A criminologist Essay

A criminologist blames economic recession and complex financial system as major reasons for the rising white collar crimes in the U. S. â€Å"In huge numbers of cases, people are not aware that they have been victims of white collar crime, for example, subjected to illegally spewed out pollution, or that they have purchased products that are unsafe, or that they have been subjected to corporate price fixing, or to the consequences of commodity speculation, which is believed to be one significant factor in driving up the cost of gasoline at the pump.â€Å"Witnesses† of white collar crime who often do not realize that a crime has occurred , may be confused about what to do in response to it. And our traditional frontline enforcement agencies ha not been organized to monitor and respond to white collar crime. In this case principal gents who handle such cases play an important role in white collar crime. Informers & Whistle Blowers: Ethics Text #6. How can corporations ensure th at their employees behave ethically? An ethical culture should be a top priority of every business, large or small. The challenge for many organizations is trying to understand what it takes to build one. From an enforceable code of conduct, to ongoing training and communications, to an anonymous reporting hotline, companies can quickly implement ethics and compliance programs and solutions that foster an ethical culture across the enterprise. In many companies today, management is dealing with a hodge-podge of different personalities, belief systems, backgrounds, ethnicities and politic affiliations. These are just a few things that may impede creating a single unified system of ethics. While many may say that right and wrong is what should ultimately determine the culture, others will argue that what is right for the majority may not be right for the minority. Having an ethical culture is an important component to running an effective business today. In fact, with the current state of legal and industry regulations, from Sarbanes-Oxley to HIPAA, not only is having an ethical culture a good idea, it is now practically a requirement. Developing an ethical culture will take more than creating a list of company dos and don’ts; although that list will help. It will take more than issuing a code of conduct via email to a new hire; although that too will help. What it will take is a combination of things. On this page, we focus on the top six steps that have the most effective and direct impact on establishing an ethical culture. The six steps are as follows: 1. Establish an enforceable code of conduct 2. Initial and ongoing training 3. Regular communications 4. Anonymous reporting hotline 5. Enforcement/Action 6. Rewarding employees that live the culture 1. Establish an Enforceable Code of Conduct A code of conduct, often referred to as a code of ethics, is the foundation of any ethics program. The code of conduct should not be designed as a reaction to past missteps. An ethical culture is built upon the proactive efforts of the organization. The development of the code of conduct should be led by those at the top of the company, and should also include employees in the process. 2. Initial and Ongoing Training There is a phrase that has been used many times when it comes to training: â€Å"The day we stop learning is the day we die. † One of the most important aspects of developing an ethical culture is the ongoing training that companies can provide to executives and employees. The purpose of training is to help employees know what is expected of them and to help them understand that a strong ethical culture can protect the company’s reputation and actually enhance profits. Employees need to know that their ethical or unethical choices will have a direct impact on the success or failure of the company. In addition, training should also be tailored to specific positions in the company and employees roles. Management may need additional training to help deal with employee issues, while someone in purchasing may need more training on gifting policies and someone in finance needs to understand the company’s position on fraud. 3. Regular Communications Once the policy has been executed and training has started, communicating aspects about the code of conduct can have a significant impact on the ethical culture. Many of these communications come through the human resources department, but the voice of the executive management team is critical in these communications. The goal of communications is to make ethics a live, ongoing conversation. If ethics is something that is constantly addressed, referenced frequently in company meetings, and in personal conversations among managers and employees, then people are more aware and more willing to defend the company’s policies when they see or hear of problems. Employees will hold other employees responsible and accountable for living the company’s values. 4. Anonymous Reporting Hotline The fact that an ethics hotline exists within many companies may be a surprise to their employees. The hotline number or Web site URL is often hidden in the back of an employee handbook or within the dusty binder labeled Corporate Governance. An anonymous hotline provides employees with a confidential way of reporting unethical or inappropriate behavior. Many people are not comfortable with reporting bad behavior for fear of being considered a â€Å"snitch,† possible repercussions if the guilty party learned of who reported him or her, or perhaps impacts on their job. â€Å"Unfortunately, more than two of five employees (42 percent) who witnessed misconduct did not report it through any company channels.Others may want to report their concerns, but are not comfortable going directly to a manager or fellow employee. This is why the anonymous reporting hotline is so important. In its 2006 Report to the Nation on Fraud and Abuse, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners concluded that â€Å"Occupational frauds are more likely to be detected by a tip (34%) than by other m eans such as internal audits, external audits or internal controls. 5. Enforcement/Action A code of conduct has to be enforceable, and a company needs to take action when problems arise. Employees should be part of the enforcement and know if and when it has been violated. While 42 percent of employees are reluctant to report unethical behavior, the good news is that the ERC study also found that â€Å"the rate of misconduct is cut by three-fourths at companies with strong ethical cultures, and reporting is doubled at companies with comprehensive ethics programs. † Unethical behavior can have a damaging effect on a variety of aspects of a business, from brand reputation to bottom-line revenues. WorldCom’s and Enron’s names will forever be connected to accounting scandals that led to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Lockheed Martin was forced to pay $2. 5 million for knowingly looking the other way on alleged racial discrimination. Without enforcement, ethical guidelines listed in a corporate code of conduct are simply nice suggestions. 6. Rewarding Employees That Live the Culture The final step in developing an ethical culture is rewarding employees that behave ethically and live the culture that the organization is trying to instill companywide. With an ethics policy in place, ongoing training and communications, the ability to report unethical behavior and strict enforcement, an organization will have the structure in place that will leave little doubt the importance of ethical behavior. Like a manufacturing company that brags about its safety record with signs indicating how many days without an accident, companies should publicly congratulate their employees for adhering to the code of conduct. That performance could be rewarded in terms of a bonus based on how much money the company saved by not having internal issues or having to fight legal battles over unethical business or accounting practices. If an employee completes ethics training, is responsible for blowing the whistle on questionable activities, or provides unique ways for protecting the company’s confidential information, he or she should be recognized publicly by management. Employees need to know that creating an ethical culture is important to everyone from their direct managers to c-level executives.

