Business Ethics and Social Responsibility Syllabus - BBA (TU)

Course Objective

The course aims to develop an understanding of the underlying concepts of business ethics and Corporate Governance, which are relevant to make decisions in the contemporary business environment. The course further aims to develop a students’ ability to critically analyze ethical issues and relevancy of social responsibility in business. This course reviews different regulatory processes essential to the understanding of the ethical standards and corporate social responsibility in Nepal.

Course Description

This course contains introduction, ethical issues and dilemmas, ethical theories, application of ethical standards, strategic context of CSR, business ethics and CSR in Nepal.

Course Details

Unit 1: Introduction                                                                                                                                             LH 7

Concept of business ethics, the importance of ethics in business, myths about business ethics, morale reasoning, the morality of profit motive, ethics and philosophy, ethics and morality, benefits of business ethics, code of conducts; meaning and importance of   social responsibility, the evolution of CSR, a morale argument of CSR, increasing relevancy of CSR, social responsibility and ethics, CSR domains.

Unit 2: Ethical Issues and Dilemmas                                                                                                                                             LH 7

The problem of just wage, sexual harassment, gift-giving and bribery, the morality of advertising, office romance, the problem of fair pricing, trade secrets and corporate disclosure, product misinterpretation and Caveat Emptor, the morality of labor strikes, whistle-blowing, unfair competition, money laundering, conflict of interest, insider trading, privacy issues, discrimination and corporate intelligence.

Unit 3: Ethical Theories                                                                                                                                             LH 8

Scholastic philosophy, the Kantian ethics, the Machiavellian principle, utilitarianism of Jeremy Bentham, and John Stuart Mill, the morale positivism of Thomos Hobbes, Divine command ethics, virtue ethics.

Unit 4: Application of Ethical Standards                                                                                                                                           LH 13

Manufacturing- duties of manufacturer, consumer rights, informed consumer, consumer politics, consumer privacy, ethical consumption, classification of unethical behavior, legal versus morale and ethics business ethics; in the market place- Product positioning and competing, pricing and its consequences, packaging and labeling, brand management and imperatives, advertising and communication, exploitative nature of advertising; finance and value- Financial accounting and standards, responsibilities of financial institutions, capital market and its regulator.

Unit 5: Strategic Context of CSR                                                                                                                                             LH 6

Strategic CSR Firms’ environmental context, the five driving forces of CSR- growing affluence, sustainability, globalization, free flow of information, development of corporate conscience and morale principle of CSR.

Unit 6: Business Ethics and CSR in Nepal                                                                                                                                             LH 7

Business ethics of Nepalese firms, ethical standards, Ethical issues and dilemmas in Nepalese business organizations, Business Code of Conduct of FNCCI 2061, Consumer Protection of Nepal-unfair trading practices, Consumer Protection Council's function and duties, protection and promotion of consumer rights, prohibition to influence demand, supply and price, power to systematize and control supply of consumer goods and services, CSR in Nepal- history, Institutional arrangements, FNCCI/ NBI, types of CSR, outcomes of CSR activities; Business ethics approved by FNCCI, NBIs CSR Paper. CSR problems and prospects in Nepal.

Text and Reference books

Roa, F. Fr. Business Ethics and Social Responsibility, Rex Book Store

Schwartz, M. S., Corporate Social Responsibility: An Ethical Approach, Broadnew Press. Chatterji, M., Corporate Social Responsibility, Oxford University Press.

Werther, W.B. Jr. and Chandler, D., Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility, SAGE.

Ferrell, O.C. , Fraedrich, J. Ferrell, L., Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, South- Western CEGAGE Learning.

Fernando, A.C., Business Ethics: An Indian Perspective, Pearson Education India. Publications from FNCCI/ Nepal.

Publications from NBI/ Nepal. Consumer Protection Act 1998.

FNCCI Business Code of Conduct 2061.