Literature Review

Running head: SHAPING CULTURES AND ETHICS OF THE ORGANZATION 0

Topic: Shaping Cultures and Ethics of the Organization

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Topic: Shaping Cultures and Ethics of the Organization

Abstract

An ethical business culture is vital in any contemporary organization. Business ethics and culture provide a guideline for all employees and other company stakeholders to follow when they perform any kind of actions in the organization. Every organization must understand the importance of maintaining a positive and ethical business culture. An ethical business culture boosts employee satisfaction, productivity, and consumers’ attraction to a company’s products. Therefore, it is important for an organization to work on shaping its ethics and culture. One way in which this can be achieved is by maintaining positive leadership in the organization. The leaders should be an example to all the employees as what they do is what the junior employees emulate. An organization must also have some ethical guidelines and values that can act as the guide for all employees to competently perform their roles.

Annotated Bibliography

Alvesson, M. (2012).Understanding organizational culture. New York, NY: Sage.

“Understanding Organizational Culture”is a book that takes a deep analysis into the issue of organizational culture and its importance to the success of any business organization. The book explains business culture and its importance to the identity, performance, leadership, and marketing in an organization. From this book, one gets a clearer understanding of what makes up the culture of an organization and the different levels of organizational culture that the management of each business organization should work to achieve. According to this book, organizational culture has a lot of power in shaping how management is done since managers work according to their understanding of the organizational culture. Therefore, the author’s main aim in writing this book is to change how people conduct their cultural studies in their various organizations and to help them see culture as a means of promoting their organizational effectiveness.

Ardichvili, A., Jondle, D., Kowske, B., Cornachione, E., Li, J., &Thakadipuram, T. (2012).Ethical cultures in large business organizations in Brazil, Russia, India, and China.Journal of Business Ethics, 105(4), 415-428.

This is a research study that compares the perceptions of ethics and business culture in four major emerging economies namely Russia, Brazil, China, and India from the United States. The study uses data from over 13,000 managers in all the five countries mentioned above to study their ethical standards and cultures. The study showed that Indian and Brazilian respondents paid more attention to their ethical organizational culture than the respondents from the other countries. However, the study proves that generally, an ethical culture is given a significant level of importance in an organization regardless of its location. Business ethics and a positive organizational culture are always important regardless of the type of business and where it is located.

Ardichvili, A., Mitchell, J. A., &Jondle, D. (2009).Characteristics of ethical business cultures.Journal of business ethics, 85(4), 445-451.

Ardichvili, Mitchell, &Jondle (2009) seek to find out some of the attributes that make up an ethical organizational culture in this article. The study included executives from a number of executives in various industries who contributed to the qualitative study that sought to understand the characteristic of ethical organizational cultures. There are five types of characteristics that the study identifies as the main components of a good organizational culture. These characteristics include stakeholders balance, mission and vision, leadership effectiveness, long-term perspective, and process integrity. The authors recommend that the characteristics identified in this study be used by organizations to create a comprehensive model of organizational practices that can help to build and sustain an ethical organizational culture.

Berson, Y., Oreg, S., &Dvir, T. (2008). CEO values, organizational culture and firm outcomes. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 29(5), 615-633.

This is a journal article that seeks to understand the relationship between organizational culture and the values of the companies’ CEOs. According to this study the principles and values of the CEOs are translated in form of their actions in the organization and this affects its overall outcome. To prove this argument, the study involved a qualitative study with the participants being CEOs and other senior executives from various organizations. The data was collected from more than 200 organizational members. The study results prove the research hypothesis that the values of the executives in an organization have an impact on the overall culture of the organization. Therefore, organizational managers can use the information from this study in the process of shaping their organizational cultures.

Schein, E. H. (2010). Organizational culture and leadership (Vol. 2).John Wiley & Sons.

Leadership has a great impact on the kind of organizational culture maintained in any business organization. This is a management book that puts focus on the current complex business environment. The author puts together a variety of contemporary research study to show the impact that leadership has on the culture of an organization. The book begins by explaining the concept of an organizational culture to help the reader to understand why it is important to have one. Various case studies have been used in the book to help gain more insight into the concepts and understand the main impact that leadership can have on an organization. This book helps to learn some of the ways in which an organization can adjust its leadership styles in order to create an ethical business culture.

Gregory, B. T., Harris, S. G., Armenakis, A. A., & Shook, C. L. (2009). Organizational culture and effectiveness: A study of values, attitudes, and organizational outcomes. Journal of Business Research, 62(7), 673-679.

