Can good ethics and profitability coexist in business today? Will a business owner do the right thing when no one is watching if it might reduce their profit margins?
Unfortunately, higher profit margins drive many business decisions today. Here are a few examples.
When employees are hurt at work, doctors who are paid by the employer are pressured to keep costs down and return the employee to work. The doctor is usually not instructed to provide the best medical care for the employee.
A few years ago, gas prices rose sharply to nearly $4 a gallon. Virtually every business instantly raised their prices as a result. Yet when gas prices recently dropped to nearly $2 a gallon, did any of them lower their prices, or did they just keep the increased profits?
Ethical business decisions and profitability often conflict with one another. This is not always the case, however. Sometimes it pays to be ethical.
Bertha and the Babes Estates Sales are a locally owned Tucson business. I have heard many stories about their employees finding cash, sometimes large sums, as they prepare to sell personal property for the estate. In one case, they immediately delivered cash to the estate planning attorney to secure it in their safe. Recently, Bertha and the Babes received a call from a customer who had bought a dresser. The honest customer found a hidden compartment filled with cash. Bertha and the Babes promptly returned the money to their happily surprised client.
I have told these ethical stories to hundreds of professionals, including estate planning attorneys, private fiduciaries, trust companies, senior placement agents and assisted-living communities. Many of them now refer their estate sale business to Bertha and the Babes. In this case, ethical business practices have proven to be very profitable.
Have you ever been faced with making an ethical decision that might reduce profits? Is there a way to do the right thing, and make it profitable, too?
