In the comment box below, please share your feelings about the MBA Oath and why it is meaningful to you. We want to provide an outlet for signers of the oath to express their convictions about ethics in business, making management a profession, and the duties of MBAs to society. Please note that this is a public forum.
90 Comments
It was time already we MBA’s came out with our code of ethics. Definitively, putting economic and managerial sciences and arts for helping helping the better good would be the first step for our kind. In the same way organizations must commit to continuous process improvement, we as MBA must commit to continuous improvement of our surroundings which at the end would generate value for our global society.
By doing so, we would be building loyalty in our MBA brand as value-generators. Lets make this unique selling proposal a day-to-day reality.
Godspeed MBA’s.
Truly,
Ricardo Martinez-Rivera, MBA
This oath formalizes at the educational level what is already in practise at the corporate level in my organization. Our creed and mission statement are a vital part of who we are as a business. Integrity and ethical behavior are upheld to the highest standards. Having taken an oath keeps one from faltering at times when temptation arises. I feel bound to my peers and totally accountable for my actions.
I was raised in a family business that showed me you can succeed at business while being a caring, compassionate, moral and ethical business person. Now, working in the public corporate world, I believe that all companies should be responsible in that way. This oath therefore means a lot to me as it holds all its signers accountable to that standard.
I think that many MBAs believe in values expressed by The Oath. As soon as the fear is lost that “others” might not behave following such values, we can develop this society further. The Oath is an impressive means to see that many others share that views.
Instant Karma. That is what we all need. Obviously. Whether you are a lawyer, a politician, businessperson or just a citizen. Unfortunately, way too many people in positions of power have shown themselves to be way too irresponsible & deluded to manage the responsibilities of being human. The MBA Oath is a good first step, Instant Karma will help actualize the creation of a conscious global community and more constructively align the pursuits and activities of all those who find themselves walking the Earth.
Alas, a place to proclaim that my foremost principle is about value creation, and that profitability is just another measure!
The MBA Oath is an important step towards lending stronger credibility towards overcoming a troubled, MBA brand image (i.e. profiteers, blood suckers, know it alls, etc … )
Hopefully, the Oath will make a big difference in restoring the public’s faith in MBAs, as well as spreading awareness that good business is about value creation!
“Have you taken the MBA Oath?” sounds like a great slogan for my next set of business cards!
1. Those who sign this pledge will likely have the opportunity to help others find jobs.
2. One place with a need for the MBA Oath is hospitals. Hospitals are corporate. Congress is corporate. The Court is corporate. See the 5 cases in which hospital administrators have attacked whistle-blowing doctors (www.SemmelweisSociety.net).
3. The only way to settle these matters is with due process. A law, the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986, omits due process, so at the moment a college student facing the choice of MBA, JD, and MD should choose between the first two in our country. Other countries appear not to have this problem.
H.E. Butler III M.D., FACS
HButler@post.Harvard.edu
I’ve been startled too many times in business where executives preach one thing yet do another. Through my naivete I suffered, my firm suffered and perhaps people beyond my firm suffered. An MBA education is a great endeavor…it certainly was for me. Nearly 30 years later I can still recognize how it prepared me for leading a company and advising my clients. My education didn’t include ethics. My grandparents provided that instruction. I’m pleased to know that all good programs today have a healthy dose of ethics. We have seen so much bad behavior and greed at work in the banking sector in the last year or so. Perhaps, the MBA Oath can contribute to the needed change.
The oath can serve as a prelude to what I hope will be a robust dialog on the importance of (to put plainly) doing the right thing. Today’s graduating MBAs will be the future captains of industry and the responsibility of avoiding the mistakes made by our predecessors rest on our shoulders. It’s important that we (MBAs) understand the burden of that responsibility. The oath was created by MBAs for MBAs, but it applies to every individual. I signed the oath because I believe in the ideology behind its conception.
“To whom much is given much is required.” The Holy Bible
Real leadership cannot be practiced without ethics. Those who signed the Oath are the leaders of the future.
This is a great opportunity to create a new generation of MBAs, new leaders and managers that aspire to create not only wealth but a new and rich life style for everyone whose lives can be impacted with our decisions. This is a good way to gain more respect and companies and society know that we as new and responsible MBAs have a new mind set to create a new way of living and improve our own standard, professionalism. This is a big step to make ourselves true professionals as managers and MBAs. Not only experience, but the education..and yes, that counts and that makes the difference..the continuous improvement.
