Corporate ethics in TQM: management versus employee expectations and perceptions

Purpose – The objective of this research is to develop and describe a conceptual framework of corporate ethics in total quality management (TQM).

Design/methodology/approach – The research is based on a summarised in-depth and longitudinal case illustration. The summarised case describes corporate ethics in an intra-corporate relationship.

Findings – TQM requires human resources and failing to care for them will affect accordingly the success of TQM. The case description illustrates the evolution of management versus employee expectations and perceptions of corporate ethics. It has an emphasis on the human resources of a company that strives towards TQM. As the quality of corporate ethics decreases the outcome of TQM is also affected (i.e. directly or indirectly). The case is initialised in an atmosphere of management and employee optimism and positivism of corporate ethics, which is a requisite from both parties in order to ensure prosperous TQM. The successive change towards pessimism and negativism of corporate ethics in the intra-corporate relationship concludes the in-depth case description.

Research limitations/implications – Four parameters of corporate ethics are used to incorporate corporate ethics into TQM, namely management versus employee expectations and perceptions. Internal corporate quality management should always be regarded as dependent upon the achieved equilibrium between management and employee perceptions. It is also dependent upon the derived equilibrium between management and employee previous expectations.

Practical implications – An important insight of this research is that TQM requires the continuous attention to the management versus employee expectations and perceptions inherent in corporate ethics of internal business operations. Furthermore, corporate ethics is complementary to business ethics.

Originality/value – The case description has shown that TQM may be running well and accomplishing the hard goals. However, TQM is not only about figures, profits and costs. It is also a business approach that should penetrate all activities inside and outside that are related to the company, including the soft issues.

Comparison of tissue dosimetry in the mouse following chronic exposure to arsenic compounds

Several chronic bioassays have been conducted in multiple strains of mice in which various concentrations of arsenate or arsenite were administered in the drinking water without a tumorigenic effect. However, one study (Ng et al., 1999) reported a significant increase in tumor incidence in C57Bl/6J mice exposed to arsenic in their drinking water throughout their lifetime, with no tumors reported in controls. A physiologically based pharmacokinetic model for arsenic in the mouse has previously been developed (Gentry et al., 2004) to investigate potential differences in tissue dosimetry of arsenic species across various strains of mice. Initial results indicated no significant differences in blood, liver, or urine dosimetry in B6C3F1 and C57Bl/6 mice for acute or subchronic exposure. The current work was conducted to compare model-predicted estimates of tissue dosimetry to additional kinetic information from the (C57Bl/6 x CBA)F1 and TgAc mouse. The results from the current modeling indicate that the pharmacokinetic parameters derived based on information in the B6C3F1 mouse adequately describe the measured concentrations in the blood/plasma, liver, and urine of both the (C57Bl/6 x CBA)F1 and TgAc mouse, providing further support that the differences in response observed in the chronic bioassays are not related to strain-specific differences in pharmacokinetics. One significant finding was that no increases in skin or lung concentrations of arsenic species in the (C57Bl/6 x CBA)F1 strain were observed following administration of low concentrations (0.2 or 2 mg/L) of arsenate in the drinking water, even though differences in response in the skin were reported. These data suggest that pharmacodynamic changes may be observed following exposure to arsenic compounds without an observable change in tissue dosimetry. These results provided further indirect support for the existence of inducible arsenic efflux in these tissues.

Surgical accountability in the 1880s: the death of Susan Nixon

Susan Nixon died in 1881 following a surgical error. Her surgeon, Dr W. E. Warren, excised a normal 7-month gravid uterus under the misapprehension that he was removing a tubular pregnancy. It is believed that Mrs Nixon was the first woman in Australia to have an abdominal hysterectomy and the second to have a live Caesarean section. The surgical misadventure that resulted in Mrs Nixon's death became a public scandal, which gained currency through both parliamentary debate and the popular press.

The purpose of referring to this case is to explore the mechanisms of accountability that surgeons faced in the 1880s − a decade of rapid change in the practice of surgery. The response of late nineteenth century society to surgical error and the resultant reaction of the medical profession have resonances that are relevant to surgeons practising today.

