BE_PH_EAM Ethical Aspects of Management

NEWTON University
summer 2026
Extent and Intensity
2/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Liga Buša Lehtonena, BSc., MBA (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Ing. Zdeněk Mikulka, Ph.D., B.Th., MSc.
Centre for International Programmes – International programmes – NEWTON University
Timetable
Wed 11:20–12:50 PH Učebna 09, except Wed 15. 4. ; and Wed 13. 5. 11:20–12:50 PH Učebna 09
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is offered to students of any study field.
Course objectives

The course Ethical Aspects of Business, Management and Marketing introduces both the history of ethical views on society and economy (social ethics) and their applied form in the concepts of "business ethics" in current managerial approaches. The course is set in a broader ethical context. Following the introduction to the development of ethical standards, emphasis is placed on applied ethics, especially in the environment of business, entrepreneurship, management, marketing and public administration. Graduates are also introduced to the basics of normative social ethics in business and public administration.

Course objectives:

  • to become familiar with the development of ethics as an applied science that deals with the functioning of public and private institutions in the broader context of the impact of their activities;

  • to become familiar with the most important trends in the field of ethical management and leadership at present;

  • to gain an overview of the context of the implementation of ethical tools in corporate management;

  • to gain a knowledge of international and domestic institutions supporting ethics in management;

  • to understand the national and global certification standards in the field of social responsibility of institutions.

Syllabus

Main topics of the course (topics of individual lectures):

  1. Applied ethics - definition of general and applied ethics, ethical dilemmas, moral competence, Kohlberger's stages of development, Hofstede's cultural dimensions, integrity management.

  2. Applied ethics research methodology – normative and descriptive ethics, basic topics and terminology of business ethics, corporate ethics, organizations monitoring ethics in institutions (Society for Business Ethics, Transparency International, Institute of Business Ethics, EBEN, Ethisphere, Global Ethics Observatory...etc.) .

  3. Ethical management (leadership) - corporate culture and ethics, corporate social responsibility (CSR), Corporate Governance, theory of participating groups (stakeholders).

  4. Internal ethical tools - written institutionalization of ethical standards into the corporate management system, compliance program, ethical code - advantages and risks, practical procedures for implementing the ethical code towards the corporate environment, types and forms of ethical codes, ethical credo, ethical ombudsman, ethical employee training, personnel policy and personality integrity testing.

  5. External ethical tools - certification and international standards (ISO 26000, SA 8000, AA 1000, ČSN 010391, Global Reporting Initiative, UN Global Compact, EMAS, OECD Guidelines...etc.).

  6. Managerial ethics - behavioral management (D. McGregor, A. Maslow, C. Rogers), the role of ethics in the manager and in management (PDCA, H. Mintzberg), the Hawthorne effect, Total Quality Management (E. Demming, theory Z).

  7. Ethics of human resources management – ​​ethical management of human resources, ethical dilemmas of the project manager, integrity management, diversity management, conflict management, intercultural management, setting of ethical standards for project management certification bodies (IPMA, PMI, PRINCE2).

  8. Public goods - ethical contexts of management and protection of public goods (in relation to mixed and private), the relationship of public goods to private ownership, the issue of lobbying, public services, evaluation of the quality of public space (Social Progress Index, NUMBEO, fDi Intelligence, Mercer, Monocle, Metropolis ).

  9. Ethics in marketing - examples of awards for the ethical behavior of an institution used as a marketing tool (CSR quality), examples of awarded ethics (BIO, FairTrade, KLASA, regional products), Ethical Forum, Business Leader Forum, Top responsible company, case studies of unethical management (viral marketing, astroturfing, ambush marketing, neuromarketing and subliminal advertising).

  10. Case study of institutional ethics - private sector - sports ethics (doping, betting, ethical models), medical and pharmaceutical ethics (testing, vaccination), ethics and scientific development (research issues...), ethics of the financial sector (control mechanisms, banking), environmental ethics , ethics of food industry, ethics of scientific research, ethics of intellectual property and the issue of plagiarism.

  11. Case study of institutional ethics - public sector - ethics of public administration (lobbying, conflict of interests, ethical codes), sustainable economy, questions of public service substitution, public policies.

  12. Social ethics - modern concepts of utilitarianism, pragmatism, ethics of action, golden rule, moral hazard, bioethics, ethics in a multicultural environment.

Part of the teaching is the students' own research in the form of a case study, where they examine the use of ethical tools and approaches and the level of corporate culture in a specific selected institution. The graduate of the course thus applies the acquired knowledge directly in his own research, which he then presents both orally and in writing.

Assessment methods
Examination: defence of a case study, written final test, oral examination in the case of remedial dates. Online learning students take the exam via suitable remote electronic communication systems.
Language of instruction
English
The course is also listed under the following terms summer 2024, summer 2025.
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