increase charge service fees. In an event, that prompts the change of the card; ‘bait and switch’ may result as the applicant apply for a card but instead granted an inferior card. This compromises the use of such cards in transactions. Spiked interest rates on the APR also make replacement of the lost card unreliable. For example, the charge of between seven point nine to twenty-nine points nine on APR justifies card replacement as very expensive (Delamaire80). Address confusion also posts. A major loophole in the financial institution. This predisposes your card to fraud. Application fraud is also another scenario that results from the disclosure of the details of the customer. At this point, the credit card applicant uses false information during the application of the card. This is normally a failure of the system of the financial institution to detect suspicious applicants (Dirk70). It results in duplication of personal details hence a wrong person uses the details of another party to transact business. Consequently, the financial institutions and the credit card companies may attribute blame to the inefficiency of the credit cards. Their tactics aim to confuse their customers as they reap more due to the ignorance of the clients.  During card registration, the confidentiality of the given personal details remains with the financial institution. The point at which such information gets leaked compromises the credibility of these institutions. In the pursuit of more revenue, bribery and corruption together with dishonesty make these institutions unreliable (Richard 56). The average consumer became helpless and forced to incur all the losses that accrue in the event of losses. Business ethics and codes of conduct as previously discussed entail a lot. These are set of stipulated rules that govern the operations of various businesses. Failure to adhere to these creates a lot of disharmony to the clients and the corporate the world. Concerning the credit card business, then the well laid down rules need to comply.  Most importantly, the confidentiality of the personal information of the clients is highly important(Cunningham85).These would help curb some fraudulent cases encounter due to card duplication or personification. Unless the ethics in line with business upheld, then the corporate scandals remain a nightmare.  Nevertheless, dishonesty in business transactions kills the growth of other business and clients as it results in losses. Therefore, stakeholders must strive to streamline their corporates into rules and regulations. Formulation of legislation should take center-stage and the tough penalty imposed on any organization not compliant. This will safeguard citizens and other recipients in the country.

Related essays