Abstract

The values of American managers, particularly those of top executives usually get attention when a corporate scandal hits the headlines. News of a faulty product, pollution of the environment, bribery or some other gross misuse of corporate power causes people to ask, "What kind of people are running our companies, anyway?" On those occasions people become aware of the influence personal values have on managers and how those values are expressed in company policies and actions. Values and ethics are difficult subjects to investigate with precision; nonetheless, some significant information and patterns emerge from the studies that have been made. These studies, and others like them, reinforce the importance of continual vigilance on the part of executives and scholars alike in focusing attention on values and ethical behavior. It might be argued that the nature of the ethical dilemmas associated with performing a job varies dramatically at different levels in the organization. It is probably more true to say that these dilemmas vary by degree but not by kind.