Organizational change can produce many wonderful opportunities for members of an organization, however when change is not handle properly organizational change can result in job loss, increase in stress and resistance, absenteeism, and the demoralization of the employees. In order to avoid the negative aspects of change, management must be aware of dilemmas that can plague the change management process. Organizations are comprised of human beings, and their cultures are shaped by the values and ethics of those human beings. (Spann, 2012) When individuals at the management level commit unethical behaviors, the effects can have a direct and negative impact on the employees they lead. Before understanding the term ethics, first understand that the standards of the organization are defined by right and wrong of individuals within the organization. The norms of their actions should be morally right or wrong along with the values and moral standards of the organization.
An organization's ethical principles can define the organization. The term ethics refers to the standards of an individual, group, or organization morals. The ethical principles of the company or organization set the standard for employees, investors and expectations of clients and customers. A company or an organization that develop unethical principals faces the possibility of damaging its reputation that will cause a loss of clients, loss of employee's confidence, and create a public relations nightmare. Ultimately this will cause a decline in stocks and profit that will affect the stability of the company. A perceived clash with ethics occurs with organizational change because the establish standards in terms of rights, obligations, social benefits, fairness, and specific virtues are challenged.
Business ethics examines business practices in light of human values. (Kuratko 1994). When change occurs in an organization, the management team has several key ethical factors to consider.