Sustainable components of leadership effectiveness in organizational performance

Purpose – The objective is to describe a selection of sustainability components of leadership effectiveness in organizational performance.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a conceptual discussion. Findings – The paper contributes to descriptive models that address sustainability components of leadership effectiveness in organizational performance. The study highlights some common views that exist in the management literature and in prosperous management practice related to the direct impact of the relationship in organizational performance between leadership and effectiveness. In fact, it also highlights the critical or sceptical views of leadership effectiveness in organizational performance raised in the literature. Research limitations/implications – The paper contends that the actual leadership effectiveness in organizational performance varies over time and across contexts. At times, the achievement in organizational performance is the outcome of prosperous and conscious leadership, while it at other times may be the outcome of poor and deficient leadership. The topic at hand is positioned and limited to the interface that may describe and explain the connection between these two views. Furthermore, it is limited to corporate decision making and business behaviour in relation to leadership effectiveness and organizational performance. Practical implications – The leadership of an organization need not only to be successful today, but they also need to be successful tomorrow to stay in control and to flourish. Quality control and quality assurance are no longer enough for most organizations. They need to build an awareness of the sustainability components into processes of their management and business practices (i.e. internal and external ones) in order to be judged as successful in corporate decision-making and business behaviour in organizational performance in the long term. Originality/value – The principal contributions of the study are a model of timely leadership effectiveness, a model of contextual leadership effectiveness, and a typology of leadership effectiveness in corporate decision-making and business behaviour. These contributions provide theoretical and managerial ideas and insights into the sustainability components of leadership effectiveness in organizational performance.

Codes of ethics in corporate Sweden

Purpose – The purpose of the study is to examine and describe the use of codes of ethics in the top 100 companies operating in the Swedish corporate sector. This paper reports on the responses of those companies that possessed a code of ethics.

Design/methodology/approach – A three-stage research procedure was used. First, a questionnaire was sent to the public relations managers of the top 100 companies operating in the Swedish corporate sector (based on revenue). Companies were asked to answer up to 29 questions and to supply a copy of their code of ethics. The second stage involved content analysis of the codes of ethics supplied by survey respondents. The third stage involved a more detailed follow-up of a smaller group of firms that appeared to be close to best practice. Findings for Stage 1 of the research are reported in this paper. The areas of questioning were: how common are codes of ethics? Who was involved in the development of these codes? What are the reasons for the codes? How are they implemented? Do companies inform internal and external publics of the codes? What are the prescribed benefits of the codes?

Findings – It would appear that business ethics has only recently become a topic of interest in corporate Sweden and that many companies are in the early stages of code development and assimilation into company policies. The incidence of codes in the population (of 100) suggested by this survey (56 per cent) is lower than a US study finding (in 1995) that over 84 per cent of comparable US companies had codes of ethics. It would appear that Sweden today lags behind the US situation of 1995. When one investigates the special measures to support the inculcation of ethical values at the organizational level, there appears to be some shortfall. The supporting measures of ethics committees, ethics training committees, ethics training, ombudsman, an ethical audit and procedures to protect whistleblowers appear to be under-utilized in companies that possess codes. This lack of utilization tends to suggest that companies in Sweden, as yet, either have not developed a high commitment to supporting business ethics in their corporations, or they may have developed other methods to support their codes in their organizations that they view are as beneficial as the traditional methods practised in other western industrial democracies.

Research limitations/implications – This research was limited to internal ethical expectations. The commitment to business ethics is usually explored in terms of internal ethical expectations, but the simultaneous consideration of the external ethical expectations in the marketplace (e.g. among suppliers and customers or other publics) is desirable. A dyadic approach considering a company's internal ethical expectations and the external ethical expectations of a company's business activities may give a more balanced and in-depth approach.

Practical implications – Evidence is now available to show that codes of ethics are well developed in many of Sweden's largest corporations: organizations that, from their responses, appear to see a diverse range of benefits in developing the area of business ethics. Companies are beginning to implement not only a code of ethics, but other complementary initiatives that reinforce the need for the culture of the organization to be ethical. Codes of ethics are perceived by organizations to have assisted them in their dealings in the marketplace and many companies use their ethical values to underpin their strategic planning process. It appears that many companies now see the formalisation of business ethics as an integral part of their commercial practices.

Originality/value – This study is the first one of its kind on codes of ethics in corporate Sweden. It will enable all sectors of Swedish business to benchmark their efforts against the major companies in the Swedish corporate sector.

