Crafting and executive strategy

1
Ethical principles in business
A)
concern the behavioral guidelines a company’s top management and board of directors set for company personnel regarding “what is right” and “what is wrong” in conducting the company’s business.
B)
deal chiefly with the actions and behaviors required to operate companies in a socially responsible manner.
C)
are not materially different from ethical principles in general and serve as a moral compass for business conduct.
D)
are arrived at by picking and choosing among the consensus ethical standards of society to come up with a set of ethical standards that apply directly to operating a business.
E)
involve behavioral guidelines for balancing the interests of non-owner stakeholders against the interests of company shareholders.

2
The three categories of managers that stand out as concerns their prevailing beliefs in and commitments to ethical and moral principles in business affairs are:
A)
ethically managers, ethically managers, and ethically unconcerned managers.
B)
ethically moral managers, ethically immoral managers, and ethically unaware managers.
C)
ethically-principled managers, ethically-unprincipled managers, and managers whose ethical principles vary according to situational circumstances.
D)
ethical managers, corrupt managers, and partly ethical/partly unethical managers.
E)
moral managers, immoral managers, and amoral managers.

3
Unintentionally amoral managers
A)
are nearly always ethically-principled in their personal behavior but can inadvertently violate the principles of business ethics because they are unsure of the differences between business ethics and personal ethics.
B)
do not violate ethical principles deliberately but rather because they have not been instructed by their superiors to steadfastly observe ethical principles in doing their jobs.
C)
believe business and ethics are not to be mixed because ethics apply only to one’s personal life and not to conduct in matters of business.
D)
end up sometimes violating ethical principles merely because they are casual about, careless about, or inattentive to the fact that certain kinds of business decisions or company activities have deleterious effects on others or are not the ‘right” thing to do.
E)
end up sometimes violating ethical principles because they believe that whatever is legal is also ethical.

4
The major drivers of unethical managerial behavior include
A)
pressures on company managers to meet or beat earnings targets.
B)
basic human greed and overzealous or obsessive pursuit of personal wealth.
C)
a company culture that puts the profitability and good business performance ahead of ethical behavior and doing what’s right.
D)
a willingness to push ethical principles aside in a personal quest to climb the corporate ladder of success
E)
All of these.

5
The school of ethical universalism holds that
A)
all different societies and countries have essentially the same ethical standards of right and wrong, despite somewhat different customs and traditions.
B)
basic human nature is the same everywhere and thus the same set of ethical rules and ethical standards applies to most all cultures and countries.
C)
concepts of right and wrong are universally defined by religious principles.
D)
concepts of right and wrong are universal within countries but not across countries and cultures.
E)
concepts of right and wrong are universal as applied to a given ethical issue or any one particular set of circumstances-that is, there’s a universally way to handle every ethics-related situation.

6
The school of ethical relativism holds that
A)
different societal cultures and customs give rise to divergent values and ethical principles of right and wrong.
B)
concepts of right and wrong are relative within countries but not across countries and cultures.
C)
concepts of right and wrong are always relative to an individual’s own values and beliefs.
D)
concepts of right and wrong are always relative to the religious principles and historic traditions a person believes in.
E)
concepts of right and wrong are always governed by situational circumstances-a particular action or behavior can be ” ethically right” in one situation and “ethically wrong” in another.

7
Unethical managerial behavior tends to be driven by such factors as
A)
a willingness to push ethical principles aside in a personal quest to climb the corporate ladder of success; a company culture that puts the profitability and good business performance ahead of ethical behavior and doing what’s right; and pressures on company managers to meet or beat earnings targets.
B)
the lack of a company code of ethics.
C)
a lack of training in what is ethical and what is not.
D)
confusing differences between what is ethical behavior in one’s personal life and what is ethically permissible in business.
E)
directives from superiors to pursue increased profits by any means possible.

