Using The Corporation As A Powerful Illustration Of Ethical Issues Facing The Financial Manager

Abstract

Traditional undergraduate students lack the business experience or frame of reference to enable them to understand the potential conflicts of interest that occur in every day business. In the wake of the corporate scandals that has shaken the financial world, emerged the realization that some corporate cultures are legally corrupt or at the very least, behave unethically. Students need to be made aware of the potential conflicts that lie ahead. Corporate cultures are often not transparent and may not be what they appear to be. Students need to develop skills and awareness that will allow them to personally assess the harm and benefit of business decisions, not just for the shareholder but for all stakeholders of the company. The documentary, The Corporation can be used as a valuable teaching tool to provide students with a context and imagery that allows them to, in a sense, experience the issues, thereby making the material more relevant and creating a more pronounced impression on the student. For graduate students the documentary can be used as a platform for lively discussion with regard to issues they have come across or could potentially encounter. The purpose of this article is to provide a segment breakdown of the movie with suggested discussion questions for a lively class exchange.