Business Ethics and the Changing Role of Corporations in Society

Overview:

This comprehensive course provides CPAs and other professionals with an in-depth understanding of why ethical practices are fundamental to the success and longevity of any organization today - no matter the industry, type, or size of the organization. It describes how individual employees, teams, and corporations can navigate complex and challenging situations using an ethical mindset. Using plenty of real-life examples and several case studies, the course will demonstrate that there is a return on investment from ethical business practices and that our standards and expectations for business ethics are rising, and rightly so. This course will cover topics such as the importance of employees in business ethics, global scandals, mini ethical dilemma case studies, ethical response during crises, Canadian examples of crisis response during COVID-19, corporate responsibility, and impact measurement.

This course will demonstrate why an ethical foundation is critical to the long-term success of a company, as well as the community and society it operates in – especially when facing an unexpected crisis. You will also learn about current standards and trends for combining an organization’s profit and its purpose.

Please note that this course incorporates a refresher on some content from other on-demand courses, including Ethical Decision Making in a Crisis and Dealing with Unethical Situations in the Workplace. 

Course Content:

 In this course you will gain knowledge about the following topics:

·         Definition and a brief history of ethics

·         7 returns on investment from ethical practices

·         Importance of employees in business ethics

·         A 6-step framework for ethical decision making

·         Global scandals, including Starbucks Coffee, Wells Fargo, Wirecard, and Volkswagen

·         Mini ethical dilemma case studies

·         Crisis response ideas from an ethical viewpoint

·         Crisis response cases, including Taj Palace Hotel and companies during COVID-19

·         Gravity Payments case study

·         Responsibility and impact measurement

·         B Corp Certification

·         Connecting profit and purpose

Learning Objectives:

Upon completing this course, you should be able to:

·         Describe the key returns on investment from ethical business practices

·         Explain the relationship between ethics and crisis management

·         Identify an organization's biggest asset is and how to protect it

·         Identify important do's and don'ts during crisis situations using real-life case studies

·         Apply a framework to navigate through ethical dilemmas

·         Describe the relationship between profit and purpose in the corporate context

·         Explain ways in which the impact of ethical business practices can be measured

·         Describe the “B Corp” initiative and how Canadian companies can benefit from it

Who Will Benefit: 

 This course will benefit business professionals in leadership roles, including managers, business owners, directors, and board members who are looking to strengthen the ethical culture within their organization.