Managing Conflict of Interest - Organisation for Economic Co ...

Living business ethics: Good governanceequals good businessCliff ReesSenior Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopersAlmost all the respondents said they are willing to pay more forshares of companies with “good” governance, and in the case ofIndonesia, they said, a 27% premium on the average is appropriatefor such a company.–Robert Felton, McKinsey & Co.There is significant evidence from a large and growing body ofacademic research that there is at minimum a neutral, and quitelikely a positive, relationship between responsible corporate practicesand financial performance.–Sandra Waddock, Boston CollegeDefining Ethics: In Theory and In PracticeDefining ethics can be difficult, as ethics means different thingsto different people and may mean different things depending onthe cultural and or organizational context. What is ethics? Ethicsinvolves the principles or standards governing the conduct of communities,groups, organizations, and individuals. Ethics entails morethan morality, which is primarily concerned with general outcomesof good and bad, or right and wrong.Ethics also involves self-restraint: not doing what you have thepower to do. In other words, an act is not proper simply because itis permissible or you can get away with it. Ethics may involve as wellnot doing what you have the right to do—there is a big differencebetween what you have the right to do and what is right to do—andnot doing what you want to do. An ethical person often chooses todo more than the law requires and less than the law allows.Unethical Behavior and Associated RisksIn a corporate setting, unethical behavior may involve a range ofmisconduct or deceptive behavior extending externally to breachesADB/OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia and the Pacific