8
According to the information presented in Table 10.1, the perceived degree of governmental corruption is
A)
highest in such places as Germany, France, Hong Kong, Chile, and Finland and lowest in such countries as India, Paraguay, Indonesia, and South Africa.
B)
is highest in Finland, Denmark, New Zealand, and Sweden and lowest in Indonesia, Kenya, Paraguay, and Bangladesh.
C)
about the same in all countries that were surveyed.
D)
is lowest in the U.S., Japan, and Spain.
E)
is lowest in Finland, Denmark, New Zealand, and Sweden.

9
According to the information presented in Table 10.3, paying bribes and kickbacks to grease business transactions
A)
is perceived to occur most frequently in public works contracts and construction and in the arms and defense industry.
B)
is perceived to occur more frequently in countries like Australia, Sweden, and Switzerland than in such countries as Italy, Spain, and Brazil.
C)
is perceived to occur most frequently in the motor vehicle industry and the banking industry.
D)
is perceived to occur more frequently in Western Europe than in Asia and Africa.
E)
is perceived to occur more frequently in dealings with a company’s suppliers than in dealings with a company’s customers.

10
As discussed in Table 10.4, the underlying belief of the “unconcerned or non-issue” approach to dealing with or managing ethics-related issues and ethics conduct is that
A)
a company needs to make only a token gesture in the direction of having acceptable ethical standards (usually adopting a code of ethics and instituting very light enforcement is sufficient).
B)
the business of business is business not ethics.
C)
unethical behavior should be punished only if it results in a public scandal which cannot be ignored by management.
D)
ethics is a matter of personal responsibility not a matter of management concern.
E)
what is right and what is wrong is a matter for each individual to decide and not something that a company should try to impose on its personnel.

11
As discussed in Table 10.4, the underlying belief of the “damage control” approach to dealing with or managing ethics-related issues and ethics conduct is that
A)
a company needs to make only a token gesture in the direction of having acceptable ethical standards (usually adopting a code of ethics and instituting very light enforcement is sufficient); the primary objective is to protect the company against any fallout from unethical strategies and behavior.
B)
the business of business is business not ethics.
C)
unethical behavior should be punished only if it results in a public scandal which cannot be ignored by management.
D)
a reputation for high ethical standards is important to every company.
E)
a company does not need a code of ethics so long as top management makes a show of punishing unethical conduct whenever its shady actions are put in the public spotlight.

12
As discussed in Table 10.4, the underlying belief of the “compliance” approach to dealing with or managing ethics-related issues and ethics conduct is that
A)
a company needs to make only a token gesture in the direction of enforcing the company’s code of ethics in order to deflect any criticism about the unethical nature of the company’s conduct of its business.
B)
unethical behavior must be prevented and punished if discovered.
C)
unethical behavior should be punished only if it results in a public scandal which cannot be ignored by management.
D)
ethics is a matter of personal responsibility not a matter of management concern.
E)
what is right and what is wrong is a matter for each individual to decide and not something that a company should try to impose on its personnel.

13
As discussed in Table 10.4, the challenges (or difficulties) in making the “ethical culture” approach to dealing with or managing ethics-related issues and ethics conduct work satisfactorily include
A)
placing too little emphasis on formal ethics compliance procedures.
B)
putting the locus of moral control on the company’s code of ethics.
C)
relying too heavily on peer pressures and cultural norms to enforce the espoused ethical standards.
D)
empowering each individual to decide what is the right or ethically appropriate thing to do in the situations they encounter.
E)
Both A and C.

14
Companies that adopt a compliance mode usually do such things as
A)
making the company’s code of ethics a visible and regular part of communications with employees.
B)
having ethics training programs and giving ethics awards to employees for outstanding efforts to create an ethical climate and improve ethical performance.
C)
appointing a chief ethics officer or ethics ombudsperson charged with giving guidance on ethics matters and/or instituting formal procedures for investigating alleged ethics violations.
D)
conducting ethics audits to measure and document compliance.
E)
All of these.

