W.D. ROSS PRIMA FACIE DUTIES: IMPLICATIONS FOR BUSINESS ETHICS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

In Business Ethics today, there are robust debates whether profit in business is considered an “ethical yardstick” for successful business. Incidentally, the nature of carrying out business activities in organization tends towards judging a successful business on huge profit amassed, to the exclusion of ethical conducts. Thus, it is observed that the concentration on only profit to the exclusion of ethics has been the cause of much business misconduct”. What follows from such business misconduct arising from the exclusive consequentialist nature of business pattern in some organizations are absence of an indigenous company with a long life span, poor public image of some companies, the fear to partner and invest in foreign companies, workers disengagement which could arise from conflict with some workers' moral values and unethical practices in the workplace, lack of consumer loyalty, possible undesirable 'ripple effect' that could follow from business misconduct - such as stealing by employees who lack ethical values - numerous incidents of corruption, misappropriation of funds, and a predictable crumbling of a business organisation involved in misconduct.