I could not sign the MBA oath because I could not find my University. I am 2009 class graduated from Keller Graduate School of Management of Devry University in Florida, USA. I’d like to start a local chapter but I couldn’t signed. I am a little disappointed for that. Anyway, Can someone help me?
One of the reasons on global economic burst, that few individuals in US Banks holds MBA, did the damage misusing financial tools.
This is good move.
The MBA Oath beats alongside my heart and is a part of my soul. It serves as an outward symbol of the duty I have to ensure that whatever I do in life, I do for the better of other people.
We don’t live in the Milton Friedman world any more. As a new MBA graduate I find this commitment a personal one. My hope and goal is to help create a new movement towards ethical MBAs, who are concerned with not only being successful future leaders but ones that are also cognizant of the impact of our decisions on society as a whole. Let’s take away the perception of MBAs as greedy individuals who are only concerned with making money.
I am not saying its perfect but its definitely a very very good start! I am even surprised with the so called academics who are opposing it. Profit, yes – shareholder’s value, yes. Whats wrong if all these go along with certain ethical standards? An MBAer could always try to combine a certain level of ethics with his corporate role and in the end of the day if he finds himself in a corporation or an environment where this is not feasible then he can always walk away.
As ancient Greeks were saying: ‘Métron áriston’ which means ‘moderation is the best thing’. If this value vanished in the past decades, then it is up to us, as well as many others, to bring it back.
Business and trade is what makes the world go around for us – the human species. However, there is more to consider than just financial gains – for humans, other animals and our natural environment in general. Great initiative to start the MBA Oath, congratulations.
The MBA Oath serves a very strong purpose in this global market place. With the daily news stories about business professionals being unethical and taking from their shareholders to benefit themselves, the MBA Oath is a public statement that holds each of the members accountable to conduct business with the highest of standards on a daily basis. The MBA Oath is also a reminder to us all to represent ourselves to the highest level of integrity to ensure that we set the example for all we come into contact with. We are not only representing our company, shareholders and family, we are representing our beloved Universities and all of the professors who taught and mentored us all during our educational journey!
An oath bears public witness to a private code that is made more powerful by its revelation. The MBA Oath stands for the better aspirations of business professionals. The challenge for us all now as oath signers is to make these aspirations real.
The MBA Oath is an outlet for me to articulate my fundamental beliefs on how a business person should act and lead and also a way to share and communicate my beliefs to my fellow business leaders. It should be obvious but it isn’t yet. It should be mandatory but it isn’t yet. It should be enforceable but it isn’t yet.
We live in the MBA generation. My generation knew that there was something called social responsibility in the loose and non-accountable form, but we were held to only one measure of success: maximize shareholder value. Because our scorecard is denominated in dollars (or equivalent currency), that has led to many tragic outcomes that my generation of MBAs has fueled: multiple financial bubbles, the evisceration of the American middle class (the lifeblood of the American dream), and a win-at-all-costs culture that is at odds with the kind of world I want to live in. When I heard about the MBA oath, I became lifted with the hope that the next generation of MBAs would do better than mine has, and that those of us have come before can declare anew our commitment to true excellence: integrity, honor, and positive lasting contributions to our society.
This is just as important as the oath doctors and lawyers take, it speaks to the “think beyond personal gain” aspect that is often absent in business today. This oath also highlights the positive role that business can play in our society. I believe it should be a pre-req to getting an MBA.
Your talent is useless, if you don’t choose to do the right thing.
In a world besieged by very different worldviews and realities, leaders are placed into the position to make decisions that affect a very diverse group of talented and worthy people. These individuals likely see the world quite differently and even pray to different deities or none at all. How can steward of resources broadcast their compass, what guides them, without a common idea? If the cannot state their direction and prove it by their actions, how can others hold them accountable? This is the benefit of an oath. This is the power of using a common vernacular to share among the wondrous types of people, because in the end, we make decisions that affect people. People are much more than Muslims or Republicans, Christians, Social Democrats, Europeans, Jews or Atheists. They are family, friends, clerks, cooks, superiors, the person we just hired and the person we just fired. We make an oath to hold ourselves accountable to a higher standard, simply because they are people. They have a worth in and of themselves of which we are bound to protect.
“The wise man does not lay up his own treasures.
The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own.” (Lao Tse)
What I like about the MBA Oath is the focus on service–serving the society as a whole–rather than the normal singular focus on maximizing profit. Thanks for your efforts to raise the standards and value of the business profession!
