The Good, the Bad, and Your Business: Choosing Right When Ethical Dilemmas Pull You Apart

by Jeffrey L. Seglin and SEGLIN

Book Overview

Is it possible to be good and be good for business? New York Times syndicated columnist shows that making responsible business decisions requires the ability to examine their impact from three... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471347795
• ISBN13: 9780471347798
• Release Date: March 2000
• Publisher: Wiley
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Creating an Ethical Legacy

This is a general business book, rather than one about marketing (though there are some great examples from the marketing world, like the oil pipeline company that, as part of a court settlement, had to run ads acknowledging culpability in a pipeline rupture that polluted 23 miles of river; the company went well beyond its legal requirement to top the ad with a huge headline declaring, "We Apologize.") Seglin's main point is that ethics have to be a part of all our working lives, of every decision, and that workers at all levels must be trained to wrestle with the tough decisions and to stand up for honest, ethical responses. He sees a dangerous trend, though: instead of taking responsibility for their own and their subordinates' actions, too many managers simply kick the problem upstairs to the legal department. But just because something is within the law doesn't mean it's right, and managers get ever more rusty in making these decisions if they don't get to practice ethical decision making because the lawyers have already stepped in. One of my favorite parts is a four-question "sniff test" taken from Lockheed Martin's former CEO, Norman R. Augustine (these four questions are a direct quote form the book): 1. Is it legal? 2. If someone else did "this" to you, would you think it was fair? 3. Would you be content if this were to appear on the front page of your hometown newspaper? 4. Would you like your mother to see you do this? If you get a yes on all four, you're probably pretty safe, ethically. Among many other tests, Seglin also suggests these: will you be ashamed to look in the mirror, and what kind of a legacy do you want to be remembered for?

Wrestling with the Balance Between Ethics and Self-Interest

The Good, The Bad, and Your Business is a generous gift to readers: articulate, thought provoking and lucid. The writing style is congruent with the author's message. Seglin gives the reader a flexible, yet coherent language to structure discussion and contemplation of ethical dilemmas. The examples in the book foster identification with business executives who face brutal decisions and lure the reader into sympathizing with their behavior. Only later when the author shifts to the divergent view of the victim, does the reader clearly acknowledge the executive's behavior-with a shock-as being unethical. The book awakens us to the process of how we can let legal parameters and legal experts shut down our awareness of good ethics. It highlights the importance of breaking the bonds of legal fear to create greater employee satisfaction that in turn leads to better employee performance. Seglin takes a realistic view of how success is affected by dishonesty and astutely concludes that overall, it "just isn't worth the risk." The Good, The Bad, and Your Business, displays a compassion for being human in an imperfect world while maintaining laser alertness and wrestling with the balance between altruism and self-interest. Seglin is not hesitant about diving into the trenches but can also climb with conviction to the pinnacle of "Postconventional Morality."

Running a Business Is One Thing; Learning to Think Another

If the past several years have taught us anything, it's that one of the serious shortages among some people touting themselves as industrialists and in-the-trenches businesspeople is the ability to think and make decisions. One of the most striking aspects of The Good, the Bad, and Your Business is that it not only shows an understanding of various experiences of being in the trenches, it also does a wonderful job of helping the reader realize the importance of weighing through decisions and the implications of their actions -- even when those decisions must be made at rapid speed. To dismiss a book written by a journalist (albeit one who seems from the jacket flap to have experience in business) is silly, particularly when the message is as strong as this: For businesses to regain the trust of the consuming public, integrity is required. And try as you might, you can't fake integrity...at least not for long. Business needs fewer silly thinkers and more explorations like this one that get businesspeople to really think about what it is they do and why they do it.

Business Ethics Made Readable, & Doable!

Every day, businessmen are faced with tough ethical decisions that keep even the most seasoned managers tossing and turning at night. You can rest assured that at some point in your career you'll be faced with making, or witness the making of, an ethical decision-and the action you take will not only define you, but also what your company stands for.The pressure to make the right choices is incredible; indecision or one small misstep can be the kiss of death in today's highly competitive, fast-moving economy. Productivity can drop off, employee morale can plummet, dissatisfied customers can flee, and your competitor may take a large bite out of your profits-while the dilemma remains unresolved.Without being preachy or theoretical, The Good, The Bad and Your Business shows companies how to run more efficiently by improving their navigation of everyday moral business dilemmas. Author and journalist Jeffrey L. Seglin reveals how otherwise decent people can make mistakes and find themselves in serious ethical trouble. His practical approach uses real-life examples to help you see the difference between a "grey area" and outright misdeed so you can act faster when faced with such ethical decisions. He also gives you the tools to help you reach your own decisions.You'll also discover the common misperceptions about ethics in business and learn how to define your "comfort" level-so that you can conduct business knowing you've made thoughtful decisions with full knowledge of the possible consequences.Jeffrey L. Seglin (1956- ) is an Editor-at-Large at Inc. magazine and a columnist of the Sunday New York Times business section. He is also an assistant professor at Emerson College.

Right action is smart business

Amazingly helpful in providing a common-sense framework for working out answers to the most difficult kinds of business problems--the ones that can eat at you for a long time after. Packed with great case studies that make it clear that all managers in all sorts of businesses face ethical dilemmas all the time, whether they want to admit to themselves or not. The real trick this book pulls off is keeping things at a concrete, practical, hands-on business level without shrugging off the bigger view. No one's lecturing you here; this is about real business, not abstractions. I got something hugely important out of it that will always stay with me: In the long run, doing the right thing is not only admirable in and of itself, but it's usually good business. I always wanted to believe that, but suspected it wasn't so. Now I'm confident that it is.