The Pareto plus syndrome in top marketing journals: research and journal criteria

Purpose – Pareto’s Law often refers to the theory that a small percentage of a total is responsible for a large proportion of the total outcome. It is commonly known as the 80/20 law or principle. The objective is to review and debate whether there is a “Pareto syndrome” in the distribution of crucial research and journal criteria in top marketing journals.

Design/methodology/approach – The authors provide a review and a debate based upon previous research on top marketing journals. For this purpose, the Pareto syndrome concept is introduced, based upon a set of research and journal criteria. Their distribution is examined.

Findings – The review of research and journal criteria in top marketing journals generated an extremely skewed outcome. When it comes to the criteria, the top journals in marketing tend to be governed by narrow concerns of research rather than broad ones.

Research limitations/implications – The research and journal criteria that have a skewed outcome may reinforce the rigidity and the lack of innovativeness of the marketing discipline. The evolutionary speed of the discipline may at best be reduced or it may at worst grind to a halt. The authors argue that there are a number of serious concerns to be addressed in the future review and debate of top journals in marketing.

Practical implications – Editors and editorial boards need seriously to address the concerns reviewed and debated, namely the skewed distribution of criteria, such as affiliation, data and methodology.

Originality/value – The authors debate that there is evidence that confirms the existence of a Pareto plus syndrome in key research and journal criteria of top marketing journals.

Masochistic marketing : Volvo Australia's not "so safe" strategy

Purpose – The objective is to describe a marketing approach used by Volvo in the Australian marketplace. It appears to be a rare approach and could be perceived to some extent as being “masochistic”.

Design/methodology/approach – The research is based upon a case study. The term “masochistic marketing” is introduced.

Findings – The “masochistic marketing” approach applied by Volvo in Australia should be seen as a process. It is dependent upon the outcome of a series of cause and effect relationships.

Research limitations/implications – The masochistic marketing approach may be divided into four cause-related phases, all of which create a dualistic outcome of either positive or negative effect-chains in respect to the corporate image in the marketplace and society.

Practical implications – A masochistic marketing approach is a high-risk venture. It is a challenging and demanding marketing process, because it plays on the humiliation of the corporate image itself. The core idea of the masochistic marketing approach violates, or at least appears to oppose, the fundaments of marketing.

Originality/value – Masochistic marketing is not recommended to be used as a common approach, unless a series of events has turned the corporate image in the marketplace into something that is highly undesirable and a stigma.

Dietary manipulation of muscle long-chain omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and sensory properties of lamb meat

The effects of dietary manipulation of muscle long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (FA) on sensory properties of cooked meat in second cross ([Merino×Border Leicester]×Poll Dorset) wether lambs were evaluated. Lambs fed dietary supplements of fish meal (FM, Exp. 1) and fish oil (FO, Exp. 2) showed moderately (P<0.01) and markedly (P<0.001) increased muscle long-chain omega-3 FA content compared with those fed the basal diet of lucerne chaff and oat chaff. Protected canola seed (PCS, Exp. 1) significantly (P<0.001) increased omega-6 FA content of the longissimus muscle. In each of the 2 experiments (1 and 2), after being fed experimental diets for 6 weeks lambs were slaughtered at a commercial abattoir. At 24 h post-mortem (PM) the semitendinosus and biceps femoris muscles were removed from animals and stored at −20°C until evaluation of sensory properties using experienced panel members. The muscle samples were stored for 3 (Exp. 1) and 12 (Exp. 2) months then removed, thawed and cooked for sensory evaluation. The meat samples were cooked under standardized conditions in a convection microwave at 180°C (20–25 min) to an internal temperature of 75°C. Cooked samples were tested for flavour, aroma, juiciness and overall palatability. The significant increase in muscle long-chain omega-3 with FM (Exp. 1 and 2) and FO (Exp. 2) or omega-6 FA with PCS (Exp. 1) were not detrimental to sensory panel evaluations of flavour or aroma of cooked meat when compared with the basal diet. However, meat from FM (Exp. 1) had lower juiciness and FO (Exp. 2) had lower overall palatability. Protected sunflower meal protein with FO (Exp. 2) significantly lowered ratings for flavour, juiciness and overall palatability. Lamb meat with increased levels of long-chain omega-3 FA can be produced without altering the sensory quality (flavour or aroma) of the cooked meat.

