Can Ethics be Taught in Business School -- Or Any School for That Matter?
Yesterday's Financial Times contains an article titled Class of '83 author recalls 'likeable' guy that took me back to my B-school days and begins as follows: "Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of The Black Swan, got a shock when he opened the newspaper last weekend and saw a picture of an old classmate from Wharton business school at the University of Pennsylvania. I thought: 'What is this guy doing with the FBI?' Mr Taleb said of Raj Rajaratnam, the Galleon Group hedge fund manager charged last week with alleged insider trading."
According to the column "Another two of the six people charged last week were also in his class of 1983 cohort: Rajiv Goel, who ended up as a managing director at Intel, and Anil Kumar who became a director at McKinsey". Nassim is also quoted saying "Ethics courses as part of business degrees -- now the hot thing -- barely existed in those days. No one cared. But I don't believe that ethics can be taught in class'." I too was a grad student at Wharton at that time, and while I was not acquainted with these fellows, I couldn't agree more with Nassim's conclusion.
There was some debate in the 50's and 60's at the U of P among the professorial elite outside of the then "Wharton School of Finance and Commerce" surrounding the appropriateness of having a "trade school" within the Ivy walls. The gist of the argument was that "business education" was somehow beneath the caliber of the University of Pennsylvania and not consistent with its haughty educational standards and image. Perhaps they were onto something -- and I personally knew many older faculty members, now past on, who would just relish in the negative and embarrassing publicity that a number of Wharton Alums have bestowed upon the school -- but I digress.
It's curious to me that Wharton, along with other business schools, have taken it upon themselves to "teach ethics". The classes I had in accounting, finance, management, marketing, decision (computer) science, legal studies and organizational systems comprised a total immersion in how business functions and provided the foundation required to be successful in the world of business. That's it -- the pre-requisite knowledge to practice business at all levels.
What one does with this knowledge is beyond the purview of the institution teaching it. If Dr. Mengele's alma mater had included medical ethics in his training might he have turned out differently? Hardly. One's personal ethical behavior is the result of their cumulative experience. We all know the difference between right and wrong, legal and illegal. How we choose to act on that knowledge has nothing do with institutional learning -- even sociopaths know the difference between right and wrong, they just don't care about it.
A superior or even good business education arms its students with a powerful arsenal of knowledge that can be put to a variety of endeavors -- including the procurement and supply chain professions. Perhaps someday we'll be able to accurately test for and determine a person's moral character and preclude them from gaining knowledge that they can then take and wreak havoc on the world. Until that time, constant vigilance and continued IT development to monitor business activities and bring those who abuse their knowledge of systems for illegal personal motives to justice is our best, and only, recourse.
- William Busch
TweetBacks
But I've often found a good short cut is to size up their spouse. In business dealings where a lot is on the line, I always like to get to know the family of the person involved, even if it is an extremely brief interaction. Their values will tell you far more than any type of academic or commercial brand will of the individual you're dealing with on the other side of the table.
I once worked for someone who was a former partner of a consulting firm that will go unnamed. He ended up engaged in some rather unethical behavior with some other folks I was working with. However, before this, I was absolutely taken by him as a boss -- his raw intelligence, his analytical skills, his ability to do deals, to sell people on ideas, etc. I'd pull all-nighters and weekends with no complaints because he led by brainpower and example himself.
In short, he was exceptionally talented. However, he married a women who my girlfriend at the time thought was way over the top and had some interesting baggage in the past. That right there should be have been a tip off for everyone. But we all missed it, including a number of other very senior folks with similar top-tier academic and consulting credentials.
So perhaps we should apply the Ayn Rand test to men when it comes to ethics and character, McKinsey consultants and IBM lifers included. But does this work for women as well? I'd wager it does ...
At the end of the day, I agree, you can't teach ethics. But you can see the true character of someone based on who they choose to spend their life with. No IT system, supplier information management application or risk management tool will provide the same intelligence that your gut will when it comes to the individual.
you are who you hang with..and you will.
But first, I agree with the author that ethics or ethical behavior can't be taught, but I would continue and say neither can management, decision-making, or organizational systems(whatever that is). As far as finance goes, in business schools people are taught to take portfolio optimization and the Black-Scholes equation seriously, so that's finance(at least partly if not mostly) showing its utter uselessness.
What's left? Not a lot as far as I can tell.
Sincerely,
George Balanchine
I have a 2nd grade son and who has the biggest influence on him; his classmates and peers. Parents and schools can guide but in the end I agree with Kevin & Jason.
In business school, in high school, in colleges and universities, in churches, at home and at the work place. Look around... it is being taught EVERYWHERE. The question you are really asking is "Can human nature be changed?". The answer, of course, is no. Even with continuous ethics training and ethics awareness, people, due to our human nature, will cross the line from right to wrong. Maybe innocently at first but, it will happen. Bill, whether in business or in your personal life chances are there has been an occasion, that you have not done the right thing. It is tough to admit but, there is not one among us who hasn't. In ethics (and right and wrong), scale doesn't matter. If a undercharge is made or incorrect change is made or you find something not charged for from the grocery store (say a package of gum), if you don't call attention to it as it is known, was the right thing done? Ethics calls to all decision making large and small to always do the right thing. I don't know about you but, it is helpful to me to receive awareness training. I would even say that companies have a responsibility to teach ethics. Human nature will preclude any efforts from stopping corruption but, make the effort to teach is much better than not making the effort. I would hazard to guess that ethics that has been taught has made a difference in some people's lives between chosing right over wrong.
As far as a spouse as a character barometer, while I think you can learn from seeing the interaction between a colleague and their spouse, I don't think it tells all. Ruth and Bernie Madoff may have been a splendid couple, great parents, giving and caring with one another and others, with a high emotional IQ and yet, Bernie being fully human made very poor decisions. Again, I think you see people in a different light when seen with their families (sometimes a greater respect) but, it does not reflect full character.
"Why Be Honest if Honesty Doesn't Pay?" by Bhide and Stevenson
Harvard Business Review, September-October 1990
I see your point. When I was in B-school the ethics of practice was assumed and I can't recall it having been addressed directly -- that was probably an error of omission but I don't believe that its inclusion in the curriculum would have changed the circumstances these alums find themselves in today...we'll never know for certain.
I'll look into the current ethics curriculum and follow-up