Ethics

I have been thinking about this for a while and started a new category on my website regarding ethics, both personal and business. I have been in the US for about 12 years and I have run into instances where it has made me wonder if people no longer consider doing the "right" thing and would rather choose the "easy" solution.

Making money through ethical means

I am amazed at how some people are willing to make money out of the misery of others. When 911 happened within the first week there were people selling American flags and commemorative coins. At one point they were selling the rubble from ground zero. I can understand if the money was going to be put to good use, like the families of people who died during this tragedy but I don't think that was the case. Someone looked at this terrible event and thought "How can I make money on this"

My wife and I ran into this yesterday with our dog, she's very sick and old and got loose. We have been worried sick about her. We posted flyers and went online and posted on bulletin boards and anywhere we have the chance to spread the word that we are worried about her and want her home. Want to know what the first response I got back? Offers to sell us premium ad space to post pictures of our missing dog and people offering services as "pet detectives" who will go out and find our dog for a price. Chatting to all the vets in the area we also found out that its common round here for people to take your dog. Am I so different from other people that the first thing I think about when I see a stray dog is "someone must miss them, let me try and contact the owner" instead of "I wonder if there's a reward, I'll just keep the dog for a while".

Not on the same scale, but in the same mindset. Microsoft is looking to make money on Android sales. Microsoft sued HTC over patent violations and HTC has agreed to pay Microsoft $5 on each phone sold. According to Larry Page in Google Q2 2011 Q2 earnings call they are seeing 550,000 android activation's a day. Which would make Android a profitable business for Microsoft if they can sue enough vendors to pay them for each activation.

Now tell me this, how is this ethical? What happened to making money off the products you make rather than looking at sueing others as a potential revenue stream or by making money of the misfortune of others.

Working together and we all can profit

One of the reasons I have been such a strong supporter of Google is their openness with technology. I have attended technology meetup groups at their offices in Atlanta and there's a spirit of "Here's something cool we came up with ... take it and have fun coming up with ways to use it". I get inspired seeing what uses people can put this technology to and hanging out with people who think the same way. There's no restriction on me making money on their products, we all come out on top and no one has to be cheated in order to make a profit. Isn't that how it's supposed to be? It seems to have worked out nicely for Google.

Ethics are simply the morality of right and wrong, treating people with respect. When did it become acceptable by companies to consider letting ethics take a back seat, when it came to making as much money for their stockholders as possible.

Shameless Exploitation in the pursuit of the common good

Newman's Own is now a major brand in supermarkets, with sales exceeding $100 million annually and profits of more than $12 million. Since its beginning, Newman's Own has given all its profits--more than $137 million--to charity and established the Hole in the Wall Gang camps for kids. As a company they have been able to produce a product that benefited humanity for the past 30 years. I find it inspiring hearing about a company that puts charity ahead of a profit margin. People come first. (read more at time magazine.)

I work for a company that makes a living off an OpenSource project, Drupal. As a company and as individuals we are encouraged to give back to the developer community. I have been able to use office time to work on projects which benefit people at no cost to them and when I am done at the end of the day I feel I earned my pay and not at the "expense" of others. Which is a world apart from my days in London working for companies like Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs.

I am not against making a profit, I think it should be done honestly and not at the expense of others. We should also give something back rather than take all the time.

I think people need to reset their moral compass throughout their lives and always asses every decision they make in life. My father's advice to me when I left home was to "always try to do what's right and be a good man." It may sound old fashioned, but now that I am older and a father, its the best advice I can give my son.