Organizational culture has a great impact on a business’s effectiveness. This study provides a detailed insight into the relationship between organizational culture and business effectiveness. The study examines some of the organizational aspects that are likely to have been influenced by its culture in order for it to influence effectiveness. Some of the aspects of an organization that are influenced by its culture include the employee attitudes and the values of the organization. If the employees are positively influenced then they are likely to increase their productivity and vice versa. Similarly, positive organizational value affect the output produced by the business.

Johnson, C. E. (2011). Organizational ethics: A practical approach. Sage Publications.

All organizations are faced with ethical dilemmas and the decisions they make may make or break the organization. Organizational ethics play a big role in the decision making process of any business. Therefore, Johnson (2011) seeks to help the readers to understand more about the concept of organizational ethics and how to apply it is any kind of organization. The book uses different ethical theories such as the utilitarian theory, Confucianism, and Altruism to help explain different ethical perspectives and how they should be applied in a business. The book also explains how ethical decision making can be applied in different organizational scenarios such as in team playing, during times of conflict, and in performing leadership roles. Therefore, this book gives a great insight on how an organization can shape its culture and ethics.

Kaptein, M. (2011).Understanding unethical behavior by unraveling ethical culture.Human relations, 64(6), 843-869.

In this article, the author acknowledges that unethical behavior has become very common in many business organizations. The study weeks to prove that altering an organization’s culture can help to reduce the rate of unethical practices that are performed in that organization. There are eight different dimensions that can be used to explain unethical behavior in businesses. Six of these dimensions were proven to have an impact on the unethical behaviors of the employees. These dimensions include ethical role modeling of the management, ethical behaviors from the supervisors, the ability to be ethical, commitment to ethical behavior, reinforcement of ethical behavior, and openness in talking about business ethics. By understanding the factors that affect ethical behaviors in organizations the managements of various businesses can understand the various aspects that need to be enforced or changed completely to promote an ethical culture.

Linnenluecke, M. K., & Griffiths, A. (2010).Corporate sustainability and organizational culture.Journal of world business, 45(4), 357-366.

This article seeks to explain the link between organizational culture and corporate sustainability. There is still a great gap in explaining the link between organizational culture and corporate sustainability. This study explains the factors that make up a sustainable corporate culture and the principles that need to be applied for such a culture to be maintained. Specifically, this study analyses whether it is possible for an organization to have a negative culture and still manage to maintain sustainability. The study results show that a negative culture influences the functioning of the organization hence it is almost impossible to have organizational sustainability in such a setting.

Sekerka, L. E., Comer, D. R., & Godwin, L. N. (2014). Positive organizational ethics: Cultivating and sustaining moral performance. Journal of Business Ethics, 119(4), 435-444.

This article focuses on explaining the ways in which an organization can build positive ethics. Positive organizational ethics can only be achieved if the organization focuses on cultivating ethical attributes in the individuals and groups and promoting positive and ethical practices in the company. There is still a lot that needs to be learned on the ways in which positive ethics can be influenced in people. This article offers some important insight into how organizations may promote ethical behavior in its employees and all organizational practices. In conclusion the article shows that ethical behavior can only be achieved when all organizational members make an effort regardless of their position in the organization.

Stevens, B. (2008). Corporate ethical codes: Effective instruments for influencing behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 78(4), 601-609.

This is a study on the corporate ethical codes that were published in 2000 and the manner in which they shape organizational behavior. This study shows that organizational culture and effective communication are the most important codes in shaping organizational behavior. Organizational culture affects the way people act and perform their roles in the organization hence it affects their level of productivity. Therefore, by understanding how to alter the ethical codes, the organization may know the effective instruments that can be applied to improve the general effectiveness of the organization.

Thorne, D. M., Ferrell, O. C., & Ferrell, L. (2010).Business and society: A strategic approach to social responsibility and ethics. South-Western Cengage Learning.

This is a book that links business ethics and the society. Great business ethics are not only applied in the organizational setting but also to the society. A business can maintain sustainable ethics by enhancing its corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility is the initiative taken by a company to ensure that they promote environmental sustainability and the general well-being of the people in the society. A company that does not care about its social responsibility reflects negative business ethics. This book explains the importance of corporate social responsibility in shaping the corporate culture and ethics of an organization.

Treviño, L. K., Weaver, G. R., & Brown, M. E. (2008). It’s lovely at the top: Hierarchical levels, identities, and perceptions of organizational ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly, 18(02), 233-252.