A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror

The book written by Alfred McCoy (2006) entitled ‘A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror’ speaks of CIA’s process of developing different forms of torture through practice of sensory deprivation and self-inflicted pain.These are done by means of isolation, hooding, manipulation of time, or by means of hours of standing, which was practiced by the U.S. CIA in Vietnam, in Iran, in Central America, and in Southeast Asia.   This, according to McCoy (2006), is not so much a physical torture but a psychological one that, if not improved or reassessed scrupulously, could affect and damage America’s good reputation and respectable global standing.Main BodyMcCoy (2006) opened his book with the scene by CBS Television of the Abu Ghraib prison that showed â€Å"Iraqis naked, hooded, and contorted in humiliating positions while U.S. soldiers stood over them, smiling† (p.5).   According to McCoy (2006),[T]hese photos are not, in fact, snapshots of simple sadism or a breakdown in military discipline†¦ [but] CIA torture methods that have metastasized like an undetected cancer inside the U.S. intelligence community over the past half century. (p.5)With its origin dating back to more than 50 years ago during the Cold War, this type of scenes and incidents promoted political scandals and controversies that reached even to the Bush’s administration of the interrogation policy.From the 1950 to 1962, CIA’s experiments on the best type of torture landed on psychological torture, or what was also called as the ‘no-touch’ type of torture.   The two new methods that were formulated was the use of ‘sensory disorientation’ and ‘self-inflicted pain’ that made the victim â€Å"feel responsible for their suffering and thus capitulate more readily to their torturers† (McCoy, 2006, p.8).As also indicated, â€Å"The fusion of these two techniques, sensory disorientation and self-inflicted pain, creates a synergy of physical and psychological trauma whose sum is a hammer-blow to the fundamentals of personal identity† (p.8).   After the year 1963, the no-touch method of torture included methods of ‘unimaginable cruelties’ in the form of physical as well as sexual harassments, such as the scenes at Abu Ghraib.The use of mind control by the CIA propagates evil torture, which leads to political scandal and ruin.   CIA’s basic purpose, of course, is for defense against foreign threats.   However, for the past 50 years, this type of torture of the America’s CIA reflected political and administrative wreck that tended to worsen as each decade passed.From the Phoenix program in Vietnam in the early ‘60s, immorality appears to be the basic framework of the American agenda of foreign defense and protection.   There were already incidents like these back in the 1960s; and to witness it alive and kicking until the 21st century is a huge sign that something wrong has been going on with America’s method of extricating criminals.