As a licensed engineer and a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers, I’m held to an oath and a standard of conduct. Managers could benefit from the same thing but have no central organizational body.
I feel, the time has come to formulate guidelines for the ethical conducts of managers, whose role is very critical in world business. It’s just a public commitment to something beyond us. This oath makes and reminds us to consider all factors while taking any decision, which will impact the nature and others.
Cheers,
Suresh..
CUMBA.
A compass is necessary even more in turbulent times. It also shows that some private vices (hubris, excessive leverage, non charged risk transfers, excessive value capture of managers from shareholders, …) can sometimes bring about no public virtues but public disasters. Congratulations on this initiative!
As a result of the financial crisis, we have seen that many of America’s business leaders had poor ethical standards and fell subject to greed. It is the responsiblity of the new generation of MBA’s and business leaders to ensure ethical workplaces and to set the example for future generations.
As future leaders we have the responsibility to strive for an ethical competitive business environment.
We management graduates have much higher responsibility towards Humanity, environment and natural resources for effecting sustainable development for self, family, society, nation, humanity and finally the whole universe, not necessarily in that order…………RPS
We care and take responsibility for our actions today to create better tomorrow.
The MBA program offers students a view that is focused towards the good of shareholders. Courses on Social Governance and Corporate Responsibility lead to the issues of integrity and ethics, which are essential for business longevity. Ethics and Integrity can be tought but it is up to the individual to maintain. The oath brings light to the need for “service of the greater good” and should be part of the syllubus of all educators. Having also completed a Masters of International Business and studying the business dealings of globalised companies such as those in Asia and the BRIC, you can see that collectivism along with capitalism leads to community harmony and prosperity in most cases, something that western business often forgets or overlooks.
Loose business ethics and the narrow use of perspectives have helped to create a capitalist system that has demonstrated a lack of long term viability. It is my opinion that old forms of business, which have served our population well up to this point, need to be reshaped into new forms of capitalism that seek to consider diverse perspectives with a clear sense of what is right and wrong. The oath provides an agreeable framework for this purpose.
Our Vision is a better world, our Mission is to serve others with integrity.
Longterm benefits to the enterprise, society and the individuals by always acting on an ethical level must be the goal to act upon from the leading people.
The approach of the oath is definitely pointing into the right direction. The challenge for eery MBAler is to make this a better place to life in, e.g. making profits = one of the most important mean to improve communities and societies
As a Management consultant I feel as my customers belong to my family and try my best for them.
Noblesse oblige. With power and influence, comes responsibility.
I firmly believe that the value of an organisation will increasingly be measured by its value to society. The oath is for me but another major step towards recognising this, and one which will again demonstrate that merely have a good CSR programme is not enough.
To me, this oath is another reminder of my own potential, to improve my own life and that of people around me, both in my work and private life. Thank you for that!
No-matter a MBA or not, we should act the right things to the society and protect the environment with our strength.
I studied MBA because I want to be a successful manager. And hope to be a CEO in the coming days! Let us share our knowledge and experience in our career’s path!
Believe doing right, acting justly and righteously are the key to success not only in business world but also glory to God’s kingdom.
The sustainable growth of any business relies on the integrity of its leader. Any organization that lacks a good, honest leader is bound to fail eventually.
Therefore, living by this oath should be the imperative of every business leader/manager. I look forward to doing business with like-minded people (MBAs or otherwise) who choose to live by the principles that are laid out here.
-Aravinda
I have been an executive, founder, CEO, VC and MBA and Business Undergrad instructor. I believe that the next generation of business graduates have a tough task of cleaning up the mess we of the last generation made of the world due to greed, wanton disregard for the spirit of honest capitalism and of finding loopholes and interpretations of laws, agreements, rules and regulations which subvert the spirit of such. This pledge should already be how we act and think, and I am supportive of bringing it to the public forefront.
Good business can be ethical, and world trade can indeed contribute mightily to world peace.
We all see our responsibilty in economics and ethics in nowadays. The financial
and economic crisis led us to a point, where we have to commit ourselves to
values that are associated with the origin of true entrepreneurship. We should
return to this old and reliable principles in order to create values for mankind.
We all se our responsibilty in economics and ethics in nowadays. The financial
and economic crisis led us to a point, where we have to commit ourselves to
values that are associated with the origin of true entrepreneurship. We should
return to this old and reliable principles in order to create values for mankind.
