Business Laws & Ethics

In an earlier life, I taught business ethics. (Most of my undergraduate college credits are in philosophy.) So here’s a very concise overview of the major “school”s of ethics that are often taught in business ethics programs. Immanuel Kant’s Categorical Imperative (1700s) Kant asserted that a belief is an ethical principle if, and only if, …

Issue around management of relationship with Government Minister when on a Government sector board.

Women on boards has been one of the most contentious topics of the last few years. In the UK, we had the Davies Report in February 2011 which set out a series of recommendations with the aim of increasing female representation to 25% on the boards of FTSE 100 companies by 2015. Although this was …

Rina has asked for your advice. She is a long standing director of a holding company for a large group of companies. The holding company Chairman, Quentin, has been a friend and mentor to her over many years. Recently the holding company bought a stake in a small listed company and Rina was appointed to …

Peter has asked for your advice. He is a director of a not-for-profit company in the arts sector. A few months ago his organization’s funding was increased by 40%. The board and management were ecstatic. Shortly after the funding was announced the Chairman informed the board that he had authorised a staff member to change …

(Guest post from Hank Lewis.) An email said: My organization is 2nd in my life only to my family. I also feel responsible for the integrity of the organization and for protecting it from changes that would endanger that integrity. This organization works to create programs that bridge educational gaps between and about indigenous cultures. …

Olba has asked for your advice. She has been appointed to a government sector board to represent her local peoples in decision-making and resource allocation. The organisation has been constituted with legislation that mirrors many provisions of the corporations act. Directors are not paid but Olba is happy to gain experience and serve the community. The Minister appoints the board members and also a ‘facilitator’ to chair the board meetings. Olba resents the facilitator and knows that her colleagues on the board share her feelings. The government use this facilitator for a number of board and committee functions; she is well credentialed, politically well-connected, and somehow a ‘power behind the throne’ with several local organisations. The facilitator is paid a sitting fee and does not appear to carry the duties that are imposed upon directors under the legislation. She is also often late for the meetings, arrives without having read the papers beforehand, and, on one memorable occasion, got some way through the agenda before realising which board she was chairing. This appeared to be a major conflict of interest as it became obvious she was currently also chairing a board that competes with Olba’s board for funds. Olba has done some governance training and a lot of reading on the topic. She aspires to be a prominent and useful board member and a good ambassador for her people. The facilitator could cause an embarrassment that would thwart Olba’s aspirations. She is also, in Olba’s opinion, not performing well enough and possibly harming the organisation. What should Olba do?