The people’s perceptions of organizational ethics have an impact on the kind of ethical culture that is implemented in an organization. This article focuses on showing the importance of hierarchical perceptions of ethical culture on the kind of culture that is implemented in an organization. An organization’s management has the power to influence the organization’s culture through its perception of business ethics. The kind of perception they have helps them to live by example and the junior employees tend to follow what they do. No matter what culture the managers promote, if they do not live by example it can be impossible for the rest of the employees to maintain ethical attitudes. Therefore, this article explains the importance of maintaining positive attitudes about business ethics.

Toor, S. U. R., &Ofori, G. (2009). Ethical leadership: Examining the relationships with full range leadership model, employee outcomes, and organizational culture. Journal of Business Ethics, 90(4), 533-547.

An organization’s leadership model can either be constructive or destructive. His article is an empirical study on ethical leadership and the influence it has on employee behaviors and outcomes. The study specifically examines the relationship between ethical leadership and transformational leadership, employee willingness to work harder, leadership effectiveness and employee satisfaction with the leader and their job. The study shows that these factors have a directly proportional relationship. When the leader is ethical, then they transform their positive ethical behaviors to the employees thus increasing their productivity and their satisfaction with their jobs. Similarly, when a leader has negative ethical values, the employees tend to reflect the leader’s behaviors. This reduces their productivity and affects the general organizational effectiveness. Therefore, this study helps to explain that in order to change the ethics and culture of the entire organization, it is necessary to make sure that there are positive leadership techniques implemented.

Verbos, A. K., Gerard, J. A., Forshey, P. R., Harding, C. S., & Miller, J. S. (2007). The positive ethical organization: Enacting a living code of ethics and ethical organizational identity. Journal of Business Ethics, 76(1), 17-33.

Every business organization needs to have an ethical identity that guides its activities. This article focuses on the importance of building an ethical identity and the techniques that can be used to sustain this identity. An ethical organizational culture helps to create a harmonious interaction between all employees and motivate them to perform their roles competently. Creating a code of ethics is the best way in which an organization can create a guideline to which every employee can refer to whenever they encounter an ethical dilemma. A code of ethics includes a set of rules and guidelines that al company stakeholders must abide by in order to uphold the ethical organizational culture.

References

Alvesson, M. (2012).Understanding organizational culture.Sage.

Ardichvili, A., Jondle, D., Kowske, B., Cornachione, E., Li, J., &Thakadipuram, T. (2012).Ethical cultures in large business organizations in Brazil, Russia, India, and China.Journal of Business Ethics, 105(4), 415-428.

Ardichvili, A., Mitchell, J. A., &Jondle, D. (2009).Characteristics of ethical business cultures.Journal of business ethics, 85(4), 445-451.

Berson, Y., Oreg, S., &Dvir, T. (2008). CEO values, organizational culture and firm outcomes. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 29(5), 615-633.

Schein, E. H. (2010). Organizational culture and leadership (Vol. 2).John Wiley & Sons.

Gregory, B. T., Harris, S. G., Armenakis, A. A., & Shook, C. L. (2009). Organizational culture and effectiveness: A study of values, attitudes, and organizational outcomes. Journal of Business Research, 62(7), 673-679.

Johnson, C. E. (2011). Organizational ethics: A practical approach. Sage Publications.

Kaptein, M. (2011).Understanding unethical behavior by unraveling ethical culture.Human relations, 64(6), 843-869.

Linnenluecke, M. K., & Griffiths, A. (2010).Corporate sustainability and organizational culture.Journal of world business, 45(4), 357-366.

Sekerka, L. E., Comer, D. R., & Godwin, L. N. (2014). Positive organizational ethics: Cultivating and sustaining moral performance. Journal of Business Ethics, 119(4), 435-444.

Stevens, B. (2008). Corporate ethical codes: Effective instruments for influencing behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 78(4), 601-609.

Thorne, D. M., Ferrell, O. C., & Ferrell, L. (2010).Business and society: A strategic approach to social responsibility and ethics. South-Western Cengage Learning.

Treviño, L. K., Weaver, G. R., & Brown, M. E. (2008). It’s lovely at the top: Hierarchical levels, identities, and perceptions of organizational ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly, 18(02), 233-252.

Toor, S. U. R., &Ofori, G. (2009). Ethical leadership: Examining the relationships with full range leadership model, employee outcomes, and organizational culture. Journal of Business Ethics, 90(4), 533-547.

Verbos, A. K., Gerard, J. A., Forshey, P. R., Harding, C. S., & Miller, J. S. (2007). The positive ethical organization: Enacting a living code of ethics and ethical organizational identity. Journal of Business Ethics, 76(1), 17-33.