Since young age, we are taught about ethics and morality, the need to be truthful and have a strong self esteem. This education gets eroded by another learning later on, that to win you have to learn to deceive. More so in the business world.
I take this oath to prove this thinking wrong…
Economics and management is not just a social mechanism but needs to be inspired by good faith including effects on humans, society, nature in present and future generations. We are to take responsibility for our decisions, activities and those possibilities we do not transform into word and deed. Responsibility is more than what can be codified in laws, polities and rules. A personal binding faith matters.
This Oath instills the sense of Professionalism that is required of a Manager. It shows a commitment and accountability of actions to the stake holders, be it employees, investors or customers.
I took the oath, because I’m tired of reading about all the white collar scandals in the WSJ.
As business leaders, we must set the tone for companies across America. We must lead our businesses to contribute to society, our communities AND to our shareholders.
What a great idea – having seen unethical busness managers in action this may be a small step but a step nevertheless to building some expectation of professionalism in our profession.
If nothing else it will give like minded ethical managers a common frame of reference when hiring or working with each other.
Commercial world is a nasty place, we need individuals with visions and long term commitment to whatever they do. We need to keep an heart into any business and strive to ethical practices and community involvements.
I founded Manchester University Entrepreneurs (www.manchesterentrepreneurs.org.uk ) last year and was fortunate enough to have spoken to and worked with some great people, it is almost funny about how like minded people can do great things together no matter where you are coming from. So I here congratulate the MBA oath for bring great people together for great things. The future is in our hand, so make it a better world.
Leadership today are increasingly looking more at short term gains (or self gain). This is true for both leadership of corporations as well as nations across the world. The Oath is necessary to remind ourselves that we are fortunate enough to be in leadership roles and we have a greater responsibility beyond just looking at whats in it for me. We have a role to mould the next generations of managers and leaders on “a new era of responsible leadership”. As Ben Parker said in Spiderman, “With great power comes great responsibility.”
Taking the MBA Oath is important because doing business has to do with managing people, skills, challenges but also means take the responsibility about the effects of our actions.
Being an MBA means strongly commit themselves to build something new, to compete with the others respecting the rules of the game and respecting the people we lead.
Excellent idea. I think this provides a direction and outlines a basic code of ethics that is so important, especially now when the financial crisis is affecting the whole world.
We may have spent a lot of money on the MBA but there is a whole world to make better. Greed was good, but ambition is better.
Pranay Manocha
Class of 2008
Cass Business School
I applaud the efforts of this group and believe that this oath will lay the foundation for a new generation of ethical business professionals.
We are all influenced by our environment and, while we are not all members of the same social group, we are all global citizens. Organizations’ policies and actions (or inaction) seriously affect peoples’ lives. As effective leaders, we must be committed to improving the world by measuring business practices by “moral” standards of justice and integrity.
The idea that I share an honorable occupation with the small number of MBA’s that choose to take the unethical path disgusts me. This oath is more than just a symbolic gesture. We who have taken the oath are in the field, acting as a counterbalance to those who continue to tarnish the reputation of the MBA.
Nothing matters more than having the personal conviction to do what is right and just even when others around you will not. You can’t buy integrity.
The oath is a formal statement of what we believe in. With knowledge and learning comes responsibility. After going through rigorous training in Business, Management and Leadership we have no excuse to be complacent. It is expected of us nothing but creating Value for everything and everyone we come in contact with.
I also believe that it is highly unlikely that the mess we find ourselves in is because of evil intentions of one or many people (business or politics). It is manifestation of little weaknesses (greed, fear, etc) of every actor combined.
We at Thunderbird take a similar oath. http://www.thunderbird.edu/about_thunderbird/inside_tbird/oath_of_honor.htm
Good Luck and Best Wishes!
Shamshad
Call me a cynic but I personally do NOT think this is a real value add. Signing a “I will be a good boy” pledge has not stopped the crooks on Wall Street and elsewhere from doing what they did. Do you think Enron lacked “values”? Do you believe Wall Street had a shortage of slogans exhorting ethics? NOPE!
What you and other MBA schools need is to seed in your students HUMILITY – learning to combine humility with confidence and bold leadership et al. True story: I recently flew AA and there was a 2nd year HBS kid who was shouting at the top of his voice about how he had the “world’s attention” cos he was at HBS – mind you he was talking to the girl next to him who seemed least impressed. My take was – congrats kid but you got the wrong kind of attention to yourself and the school. For every one of you out these boasting and bragging there are a MILLION others who silently scale summits and make real change happen.
