Tough question.  The link below highlights some huge business scandals over the past 100 years.  Flipping through the site made me think that maybe business ethics is an oxymoron. 

http://www.boston.com/business/gallery/Businessscandals?pg=5

BUT… I have the pleasure of working with MacEwan business students and I know that they passionate, committed global citizens.  This year one of our students is the lead on Project Hope (Project Hope).  Our Commerce Club worked all year to make sure that their fellow students had a great experience in Business.  Other students have worked to promote Alberta Police Services (see www.joinalbertacops.ca/macewan).  Their actions demonstrate that ethics exist in business or, perhaps, more accurately ethical people exist in business.

This leads me to the uncomfortable realization that while there are ethical people in business; the actual structure of business in many cases does not support ethics in business.  Is business to blame?  In part they are, which is why business schools are responding by introducing ethics back into the classroom.  Although at MacEwan, we’ve been doing that for years.  

Government has to shoulder their share of the blame too.  They bought into the belief that a hands-off approach is the best approach.  Laissez-faire.  Let the free market rule.  But not even Adam Smith thought the free market should be allowed to operate unaided.  Ethics are hard to maintain with no oversight and no accountability except the accountability to shareholders (which is measured in dollars and not ethics).  

And it’s hard to point at government without having four fingers pointing back to us the voters.  We were happy to let companies run free when our stocks were soaring and jobs were plentiful.  

Can business ethics exist?  Yes.  Do they exist?  Yes.  Are they automatic?  No.

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