Dietary intakes and food sources of Omega-6 and Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Both n−6 and n−3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are recognized as essential nutrients in the human diet, yet reliable data on population intakes are limited. The aim of the present study was to ascertain the dietary intakes and food sources of individual n−6 and n−3 PUFA in the Australian population. An existing database with fatty acid composition data on 1690 foods was updated with newly validated data on 150 foods to estimate the fatty acid content of foods recorded as eaten by 10,851 adults in the 1995 Australian National Nutrition Survey. Average daily intakes of linoleic (LA), arachidonic (AA), α-linolenic (LNA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA), docosapentaenoic (DPA), and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acids were 10.8, 0.052, 1.17, 0.056, 0.026, and 0.106 g, respectively, with longchain (LC) n−3 PUFA (addition of FPA, DPA, and DHA) totaling 0.189 g; median intakes were considerably lower (9.0 g LA, 0.024 g AA, 0.95 g LNA, 0.008 g EPA, 0.006 g DPA, 0.015 g DHA, and 0.029 g LC n−3 PUFA). Fats and oils, meat and poultry, cereal-based products and cereals, vegetables, and nuts and seeds were important sources of n−6 PUFA, while cereal-based products, fats and oils, meat and poultry, cereals, milk products, and vegetable products were sources of LNA. As expected, seafood was the main source of LC n−3 PUFA, contributing 71%, while meat and eggs contributed 20 and 6%, respectively. The results indicate that the majority of Australians are failing to meet intake recommendations for LC n−3 PUFA (>0.2 g per day) and emphasize the need for strategies, to increase the availability and consumption of n−3-containing foods.

Managing intravenous medications in the non-hospital setting: an ethnographic investigation

Little published information exists about the issues involved in conducting complex intravenous medication therapy in patients’ homes. An ethnographic study of a local hospital-in-the-home program in the Australian Capital Territory explored this phenomenon to identify those factors that had an impact on the use of medicine in the home environment. This article focuses on one of the three themes identified in the study—Clinical Practice. Within this theme, topics related to the organization and management of intravenous medications, geography and diversity of patient caseload, and communication in the practice setting are discussed. These findings have important implications for policy development and establishment of a research agenda for hospital-in-the-home services.

A public sector scale for codes of ethics classification

This article examines the results of a study conducted of the top 100 public sector units in Sweden. These units comprise 40 entities of government, 40 municipalities, and 20 county councils. The aim of the study was to examine and describe the codes of ethics in these Swedish public sector units. This research reports on the responses of 27 public sector units that possessed a code of ethics. The principal contribution of this work is a customized PUB SEC-scale to measure and evaluate the content of codes of ethics artefacts in public sector units. The PUB SEC-scale differs to a large extent from the current private sector-scales (PRlSEC-scales) in literature, due to the specific characteristics of the public sector.

The use of codes of ethics in the corporate marketplace: the case of Australia and Sweden

Business ethics is a subject that recently has been thrust again into prominence in industrialised economies around the world, due to the revelations of the practices of some of the major corporations operating within the USA. In Australia, corporate collapses such as HIH and Onetel and in Sweden, the scandals with the top executives of Skandia and also Systembolaget have brought in to sharp focus that these practices are not confined to the USA. Since the early 1960s, codes of ethics have been in evidence in many organisations in the USA, whilst in Australia, as in Britain, the interest in codes of ethics was piqued by the stock market crash of 1987. In Sweden, however, this concept of the use of codes of ethics in the corporate sector had not been investigated prior to this study. This paper examines the use of codes of ethics in the marketplace by the top companies operating in corporate Australia and corporate Sweden. The outcome of this research shows that in both Australia and Sweden that large organisations indicate a substantial interest in codes of ethics and value the use of their codes in the marketplace. There are, however, differences in the ways that the companies in each country implement their codes of ethics in the marketplace and the benefits that they see as being derived from them.

Codes of ethics in Sweden's largest public sector organizations : communicating the intent of the code within the organization

The aim of the study was to examine the ways that public sector organizations in Sweden communicated the intent of their codes of ethics to their employees. Primary data was obtained via a self-administered mail questionnaire distributed to a census of the top 100 organizations.

The study identified a range of methods used by organizations to integrate the ethos of codes into corporate culture. These methods included communication of the code, company induction of new staff, consequences for a breach of the code, ethical performance, an ethics ombudsman, the support of whistleblowers, a standing ethics committee, ethics education, and an ethics education committee.

Whilst many organizations have instituted ethical behaviour initiatives, activities specifically targeted at exposure, education and support for staff to perform ethically were found to be underdeveloped.