Business Ethics Essay Sample: Nissan Cars Case, Insider Trading and Other Ethical Dilemmas

QUESTION 1 - Nissan Cars and the Case of the Missing Mexican Safety Features

Given the fact that these two cars are produced with the same labor costs and in the same building, discuss what ethical arguments require Nissan (and the other car manufacturers identified above) to do more to install safety features on the cars sold in middle and low-income countries.

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The case provided shows a significant disparity in the quality of vehicle manufacturing. The most disturbing factor is the fact that the vehicles are produced by the same company in the same environment. However, when it comes to looking at the market factor, the company, and more so Nissan, creates the differences that raise a lot of concerns on the quality of the vehicles and the credibility of the manufacturers. The differences in the quality of the vehicles produced for the Mexican market differ significantly from the USA market vehicles. The same applies to low income countries where low quality vehicles on account of security are produced by the manufacturers. This raises a question of security. according to Kantian, it is more prudent to evade risks than to employ prudential reasoning(Scharding, 2015 p. 244). This argument therefore suggests that car manufacturers should learn to avoid risks instead of resolving them when they happen.

Nissan and other car manufacturers have a lot to do on account of upholding ethics. It is highly wrong for producer to make the same brand of a commodity but install different security measures, having used the same labor cost for the items. This raises a question of morality in the production. The manufacturers should adhere to the laws that govern security requirements of vehicle production and standardize their production (Saylor, p. 145). How can the companies claim to be morally upright when they create a disparity in the quality of their products? Therefore, they need to take morality into account and consider the fact that irrespective of the income capacity of a country, both high income and low-income countries have citizens whose lives are equally important. An American life is not more valuable than a Mexican life.

Discuss the specific actions a car manufacturer would take to address the issue.

Nissan and other car manufacturing companies would take several actions to resolve the issues that raise questions concerning the quality of the vehicles they produce for different markets. It is an issue that raises dilemma for the manufacturers in making the decision of what course of action to take. But since it also brings the question of human life ant its safety, they need to address the issue with immediate effect.

To start with, the manufacturing companies should know that safety is paramount in all aspects of production and consumption. Therefore, fitting of airbags and other safety measures such as shatter-proof windshields should be a priority in car manufacturing. Secondly, they should not consider the aspect of different prices for different market prices. They should standardize their prices in all markets so as to avoid the issue of making substandard vehicles for some markets, an issue which brings about favoritism.

QUESTION 2 - Europe's Right to be Forgotten

Discuss the ethical dilemma presented by the Internet's ability to make information readily available forever.

The internet is an important tool in today's life and civilization. However, it raises an ethical dilemma since information uploaded on the internet remains there forever. A common phrase used with this regard states that "internet never forgets." When this issue is evaluated against ethics, it raises a lot of concern. This is because many aspects of life are dynamic and not static. Therefore, the consequences of information in the internet could be fatal in the future, since the data may never be updated to conform with current situations.(Saylor, p. 93)

Secondly, there is the issue of integrity and authenticity. Someone may update falsified information on the internet and that data remains there forever. This means that the people who will access the information will be misguided by the false data and have poor perception of the subject at hand. On the issue of authenticity, data in the internet is not always authentic. It may lack originality as many people use pseudo accounts to update data on the internet.

Discuss the ethical arguments that can be made for businesses in the US to adopt the European processes.

American businesses can borrow the form the European processes on account of ethical considerations. The arguments that can be used in this case are on accountability, reliability and integrity in businesses (Saylor, p. 382). Ethically, a business is supposed to uphold accountability. For instance, some vehicle users may deem the Nissan manufacturers in Mexico unaccountable and therefore unreliable. They therefor may opt to stop buying Nissan vehicles. The same applies to data in the internet. Upon changes in the business structures and operations, American businesses should request for the update of their information in the internet or removal of data that is not true. In this case, customers for theses businesses will always remain royal as they get reliable information in the internet, thus considering the companies to be reliable and easy to trust.

QUESTION 3 - Insider Trading

Discuss the nature of the harm caused by insider trading.

Insider trading is the practice of appropriating the returns of corporate investments at the expense of other shareholders. This practice has far much devastating effects on organizations and individuals. First, insider trading has tarnished the reputation of major financial institutions in many countries (Saylor, p. 24). It is a practice that makes customers and investors to lose trust on the affected institutions.Secondly, insider trading robs investors who do not have a platform of receiving information about the value of their securities. Lastly, a significant harm also happen on the market where small shareholders undergo great loses.

Outline an actual case of insider trading (state the facts, issue, dilemma, and court's decision) and explain how the case demonstrates the harm caused by insider trading

One case of insider trading is the Wall Street case involving Steven Cohen's firm, SAC Capital Advisors. Many SAC traders pleaded guilty of criminal conduct. The government therefore forced the organization to terminate its practice of managing financed for outside investors. investigations in the subsequent years did not link the billionaire owner of SAC with the scandal, but the fact remained that other traders in the organization were found guilty of misconduct. This case alone proves the magnitude that insider trading can have. It is obvious that investors averted their investments from SAC and lost trust with the organization. Again, it is a big blow for a business to be forced to stop some of their practices.

References

Saylor. The Business Ethics Workshop.pdf

Scharding, T. K. (2015). Imprudence and immorality: A Kantian approach to the ethics of financial risk. Business Ethics Quarterly, 25(2), 243-265. Retrieved from https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/business-ethics-quarterly/article/imprudence-and-immorality-a-kantian-approach-to-the-ethics-of-financial-risk/E7778B888F505B1FFD219DD799ED49AE