Managers in the future Essay

I believe that planning will always be important to a manager. If the importance were to become more or less important, I would say that it is going to become more important. Planning is when an organization defines their goals, establishes strategies for achieving those goals, and developing plans to integrate and coordinate work activities (Robbins & Coulter, 2014). Planning is always needed because of the way things are constantly changing. An organization isn’t necessarily always changing, but the world is and then can affect an organization, so a company better be prepared. In the textbook, it says that managers should plan to provide direction, reduce uncertainty, minimizes waste and redundancy, and establishes the goals or standards used in controlling. This is extremely important in the planning process because it can help an organization in being successful. Providing directions in the planning process is very important because it helps build the foundation of how things will be done. Without directions, an organization would be a disaster because everyone would want to do things their own way causing confusion if people had to work together because there would be completely different methods. To me, providing directions is related to reducing the uncertainty in an organization. If there were uncertainties going on within the organization, then things probably would not happen due to confusion. Costs would be so high if planning wasn’t done to minimize waste and redundancy. If there is not a plan prepared on who was to do what, then an organization would be producing multiples of products causing the price spent on production and materials to be doubled. In plans, you want to have goals prepared. This gives people incentives to want to achieve a goal to succeed and possible advance in time. Standards are good to have so workers know what is expected of them. I have worked at a retirement for the last 5 years and an example of when my  managers use planning is when an expected storm is coming. The managers need to have a plan of what to do in case of a problem, such as a power outage. If there was no plan planned for a disaster like that, there would be serious issues do to the residents needing oxygen or motorized wheelchairs that need to be charged by a power source. This is a perfect example, in my opinion, of when planning really matters. References 1. Robbins, Stephen P., and Mary K. Coulter. â€Å"Chapter 4.† Management. 12th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2014. 220-225. Print.

Choose a Technology that you think should be improved or developed Essay

Choose a Technology that you think should be improved or developed - Essay Example This later saw other manufactures come in to the field of designing better vehicles rather than a horse drawn carriage which was fitted with engine. It was until the year 2005 that the USA led the world in total automobile production. Before the great depression in 1929, the whole world is known to have had approximately 32m automobiles in operation whereby, the US contributed to 90% of this total production. (Bajaria, 2001). An automobile is a wheeled motor vehicle whose role is to transport passengers and goods from one point to another which carries its own engine. We cannot fail to mention the role which these automobiles have played towards the growth of our economies. In the field of transport, goods and services can be transported from one region to another. Trade has been enabled here between countries since goods are exported and also imported hence customers are in a position to enjoy a wide variety of products in the market. Basically, automobiles are designed to run on roads, most of them have more than one wheels, and have seats for passengers to sit on. This is one of the advanced technologies so far. This is because, you find that it is out of the introduction of these cars then that people are in a position to move from one town to another and even from one country to another. This technology has many advantages than its disadvantages though it can also be improved. Most of these vehicles move on roads and our argument here will be based on the cars which move on roads. (Bajaria, 2001). Around the whole world, there are approximately 807 million light trucks and cars in our roads. This was out of a research which was carried in a sample of countries around the world in the year 2007 which were consuming over 260 billion US gallons of diesel and gasoline fuel around the year. The table below show how important this technology has been. In India, the table below shows

Professional Code Analysis Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Professional Code Analysis - Coursework Example The codes are different in that they cover different aspects of safety of the human subjects. Autonomy deals with ensuring that all human subjects are given the information that they need to decide whether or not to participate in the research. Beneficence obligates the researcher to ensure the well-being of all human subjects and protect them from any harm. Justice considers the risks and benefits of participating in the research program. These codes incorporate ethical theories into their text. Autonomy incorporates the moral requirement to acknowledge autonomy and protect those with diminished autonomy. Beneficence incorporates the basic rule of do not harm and maximize possible benefits and minimize possible harms to human subjects in the research. Justice incorporates the ethical responsibility to ensure that all participates are treated fairly. The most important theories that are used most often and deemed most important are the ones dealing with a person’s right to inf ormation and justice. Therefore these ethical codes of the Belmont Report protect human subjects and their right to information and justice. Works Cited Purdue University. Committee on the Use of Human Research Subjects. Purdue University. July 14, 2011 .