So instead of a pledge like this that though well meaning does not really move an inch in practice, start teaching your graduates to be humble yet confident leaders.
PS: I went to a top-tier school that is up there with HBS, Wharton, Kellogg, Stanford (one of these)
12th July 2009 / Vikas Kakade /
The MBA Oath is a fundamental value that should bind all minds in the enterprise. I started my career with a young scientist and techno-entrepreneur trained in the UK / India. I am proud to say I learnt my first management lessons on the job while with me, and the scientist is still my mentor and Guru.
During my 20+ years of professional life, the following narration is the most expensive (costly) learning’s by me. At my earlier years after MBA, I worked at a start-up company, whose one of the promoting partners was an engineer and trained at Harvard too at one of their executive management programmes (’90s). I had spent many years with him. I was a part of his young budding team. Like others in my team, I slogged and threw everything burning my young-age, to build the business, which grew lips & bound. I was of course very excited of the opportunity, and the kind of learning that was accruing. I was happy with the contributions to society we were making as team. However, as value of company’s shares started rising in the capital market due to sustain growth, the promoter’s cunning nature started showing up. He not only kicked out partners one by one, but also started giving unethical treatments to employees / members of the top executive team of which I was part. I immediately left the company that I burnt my young-age for, as he made untrue allegations against me. Slowly others also quit the company.
To say the least, this Harvard trained entrepreneur made immense wealth, money and name for him. I was appalled when I found at the core the blatant disregard for people, for their commitment, for their value add and also for our customers and for the disgusting lack of ethics corporate wide. He is actually proud of this and the culture reflected it.
I swear to myself that as a MBA visiting faculty now, if my students were ever fortunate enough to crack into such ownership level, they would never behave this way and treat customers and employees in such an unethical and machiavellian manner. I am absolutely committed to this oath, and will pass the same to my students to look at and follow in practice.
Best wishes,
Vikas
What a wonderful idea! I took the oath, and tweaked it for my industry – I hope you guys don’t mind – thank you for such a great boilerplate of responsible action. If you DO mind, let me know!
Maureen Sharib
http://magicmethod.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-sourcers-oath
From what I understand, the oath; is a message of heart. The financial crisis is the main agenda, although not the only one. Environmental protection, ending poverty, development and peace are also things this oath should inspire all leaders to achieve. Since economies tend to be cyclical, I hope that this message will not fade as any recovery is seen in sight. It should be ingrained in the culture of any organisation. Although easier said than done, the best way is to lead by example; and let the actions do the talking.
Some days ago, I’ve wrote a post in my own Blog, that shows better than any comment my conviction that ethics should be an essential part of Management: http://estrategiaycambio.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/mbas-y-la-crisis-una-reflexion/
¡¡Keep going with the initiative!!
Gabriela Revel
This Oath speaks to me because of the MBA program I just started at Antioch University New England. This program focuses on organization and environmental management. My believe that humans are part of the large ecosystem was reaffirmed in my Intro to Sustainability class, where we learned about biomimicry and the natural ecosystem.
In the class I realized that the businesses mimic nature by creating niches that reduces competition. We need to realize that we are all nested into the natural environment for our own existence. This pledge helps me make a conscious effort to raise awareness of our impact on our environment through all of my activities.
- John Costa
Dear Friends,
I’m from South America. I born in Argentina but actually I’m living in Santiago, Chile. Since the economic crisis, last year, I’m engage on promote a kind of MBA oath from my blog: Humanismo y Conectividad (http://humanismoyconectividad.wordpress.com/2008/10/28/juramento-hipocratico/) and also I place a facebook cause http://apps.facebook.com/causes/138200 (with more than 490 members) to get involved others in the same kind of initiative you are implementing. Congrats for your efforts.
I want to ask you if you authorize me to translate your oath to spanish so as we can promote de cause in the hispan-american universities.
Thanks in advance, sincerely
Andres Schuschny
I really like this idea. Coming from a lesser known MBA program, lack of certification of any sort really devalues the degree. I was a Berkeley undergrad, but didn’t get into a good bschool but returned to get my MBA regardless. I realized towards the end that if it had been a licensed degree than the value would be raised on matter where you got your MBA.
The MBA Oath is well done and is as good, or better than, other major ethics statements, and certainly typical corporate or government ethics statements.
