Như Stephen Goldman cho thấy trong cuốn sách này, các công ty có thể di chuyển đúng hướng bằng cách kết hợp tư duy rõ ràng về đúng và sai và hiểu biết về các yêu cầu pháp luật áp đặt trên tiến hành. Và hướng dẫn đơn giản cho hành vi của mình sẽ đứng các công ty và cá nhân thay vì tốt khi cám dỗ phát sinh | How to Think About Ethical Choices 31 that. Of course as a lawyer I also knew where we ran legal risks and where we did not but beyond that basic standard I thought about what kind of person I wanted to be. I have to look at myself in the mirror every morning when I shave. I don t want to be unhappy with the man I see. This is an ancient idea that a key component of making ethical choices is the effect they have on the character of the chooser. To be precise it is ten times older than Adam Smith and the Declaration of Independence It goes back 2 500 years to the Greeks and particularly to Aristotle 384-322 . arguably the most complete genius who ever lived. But first a quiz. Does your company say it puts people first Are you snickering Let s face it your company exists to make money. So does my law firm and my corporation before that. To give Andrew his due none of us works for the Sisters of Mercy at least not if we toil for profit. That s fair but despite this sensible reality it s a remarkable and altogether encouraging phenomenon that large numbers of the best people working in America s companies the people whom businesses most desire to attract and keep want more than just money from their jobs. But the sheer corniness of some corporate-speak about values can still be embarrassing even for those of us who share them. We put people first Integrity is the cornerstone of the way we do business Yeah right. Window-dressing. The product of some PR consultant s billable-hour mind. These phrases are public relations fluff without content and no one is deceived. As vapid platitudes they re so general and obligation-free that they re no help at all in solving the problems that real businesspeople confront. If you re among the best managers and business executives or if you aspire to be you won t be satisfied by such glittering generalities. You and I spend long hours in a business environment and who we are at work affects who we are as people. Aristotle made this .
