Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - (Page 15) Business Ethics An interview with Philippa Foster Back, Director of the Institute of Business Ethics PEE: Do you think that the current financial uncertainty will make businesses shy away from their ethical responsibilities? There is a concern that this might happen, but in discussions to date there seems to be a higher degree of awareness that now is not the time to shy away from responsibilities. If anything it is the opposite as the public is more conscious of what constitutes unethical behaviour so there is nowhere to hide. What do you think the pharmaceutical industry could do to improve its image? Business sectors that suffer in the media need to react by engaging their critics and stakeholders more. If the criticism is unwarranted then that has to be tackled but if it is warranted then the company needs to be more open to its critics. What are the main areas of ethical concern for companies operating in the pharmaceutical sector? The main areas for concern are issues around handling intellectual property, how clinical trials are undertaken, information on drugs and their side effects and how business is undertaken in third world countries. This is not an exhaustive list but indicative of where the public level of expectation is higher. Pharmaceutical companies will also have the range of ethical issues that affect staff and employees and the environment too, as all companies do. What are the first steps that a company should take in order to start operating more ethically? The first step is to articulate the ‘values’ by which the company’s business will be done. These represent the core beliefs. These should then be codified and explained through training to all staff so they can understand the expectations of how business should be undertaken. An important aspect to consolidate such an ethics programme is the example set by senior management, who are seen to walk the talk. Who is ultimately responsible for the ethical behaviour of a company? Everyone in the organisation is responsible for ethics but the lead comes from those in the boardroom led by the CEO. Are there differences in the approaches that small and medium-sized companies should take to business ethics, compared to large companies? All companies should make clear for their staff the expectations of how business should be undertaken, whether a large or small company. Typically, companies of 30–40 or more staff will develop a code. Do some people believe that running a company “ethically” will make it harder to do business? In research done at the Institute of Business Ethics in 2003, companies with codes of ethics outperformed those without across four financial measures (‘Does ethics pay?’ Simon Webley, IBE 2003). The conclusion of this study was that having a code of ethics was an indication of a well managed company. The study was rerun in 2007 looking at companies who did training in this area and those who did not. Again companies who trained their staff outperformed others who did not (‘Does Business Ethics Pay? Revisited’ Kaodi Ugoji, Nicole Dando, Lance Moir. IBE 2007). MISS IT, MISS OUT! Ensure you receive Pharm Exec Europe every week. Click here to subscribe for FREE now! pharmexec.com 16 ON THE MOVE This weeks appointments and promotions 2 FROM THE EDITOR A week in pharma is a long time 3 NEWS Best new antidepressants named 4 NEWS Pfizer’s ‘stomach turning’ UK cinema ad http://www.pharmexec.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 Contents From the Editor News Calendar Actavis Exclusive Diagnostics Business Ethics On the Move Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Contents (Page 1) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - From the Editor (Page 2) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - News (Page 3) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - News (Page 4) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Calendar (Page 5) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Calendar (Page 6) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Actavis Exclusive (Page 7) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Actavis Exclusive (Page 8) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Actavis Exclusive (Page 9) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Diagnostics (Page 10) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Diagnostics (Page 11) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Diagnostics (Page 12) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Business Ethics (Page 13) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Business Ethics (Page 14) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - Business Ethics (Page 15) Pharmaceutical Executive Digest Europe - February 11, 2009 - On the Move (Page 16)
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