Sun Project Systems and the EarthSync Companies adhere to the Project Management Institute ethics codes. I am working on an ethics oath and policies for my companies. It is worth it to start thinking of ethics as we write business plans. It is real, demonstrable market and societal value when we can include ethics in our business plans. The right stakeholders, the ones we should want to be associated with, will stand up and take notice. Our end users will remember when we take the genuine ethical position.
The entire matter of real ethics in communities, business, politics, economics, and as real results in our environmental interfaces, has only just begun! Too few of us understand that the shift in power in Washington between 2006 and 2009 was largely a function of public concern over ethics, according to CNN and polling. Pundits and parties were not following this and little has been said of ethics since; in spite of the powerful, dire need for real ethical standards and resulting policy shifts upward across the board, in the US and globally. Of course, in the early 90’s, Republicans used ethics-based rhetoric to win control of the House.
Are ethics another ‘brand’ we want to see thrown around and co-opted for whatever purposes; often without context, evidence or substance? Leaders are defined when we take ethical stands in the face of conventional wisdom, ‘good news’ purveyors, and the ‘don’t-rock-the-boat’ crowd. However, ethics need to be real, specific, effective, and therfore they need to be policy.
In order to generate those polices, there needs to be understanding. So ethics need to be part of education in all areas, not just philosophy and religion. Also, ethics should be measuarable if they are to be meaningful. Ethicists will no doubt confirm that ethics represent a significant management and scientific area.
Great start, MBA Oath!
The MBA oath provides management professionals with a point of reference in terms of ethical business practice and seeks to preserve the standard and integrity of the MBA degree. I am proud to join a group of kindred spirits in adhering to a code of conduct that is relevant and to which all business professionals should conform.
Congratulations to you all!
The MBA Oath is an idea that truely strikes a cord with me. I worked years ago at a company whos entire executive team consisted of Wharton and Harvard MBAs. I was very excited about the opportunity.
I was appalled in my year of service with this organization at the blatant disregard for people and for our customers and for the disgusting lack of ethics corporate wide. They were actually proud of this and the culture reflected it.
I swore to myself then that, if I ever received my MBA and if I was ever fortunate enough to crack into the executive ranks, I would never behave this way and treat customers and employees in such an unethical and machiavellian manner.
I chose George Fox University in Oregon specifically because of their unique focus on servant leadership and ethics.
I absolutely commit to this oath and I salute all the others out there that join me.
It is so unfortunate that there needs to be a movement to restore ethics to the business world. Speaking as a registered nurse for over 40 years and a pioneer in the field of cancer nursing these issues are not unique to the world of business. There are serious lapses in ethics in the fields of health insurance,pharmenceuticals, nursing homes etc…. It may sound socialist but there needs to be an understanding that we are our brother’ s keeper and it is very possible to have a decent standard of living,and less conflict with that in mind. All leaders need to be grounded in ethics and have a sense of moral responsibility, it starts in the home,community and onward through graduate school. Unfortunately this does not happen. Later is better I guess than never. Personally, I have been very disappointed in the lack of leadership by universities in this area and I feel we are reaping the fallout from the “greed is good philosophy”. It’s time for faculty as well as students to get back on track and show some moral backbone.
I like that this project is requesting reflections.
I’m an investigative reporter with a focus on corporate ethics, a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, and the CEO and Creative Director of Dancing Ink Productions, a company that works toward a new global culture and economy.
I hope this oath is the first step toward an authentic exploration of ethics in a rapidly changing world so that the intention of the oath can be put into practice. My reflection is in the form of an essay, “What is a promise to be ethical worth if ethics are unclear?”
I welcome comments and further discussion.
This is a great start. As an member of IEEE, we adhere to a Code of Ethics and it make the profession better. As an executive and MBA, I applaud your efforts. This oath should apply to all managers.
The MBA oath should not just be for MBAs, but everyone doing business. Working in the non-management customer service field for many different businesses over the years, I continuously have encountered people’s frustration with the level of service they encounter. Customers no longer expect service, they expect hassles, un-prompted sales pitches and rudeness. Those hired to help are weary of fighting these preconceptions and end up being weighed down by a misery spurred on by constant clock-watching; living week to week; trying to find solace in material positions. Let’s find a new way to do business.
Doctors have the Hippocratic Oath, which has tons of credibility and a positive reputation, yet long ago it started as a voluntary oath. I hope this voluntary MBA Oath continues to build momentum and is someday part of the larger movement that helps professionalize management.
