CBC1501 Assignment 01.

CBC1501 Assignment 01. Communication In Business Contexts. Ethical Challenges in the Workplace Most decisions faced by accounting professionals pose ethical challenges. These challenges require a specific response from an individual. This response is based on moral values, which again is grounded in a belief of what is right and what is wrong. When a situation arises that an individual considers unethical, their values force them to act. When acting, decisions have to be made and these decisions need to be guided in the right direction. When an accounting professional faces a situation where their values force them to act, their level of integrity will influence the outcome of that decision. Integrity is a quality that imposes an obligation to do the right thing no matter what the consequences might be. When facing unethical challenges in an accounting environment an individual should be frank and honest. Decision making should be free from personal gain and influence from others. The guidelines and rules of accounting information is standardised to ensure conformity. In other words, manipulation of these guidelines or rules would make the information unreliable, irrelevant an incomprehensible. When providing information, accounting professionals should do so objectively. This requires an independent and unbiased interpretation that is based on factual evidence and not on personal opinion. When preparing financial statements it is imperative that objectivity is used. The information provided in financial statements will influence the decisions made by a company’s stakeholders. The opinions and preferences of a company should not manipulate the result in financial statement. The judgement and advice accounting professionals provide influences the decisions of others. Outdated education and professional incompetence often give rise to ethical 3 | P a g e challenges in the work place. Professional competence needs to be maintained at a structured level to ensure that sound judgement and advice is provided. Continuous training and development of technical skills is required to ensure that professional competence is maintained. Accounting professionals should regularly attend training workshops and seminars to improve technical skills and development. Accounting professionals are exposed to very sensitive information on a daily basis, which inflicts on them a great deal of responsibility. Even if it is not clearly stated, confidentially is expected when dealing with financial information. Confidentiality poses a countless ethical challenges in an accounting environment and should be addressed with extreme caution. The most common ethical challenge faced with regard to confidentiality, is conflict of interest. Companies often delivery multiple services to the same client. Even though strict guidelines are provided to avoid possible conflicts, the method in which they are resolved is a matter of professional interpretation. Interpretation is always vulnerable to inaccuracy, therefore it is important to maintain confidentiality. In order to avoid actions that would negatively affect the reputation of the accounting profession, accounting professional have an obligation to comply with the rules and regulations governed by the accounting bodies. Accounting professionals deliver one of the most important services in a business environment. In order to uphold the trust and respect of clients, accounting professionals must provide an effective and high quality service. Ethical challenges form an integral part of the accounting profession and accounting professionals are respected for their honesty, integrity and competence. Ethical behaviour is the foundation on which accounting principles are built and from which these challenges should be addressed. Accounting professionals have an obligation to act ethically responsible. Ethics is not a set of legal rules. It is a state of mind. A way of life. (Solano, 2018) (Moosa, 2015) (Half, 2018) (Lamprecht, 2016) (Small, Smidt, & Moola-Yasseen, 2017) (What is the Objectivity Principle?, n.d.) 4 | P a g e 4 MEMORANDUM WRITING Account Trust Incorporated MEMO From: Joey Marx To: The accounting department Date: 18 March 2019 Training on ethical conduct In order to ensure compliance with ethical conduct in accounting, compulsory training sessions have been scheduled from 17 to 19 May 2019 at Summer Place in Sandton, Johannesburg. These sessions will focus on accounting legislation, the SAICA Ethics Charter, company policies and procedures and ethical communication in a business environment. The activities will be both individual and group based to improve communications skills and team work The decisions made by accounting professionals influences almost every person on a daily basis. It also determines the way in which a company and the profession is perceived by stakeholders and the general public. Most of these decisions do not amount to being simply right or wrong. The greater amount of decisions that will be encountered are open for interpretation. Understanding ethical conduct can direct decision-making and prevent actions that could damage the reputation of the company and the accounting profession. Why risk making uniformed and potentially detrimental decisions? By attending these training sessions you will have a better understanding of the ethical frameworks of accounting, company policies and procedures and ethical communication. You will be better equip to deal with difficult situations, and it will give you the confidence to make effective and efficient decisions