Question

Which of the following statements is false as concerns the various approachescompany managers can take in dealing with or managing ethical conduct?

A. Companies that adopt a compliance mode usually do such things as making the company's codeof ethics a visible and regular part of communications with employees, having ethics trainingprograms, appointing a chief ethics officer or ethics ombudsperson, giving guidance to employeeson ethics matters, instituting formal procedures for investigating alleged ethics violations,conducting ethics audits to measure and document compliance and giving ethics awards toemployees for outstanding efforts to create an ethical climate and improve ethical performance
B. Companies using the damage control approach usually make some concession to window-dressing ethics, going so far as to adopt a code of ethics (so their executives can point to it asevidence of their ethical commitment should any ethical lapses on the company's part be exposed)
C. One of the weaknesses of the compliance approach is that moral control resides in thecompany's code of ethics and in the ethics compliance system rather than in an individual's ownmoral responsibility for ethical behavior and in strong peer ressures for ethical behavior
D. The main objective of the compliance approach is to protect against adverse publicity and anydamaging consequences brought on by headlines in the media, outside investigation, threats oflitigation, punitive government action or angry or vocal shareholders
E. Companies using the unconcerned or non-issue approach ascribe to the view that ethics has noplace in the conduct of business and that companies should not be morally accountable for theiractions

Answer 1

The false statement regarding managing ethical conduct is that the compliance approach's main objective is to protect against negative publicity, when in fact it aims to ensure adherence to ethical standards.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement which is false as concerns the various approaches company managers can take in dealing with or managing ethical conduct is: D. The main objective of the compliance approach is to protect against adverse publicity and any damaging consequences brought on by headlines in the media, outside investigation, threats of litigation, punitive government action or angry or vocal shareholders. This statement is false because the main objective of the compliance approach is to ensure that the company adheres to laws, regulations, and internal norms, rather than merely to protect against negative consequences of non-compliance. The compliance approach includes the development of codes of ethics, ethics training programs, and other related initiatives to promote ethical behavior within the organization. It is much more proactive and comprehensive than the damage control approach, which is more reactive and often employed after ethical breaches have occurred.