Ethical Testing
Sonnet Peabody
BUS 206 Business Law
Southern New Hampshire University
I am going to use the WH framework option in examining the ethical dilemma of Clare
Applewood's outdoor equipment business Mountain Top View, Inc. The W-Who represents all
the stakeholders in the business. Consumers, owners, investors, managers, employee's, and
future generations. The H-How represents the ethical guidelines used within the business
operation. Golden rule, public disclosure, and a universalization test. In other words, it explains
whom the decisions effect and how the decisions are made.
In the scenario of Clare Applewood, it is important to know did she set the
guidelines for ethical behavior at the start of her business operations? If these guidelines or
expectations had been set from the beginning of operations start up, would Steve had made a
different decision in handling the breach? By creating primary values such as honesty and
integrity in a business the owners set the standard for future operations. The owner needs to set
the expectation that her business will be ran ethically and unethical behaviors or actions will not
be tolerated. Trust is a must when you are running a business. You need to trust that your
employees will make the right choice and when they are unsure that they feel that they are able
to approach the owner with their concerns.
In the scenario Steve did the right thing by quickly fixing the problem but he also made a
mistake when he did not report it to Clare or Carlos. If there was an emphasis from the owners
on ethics and integrity, Steve would probably had made a different judgement call. There needed
to be an emphasis on protecting the WHO in the WH framework. Knowing that a bad decision
can put customers, business owners, and even employees at risk, will encourage making the right
decisions from the start. An employee should never be afraid to escalate a problem to a manager.
In fact, it should be encouraged. I believe that business owners, managers, corporate executives
should be first in line when setting the tone for ethical behavior. Expectations need to be stated
and understood. If you set the procedure and follow it faithfully then most employees will
perform ethically.