Ethical Failure and its Consequences in Organizational Environment

Abstract

Ethical failure has become the most severe problem in government, business, charity, & even religious institutions of these days as never before. It occurs when individuals or organizations fail to comply with the societal codes of conduct. Any deviations made from the valid norms of the society have a negative effect on both the internal and external organizational environment. The chosen direction of emphasis and the employed comprehensive approach to the problem from causes to consequences has placed a high value on this study. The main objective of this study is to investigate and uncover all possibly identifiable consequences of ethical failures, particularly on the areas of organizational resource misuse with its causes and resultant consequences of the failure. The data used in this study are of two kinds, primary and secondary. The primary data are taken from systematically selected four case study organizations that are found in Awassa, while the secondary data are taken from the available sources of literature or scholarly writings. Both the secondary and primary data are analyzed to produce the findings of this study. The similarities and dissimilarities of this study from its predecessors on relevant topics have been identified including the addition of new knowledge as a result of this study. The facts discovered through this study clearly show that the existence of a positive relationship between high ethical quality and an organizational over all performance. Lower ethical considerations have adverse effects not only on financial performance but also it affects human relations and legitimate power use. Thus, it hinders an organization from achieving both its financial and non financial obligations. Lastly, recommendation is made for the identified problem and for any further study to be made on this line in the future.