Professionalism and Ethics Reflection-Free-Samples for Students

Question: Discuss about the Importance of code of ethical conduct, ethical standards and professionalism. Answer: Introduction In the modern time, corporations and business entities are obligated to tackle and mitigate fraud or any sort of corruption and professional misconduct exhibited by any of the stakeholders of such business enterprises. Most of the global companies and corporations are seeking the assistance of the various law enforcement agencies to ensure that the operations of such companies and corporations are carried on in an ethical manner and that none of the stakeholders of such business entities do exhibit any professional misconduct (Crane Matten, 2016). This report will aim to shed light on the codes of ethical conduct and different standards of ethical behavior in context of professionalism. In this report criminal behavior which is in contrary o the ethical codes and standards will also be discussed. As perceived by the modern society and in context of the business organizations, ethics can be described as the set of norms of good conduct that are said to be existing in the organization . Discussion Importance of code of ethical conduct, ethical standards and professionalism The management of every organization has the obligation and the responsibility to assess the risks that are inherently harmful to the internal environment of the business organization. Such assessment of internal risk by the management is crucial for the detection of ethical misconduct and fraud (Trevino Nelson, 2016). Professionalism and codes of ethical conduct are instrumental in creating a favorable impact on detection of fraud and professional misconduct. For the purpose of governing behavior of the employees every business organization has developed their own ethical codes of conduct which can be both institutional and symbolic. The codes of ethics are as adopted by business enterprises generally exist in written form so that such of code of ethics can provide appropriate guidelines of behavioral patterns of employees (Main, 2015). It can be mentioned on the basis of findings of psychological researches that ethical standards and codes are developed primarily for those who hav e a tendency to violate the same, if such codes and standards are not explicitly written down. People who are morally upright generally tend to act in compliance with the ethical codes even if the same are not clearly specified. Thus in my belief ethical codes and standards impact the behavior and actions of individuals in an organization. However, their behavior depends on various other circumstances. Reflection of self assessment of ethical code of conduct The code of conduct as provided in Accounting 350 aims to govern how individuals are to perform their duties while upholding the moral and ethical conduct (Jefrey, 2018). Thus, in accordance with the code, I shall maintain honesty, integrity and professionalism while performing the duties that are assigned to me. I shall aim to uphold the standards of Academic University of the Vancouver Island University. I shall aim to maintain professionalism. I pledge to respect the accomplishment, opinions and viewpoints of others. In regards to the ACCT 350 code of professional code of conduct, I pledge to respect the personal and cultural differences and in the process enrich the society and my personality. I also pledge that I will strive for continuous improvement in my professional and academic performance. Reflecting on the personal code of conduct It can be said that the personal code of conduct that I rely upon while conducting business upholds the ethical principles of honesty and Integrity. According to me individuals have the responsibility to act with honesty as they cannot be supervised or monitored all the time. Engaging in dishonest, unethical and illegal activities adversely affects the reputation of an individual. I also rely on the ethical principles of due care and professional competence. The other ethical standard that I aim to uphold is that of confidentiality, which states the importance to keep certain issues and records confidential. The other codes of Ethics and codes of professional conduct that might be relied upon in the future are CPABC CODE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT, the professional and ethical standards for British Columbia Lawyers and the Code of Professional Conduct for British Columbia (lawsociety.bc.ca, 2018). The code of conduct of CPA provides the philosophy underlying in the principles which govern the responsibilities of the Chartered Professional Accountants to those who hire their services, to the public in general and to their colleagues. The code of professional conduct for British Columbia aims to define and illustrate the responsibilities of the lawyers, arising out of professional relationships with clients, other members of the profession and the justice system. Reflection of an ethical challenge as identified in the case of Martin Wirick in the Wirick-Gill mortgage fraud In this given case study, it has been provided that Wrick had felt the desire to help an old and long standing client and in the process faced an ethical dilemma. Gill had promised to Wrick, his lawyer that Gill would pay the 20,000 dollars shortfall in the next property sale and asked Wrick to delay the payout of the mortgage (cbc.ca, 2018). This came to Wrick as an opportunity to solve the ethical dilemma. It can be stated that other lawyers would have rejected this suggestion of Gill. They would not have trusted the client by putting their own ethical principles in detriment. This action of Wrick can be analyzed by the application of the Fraud triangle theory (Roden, Cox Kim, 2016). Wrick experienced a conflict of interest in this scenario he felt obligated to help his client and trust him to pay the shortfall however he also had a duty to uphold his ethical duty as a lawyer. The only way to resolve the Dilemma that had been faced by him was justifying his unethical action of tru sting his client to pay the shortfall amount. However this act of rationalizing his decision had resulted in a fraud of 30 million dollar mortgaged. The other theory that can be applied for assessing the ethical dispute ad for resolving the same is the theory of rational choice. According to the rational choice theory it can be stated that individuals act to maximize their benefits in every situation and thus base their decisions on rational calculations (Newman Clarke, 2016). In this case Wrick took the decision of trusting Gill as it was in his best interest. Conclusion Thus in conclusion it can be said that I have gained insights about how to act with honesty and integrity by undertaking the course at ACCT 350. I have also learned about the professional values and the code of ethics which are essential to be upheld in every situation and which will be instrumental in solving any ethical dilemma Reference List: Act Rules and Code | The Law Society of British Columbia. (2018).Lawsociety.bc.ca. Retrieved 9 April 2018, from https://www.lawsociety.bc.ca/support-and-resources-for-lawyers/act-rules-and-code/ Alleged $40M fraudster Tarsem Singh Gill goes back on guilty plea | CBC News. (2018).CBC. Retrieved 9 April 2018, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/alleged-40m-fraudster-tarsem-singh-gill-goes-back-on-guilty-plea-1.2490992 CPABC CODE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT Crane, A., Matten, D. (2016).Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press. Jefrey, C. (Ed.). (2018).Research on professional responsibility and ethics in accounting. Emerald Publishing Limited. Main, D. C. J. (2015). Do codes of conduct matter?. Newman, G., Clarke, R. V. (2016).Rational choice and situational crime prevention: Theoretical foundations. Routledge. Roden, D. M., Cox, S. R., Kim, J. Y. (2016). The fraud triangle as a predictor of corporate fraud.Academy of Accounting and Financial Studies Journal,20(1), 80. Trevino, L. K., Nelson, K. A. (2016).Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right. John Wiley Sons.