As we end 2012 and look to 2013, we see a year that has had many developments. Some challenge our concepts of proper behavior. The immediate example is the fiscal cliff. As business people, we know that one of the core principles for success is diligence. Diligence means staying on top of the business and anticipating what needs to be [...]

Economic and Social Structure Debrief By Philip J. Clements November 5, 2012 A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of joining the CEO Forum in its fall conference. At the conference there were a number of speakers including Bob Doll, formerly Black Rock’s Chief Equity Strategist, Arthur Brooks, President American Enterprise Institute, and Tim Keller, Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian [...]

The Center focuses on business ethics.  But in this period of political rhetoric, we find that businesses should have a bit of focus on what is happening in our communities. So, as we end the summer quarter, three movies are worth a quick review: “Batman – The Dark Knight Rises,” “2016 Obama’s America,” and “We Won’t Back Down,” Interestingly, these [...]

By Philip Clements, September 14, 2012 “What are the real issues in this election?” The conventions are over and the sprint to November 6, 2012 vote is at hand.  Future events will be campaigning speeches, handshakes, hugs and debates.  Lots of ads will promote each side, creating a bit of increased economic activity. The current election contains a lot of [...]

Recently the Center received an inquiry from one of our subscribers asking about a recent Businessweek article: God and Gay Marriage: What Chick-fil-A Could Learn From Marriott. The following is our subscribers question (followed by the actual article) and, before we chime in, we would love to hear your thoughts! “Dear CFCBET, I’m intrigued as to your thoughts to the below [...]

Unprofitable Drugs… The Star Ledger Sunday Business Section recently printed a front page article called, “Shortage puts lives in Jeopardy: Cancer drugs’ scarcity a persistent problem” by Susan Todd. Todd highlights that in New Jersey there is a notable shortage of some cancer treatment drugs. These shortages began to show up about four years ago. The cause seems to be manufacturing problem, [...]

From Sunday’s Star Ledger April 29, 2012, on front page of “Perspective” section 2, there are two articles that show the lack of reasoning and understanding of the problem in developing an answer to the ethical issues in business.  In the first article, the lead on the page is, “Big Business Behaving Badly: Have America’s Commercial Giants Lost their Ethical Compass?” [...]

This blog is based upon an editorial written in the March 20, edition of USA Today. The editorial is entitled “States Battle Voting Fraud with Epidemic of New Limits” and it’s opposing view: “In Texas, Evidence of Voter Fraud Abounds“ Two articles debate election laws and question whether we should allow a state to put ID requirements in place at [...]

Over the weekend the Star Ledger reported that the new Jersey legislature is looking to pass a law making it easier for banks to foreclose. It seems that while the $25 billion settlement suggests over reaching by banks, in NJ foreclosures are so slow that it will take 49 years to clear out the current backlog. Click Here to read [...]

Big news! Largest banks in the US have agreed to a $25billion settlement of mortgage related concerns. The WSJ article, found HERE, raises some basic ethical questions, on which we would ask your comments. 1. Ethics is about what should be done, not what can be done.  The article suggests that the U.S. government extracted the settlement because they could, not [...]

“An update on the Sacramento Kings story…” Tweet Part 3 of 3… We are pleased to post this update on the Sacramento Kings story.  WSJ reported yesterday that the Kings are staying in Sacramento!  The mayor announce he had cut a deal with the owners for the Kings to stay, with Sacramento building a new $400 million facility.  The owners [...]

“The Sacramentos feel attacked as the Kings consider relocating…” Tweet Part 2 of 3… The Sacramentos feel attacked as the Kings consider relocating. Last week, we gave a brief history of the team and its owners. This week we explore the issues surrounding the City of Sacramento as it faces this challenge. Relevant WSJ article can be found HERE. We [...]

“The Sacramento Kings are up for grabs. Let’s look at the owner’s issues, the Sacramento issues and the new city’s issues….” Tweet Part 1 of 3… The Sacramento Kings are up for grabs. Let’s look at the owner’s issues, the Sacramento issues and the new city’s issues. We need to remember that ethics is not about what is legal, but [...]

“this article affirms the key role Christianity plays in commerce as we know it today…..” I thought you would be interested in the following Wall Street Journal Article by Aryeh Spero: What the Bible Teaches about Capitalism Without addressing the salvation aspect of faith, this article affirms the key role Christianity plays in commerce as we know it today. The [...]

Our thanks to Dr. Andrew Peterson, president of RTS Virtual, for bringing an excellent posting from David A. Skeel.  Skeel is a S. Samuel Arsht Professor of Corporate Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. See Was it Immoral for American Airlines to File for Bankruptcy? The Center would add for your discussion the following questions: 1. The historical [...]

In follow up to the recent Infiniti car ads, you may also consider the following: There were two ads done by the same agency for the Infiniti winter event.  Our LAST BLOG touched on the ad labeled “Competitive.”  The other ad is labeled “Inspired.” Both video’s with a bit of background can be found HERE. From a business ethics perspective [...]

Clearwire update! Wall Street Journal reported today that Clearwire Corp. made the interest payments noted in the first article on time! (To view the original blog post click HERE) While the latest report credits the payment to an agreement with Sprint Nextel Corp., we should not miss the fact that management made it happen and fulfilled the terms of the [...]