15
Which one of the following is not a particularly justification for why a company’s strategy should be ethical?
A)
An unethical strategy can put a company’s reputation at risk and do lasting damage, especially when the misdeeds get into the public spotlight and make media headlines.
B)
An ethical strategy is in the best interest of shareholders.
C)
An unethical strategy reflects badly on the character of the company personnel involved.
D)
Shareholders profits are not greatly reduced by using ethical strategies.
E)
A strategy that is unethical in whole or in part is morally wrong.

16
The concept of social responsibility as it applies to the actions and behavior of companies has to do with
A)
a company’s duty to make the interests and well-being of non-owner stakeholders co-equal in importance with shareholder interests.
B)
societal expectations that company managers will not make irresponsible decisions or condone irresponsible behavior on the part of company personnel.
C)
a company’s duty to operate by means that explicitly consider the interests and well-being of non-owner stakeholders and the environment and, further, to consider the overall betterment of society in its decisions and actions.
D)
urging top management to take actions calculated to win applause from the public at large.
E)
a company’s duty to train all company personnel in displaying the company’s core values and in what constitutes ethical conduct of the company’s business.

17
Which of the following is not something a company should normally consider in crafting a social responsibility strategy?
A)
Actions to promote workforce diversity
B)
Actions to raise worker wages and salaries and/or provide attractive incentive compensation for good performance
C)
The resources it will devote to charitable contributions, community service endeavors, various worthy organizational causes, and reaching out to make a difference in the lives of the disadvantaged.
D)
Actions to protect or enhance the environment (over and above whatever efforts are required by law and by regulators).
E)
Actions to create a work environment that enhances the quality of life for employees and makes the company a great place to work

18
Which one of the following is not part of the moral case for why businesses should act in a socially responsible manner?
A)
Because businesses operate on the basis of an implied “social contract” with society; according to the terms of this implied contract, society grants a business the right to conduct its business affairs and pursue a profit for the goods or services it provides and, in return for its “license to operate”, a business is obligated to act as a responsible citizen and do its part to better the well-being of society
B)
Because “it’s the right thing to do”
C)
Because it is unjust for a company to be so greedy as to not use a portion of the revenues collected from customers (who are a part of society at large) to finance company efforts to do good deeds on behalf of society (and thereby demonstrate its goodwill towards customers)
D)
Because businesses have a duty to be good corporate citizens and do their part in striving to better the interests and well-being of employees, local communities, and society at large
E)
Because ordinary decency, civic-mindedness, and concern for the well-being of society should be expected of any business

19
Which one of the following is not a sound reason why acting in a socially responsible manner is “good business”?
A)
Acting in a socially responsible manner causes company employees to adopt the company’s cultural norms and ethical standards and reduces the likelihood that company personnel will engage in unethical behavior.
B)
A company’s socially responsible behavior can reduce the likelihood that it will become a target for pressure group action (which can be important if a company has a high profile brand and could easily attract scrutiny from concerned outsiders should shady or unsavory company actions come to their attention).
C)
A company’s socially responsible behavior can fortify its reputation with customers and cause them to become more loyal patrons of the company’s products or services
D)
A company’s socially responsible behavior can cause some employees to feel better about working for the company, thus acting to lower turnover and boost worker productivity.
E)
Companies with deservedly good reputations for contributing time and money to the betterment of society are better able to attract and retain high-caliber employees compared to companies with tarnished reputations.

20
Which of the following statements regarding a company’s social responsibility strategy is not true?
A)
The essence of socially responsible business behavior is that a company should strive to balance the benefits of strategic actions to benefit shareholders against any possible adverse impacts on other stakeholders (employees, suppliers, customers, local communities, and society at large) and, further, to proactively mitigate any harmful effects on the environment that its actions and business may have.
B)
The combination of socially responsible endeavors a company elects to pursue defines its social responsibility strategy.
C)
Unless a company’s social responsibility initiatives become part of the way it operates its business every day, the initiatives are unlikely to catch fire and be fully effective.
D)
There’s a one-size-fits-all social responsibility strategy because all socially responsible companies are choosing from the same menu of actions.
E)
Business leaders who want their companies to be regarded as socially responsible must see that their companies operate ethically and also display a social conscience in decisions that affect company stakeholders and the environment.