The purpose of this study, which took place in Western Australia,was to identify situations where management practitioners and academics worked closely together to bridge the `theory-practice gap'in the field of business ethics. Four organizations, two in the accounting field, one a corporate secretaries institute and the Western Australia Police Service were asked if they would participatein a study to examine the extent to which their members made use ofethical theory in their day-to-day activities. A concomitant questionwas whether such theory had (...) an impact on the way organizations carriedout their functions. Each organization was actively involved in teaching ethical theory to their members at an advanced level. The four organizations offered a range of teaching/learning strategies i.e. guest lectures, seminar and discussion groups, training videos and workbooks. The courses that were developed by these organisationswere equal to, and in some cases superior to, ethics courses offered in some business schools. This paper illustrates that by these innovative approaches the four organisations were taking a lead in re-defining ethical practice and teaching ethical theory in their respective organisations. The study illustrates that the programs were effective to the extent that they were instrumental in changingthe behavior and the culture of their members. (shrink)

The purpose of this paper is to highlightthe complexities in making decisions in an ethical wayevidenced by the current dispute over native landrights in contemporary Australia. The caseillustrates an example of a moral issue that involvesmaking a management choice. One approach which givespractice in four questions that the managementpractitioner can ask when faced with a moral dilemmais described. The case involves an on-going situationin which the Australian Government was faced withsupporting the land claims of either indigenousgroups or land holding pastoralists. (...) TheGovernment, therefore, was on the horns of a classicdilemma, having to decide between two groups eachseeking `justice' and `fairness'.The paper refers to contemporary authorities such asRawls, De George, Paine and Badaracco (Jnr). In thecontext of ethical decision making, the main eventsleading to the present dilemma are presented. Thecase study includes a summary outlining the AustralianGovernment's Ten Point Plan response to thedilemma and a summary of the perceived problems forbusiness development where native title is recognised. These can be used to provide students in businessethics classes with an opportunity to recognise anddebate the rights, wrongs and complexities of moralissues as well as appropriate managerial decisionmaking. (shrink)