Through the MBA Oath, I look forward to standing up with my peers and joining in the promise to hold myself to a higher standard of behavior and conduct and to working for the greater good of society. We must remember “from everyone who has been given much, much will be required.” We all are very blessed and should do our best to postively impact society.
Let’s go do it!
Sorry guys but Thunderbird has you beat on this.
http://curiouscapitalist.blogs.time.com/2009/05/15/new-column-thunderbird-mbas-take-the-oath/
Shaun Dakin
Thunderbird 95
I’ve just posted a substantial commentary on the MBA Code on my blog, The Business Ethics Blog:
Harvard Students Take Ethics Pledge
The Code seems like a good starting point, and at very least should stimulate lots of worthwhile discussion.
We just made a presentation to HBS alums about this movement. The guy that introduced said in a few words why I became part of this. He said that our goal was to get to point where if you walked into someone’s office and saw their MBA diploma on the wall that you would feel at ease that what they were doing was in yours and society’s best interest. This is similar to the calmness some get when they walk into a doctor’s office and see that they not only have their MD, but have passed a bar exam and are credentialed.
Shouldn’t we ask the same for managers and business leaders?
To lead and manage people is an incredible privilege and responsibility. As we’ve seen in recent times, the decisions that business leaders make DO shape and change lives. Furthermore, I’d argue that that one of the greatest social contributions we can make right now is to give one the ability to create and maintain meaningful employment– to build a life for oneself and to provide for a family, seek an education, and afford health care. As such, corporations provide for the livelihood of millions across the world and the opportunity to have a role in shaping them is among the greatest of responsibilities. In a time where military and government leaders swear to uphold an oath and to serve “to the best of my ability,” why should business leaders not do the same?
For me it’s pretty simple: with good reason many people badmouth the MBA as a “pursue profits by any means necessary” degree. I see the oath as a thoughtful response to that common perception. In light of the current crisis when we’ve begun to question some of our fundamental assumptions about how the world should work, I think it’s become obvious that we need to hold ourselves to a higher ethical standard. While the oath doesn’t solve the problem of unethical behavior, it is a step in the right direction.
Making profit shouldn’t be the ends – it should be the means to an end of improving our community and our society. Some of the most important increases in the living standards around the world have been as a result of the capitalistic pursuit of profit, and the oath seeks to maximize the good that can be created through sustainable business enterprises, and minimize unsustainable exploitation of our planet, its resources, or its people. It’s an important and, sadly, necessary, distinction for us MBAs to make.
As an MD/MBA student who has already taken the Hippocratic Oath, why will I take the MBA Oath? Medicine ranks among the noblest of professions due to a practitioner’s dedication to their patients, yet I see no reason why business managers cannot be just as dedicated to creating value for society. Thankfully, most of us do not spend all day worrying about our health, nor should we. On the other hand, businesses are impacting people’s lives everywhere all the time. Imagine the potential benefit for all of us if business leaders were professionally dedicated to harnessing the energy of productive competition for our common good?
The MBA Oath formalizes what would be unnecessary in a utopian society. But given the fact that we live in a complicated world with conflicting interests, resource scarcity and political division, I think the Oath reminds us to step back and look at the “big picture.” And I think this “big picture” is that together, we can create value for society by conducting business with strong ethics. My hope is that this will become the norm rather than the exception…and at precisely this point, our Oath will seem redundant rather than peculiar.
We need a soft revolution to redefine what business must mean for society – this effort can be led by no other but us. We must decide what our era stands for. Let’s bring the basic principals of life – responsibility, accountability, fairness, and honesty – to everything we, management professionals, do. Let’s put business to good use and use business to bring about good in the world. Join us in taking the first step together!
We are in a world of trouble these days. Not just MBAs. All of us. I, like a lot of you, have seen friends and family members lose jobs as a result of the economy. It hurts to see. There are no easy answers or silver bullets for fixing things, but the oath is a small step in the right direction. Its a reorientation of our values from “me” to “we.” I hope we can find ways to make it continually poignant and powerful for everyone who takes the oath over time.
The MBAoath matters. Now more than ever, managers at organizations across the world are being scrutinized for their leadership and role in the current financial crisis. I think the oath is a timely and important response to this increased scrutiny because it says, “we hear you, we can do better, and we can be better.” With that in mind, I really support this endeavor.