Code of conduct
A code of conduct is a set of rules outlining the norms, rules, and responsibilities or proper practices of an individual party or an organisation.
Companies code of conduct
A company code of conduct is a set of rules which is commonly written for employees of a company, which protects the business and informs the employees of the company's expectations. It is appropriate for even the smallest of companies to create a document containing important information on expectations for employees. The document does not need to be complex or have elaborate policies.
Failure of an employee to follow a company's code of conduct can have negative consequences. In Morgan Stanley v. Skowron, 989 F. Supp. 2d 356 (S.D.N.Y. 2013), applying New York's faithless servant doctrine, the court held that a hedge fund's employee engaging in insider trading in violation of his company's code of conduct, which also required him to report his misconduct, must repay his employer the full $31 million his employer paid him as compensation during his period of faithlessness.[1][2][3][4]
In practice
A code of conduct can be an important part in establishing an inclusive culture, but it is not a comprehensive solution on its own. An ethical culture is created by the organization's leaders who manifest their ethics in their attitudes and behavior.[5] Studies of codes of conduct in the private sector show that their effective implementation must be part of a learning process that requires training, consistent enforcement, and continuous measurement/improvement.[6] Simply requiring members to read the code is not enough to ensure that they understand it and will remember its contents.[7] The proof of effectiveness is when employees/members feel comfortable enough to voice concerns and believe that the organization will respond with appropriate action.[8]
Accountants code of conduct
In its 2007 International Good Practice Guidance, "Defining and Developing an Effective Code of Conduct for Organizations", provided the following working definition: "Principles, values, standards, or rules of behaviour that guide the decisions, procedures and systems of an organization in a way that (a) contributes to the welfare of its key stakeholders, and (b) respects the rights of all constituents affected by its operations."
Examples
- Banking Code[9]
- Coca-Cola Code of Conduct[10]
- Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief
- Code of Hammurabi
- Code of the United States Fighting Force
- Declaration of Geneva
- Declaration of Helsinki
- Don't be evil
- Eight Precepts
- Election Commission of India's Model Code of Conduct
- Ethic of reciprocity (Golden Rule)
- Five Pillars of Islam
- Geneva convention
- Hippocratic Oath
- ICC Cricket Code of Conduct
- International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (ICOC or Hague Code of Conduct)
- Israel Defense Forces – Code of Conduct
- Journalist's Creed
- Moral Code of the Builder of Communism
- Patimokkha
- Pirate code of the Brethren
- Psychiatrists' Ethics – Madrid Declaration on Ethical Standards for Psychiatric Practice[11]
- Psychologists' Code of Conduct[12][13]
- Recurse Center "Social Rules"
- Rule of St. Benedict
- Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Code of Conduct 2011[14] (for solicitors in the UK)[14]
- Ten Commandments
- Ten Indian commandments
- Ten Precepts (Taoism)
- Uniform Code of Military Justice
- Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
- Warrior code
References
- Glynn, Timothy P.; Arnow-Richman, Rachel S.; Sullivan, Charles A. (2019). Employment Law: Private Ordering and Its Limitations. Wolters Kluwer Law & Business. ISBN 978-1543801064 – via Google Books.
- Jerin Matthew (December 20, 2013). "'Faithless' Ex-Morgan Stanley Fund Manager Ordered to Repay $31m to Former Employer". International Business Times UK.
- Henning, Peter J. (December 23, 2013). "The Huge Costs of Being a 'Faithless Servant'". New York Times DealBook.
- "Morgan Stanley seeks $10.2 million from convicted former trader". GreenwichTime. January 15, 2013.
- McMillan, Michael (2012-02-20). "Codes of Ethics: If You Adopt One, Will They Behave?". Enterprising Investor: Practical analysis for investment professionals. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
- Doig, Alan; Wilson, John (1998). "Business Ethics: A European Review Volume 7, Issue 3, July 1998". Business Ethics: A European Review. 7 (3): 140–149. doi:10.1111/1467-8608.00100.
- ACC. "Top Ten Tips for Developing an Effective Code of Conduct". Association of Corporate Counsel. Archived from the original on 7 September 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
- Barman, Tanya; White, Samantha (June 2014). "Implementing an effective corporate ethics policy". Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) Magazine. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
- Bank codes of conduct https://theconversation.com/bank-codes-of-conduct-add-bars-to-the-window-dressing-and-make-them-legally-binding-105391
- "Coca-Cola Code of Conduct" (PDF). Coca-Cola Company. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-10-19. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
- "Madrid Declaration on Ethical Standards for Psychiatric Practice". World Psychiatric Association. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-02-28.
- Bquadrats – Josi Swerts. "EFPA Ethics – Board of Ethics". efpa.eu.
- "Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct". apa.org.
- "SRA Code of Conduct 2011". SRA Handbook. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
External links
Media related to Codes of conduct at Wikimedia Commons Quotations related to Codes of conduct at Wikiquote