BADM 300 Final Exam Study Guide – Flashcards
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A strong predictor of cheating in the workplace is cheating in school.
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TRUE A strong predictor of cheating in the workplace is cheating in school. Sadly, recent research has found that cheating is so pervasive that some use the label a "global cheating culture."
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In the post-trust era, few employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically.
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FALSE In the post-trust era, the public overwhelmingly views businesses as operating against the public's best interests, and the majority of employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically.
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Competence can be developed through real-world business experiences.
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TRUE People develop competence in many ways: through study, observation, and, most important, practice and real-world business experiences.
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A focus on action implies seeking passive roles within an organization.
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FALSE A focus on action implies that a person seizes business opportunities. You demonstrate competence by taking an active role in your business and by getting results.
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A person's ability to gain credibility strongly depends on his ability to show that he cares for the needs of others.
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TRUE A person's ability to gain credibility strongly depends on his ability to show that he cares for the needs of others. Once an individual is perceived as unconcerned about the interests of others or disinterested in causes above and beyond him- or herself, others distrust such a person.
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Effective communicators gain trust by connecting with others.
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TRUE Effective communicators gain trust by connecting with others—that is, seeking to understand others' needs, wants, opinions, feelings, and aspirations.
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Speaking about one's own needs instead of others' needs indicates a sense of community.
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FALSE Speaking about "our needs" or "your needs" as opposed to "my needs" engenders trust and helps you come up with solutions that achieve mutual benefit.
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A sense of accountability takes a stakeholder view that considers the needs of all groups in society affected by your business.
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TRUE A sense of accountability implies an obligation to meeting the needs and wants of others. It also involves an enlarged vision of those affected by your business activities. It takes a stakeholder view that includes all groups in society affected by your business.
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By placing a rationale for accountability in your communications, you will generate poor trust from others.
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FALSE By placing a rationale for accountability in your communications, you will generate substantial trust and goodwill from others.
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Character-based traits are crucial in determining trust at the workplace.
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TRUE Character is central in creating trust. Hence, character-based traits are crucial in determining trust at the workplace.
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It is the duty of civil servants to act visibly, predictably, and understandably.
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TRUE Transparency involves sharing all relevant information with stakeholders. It is the duty of civil servants to act visibly, predictably, and understandably.
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Where the law and ethical principles do not provide a clear answer, transparency seldom helps.
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FALSE Where the law and ethical principles do not provide a clear answer, transparency is key. Decision making needs to be open, documented, and based on the collective conscience of your work team and affected stakeholders.
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Employees often speak up when they observe potentially unethical behavior.
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FALSE Often employees fail to speak up when they observe potentially unethical behavior.
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You can create a transparent workplace by being accessible and acknowledging the concerns of others.
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TRUE You can create a transparent workplace by being accessible, acknowledging the concerns of others, and following through when you don't have immediate answers.
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Aligning personal values with corporate values is an important element of character.
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TRUE Aligning personal values with corporate values is an important element of character. After all, if one is living corporate values that do not match one's personal values, then there is a lack of integrity.
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By avoiding open and honest communication of business problems, employees doom a business to poor financial performance.
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TRUE Nothing short of complete honesty is demanded in the business world. By avoiding open and honest communication of business problems, employees doom a business to poor financial performance.
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Today, most organizational cultures are moving to hierarchical and closed communication structures.
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FALSE Today, most organizational cultures are moving to flatter, more open communication structures.
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The FAIR test fails to evaluate whether a person is hiding information in business communications.
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FALSE The FAIR test helps you examine how well you have provided the facts; how well you have granted access to your motives, reasoning, and information; how well you have examined impacts on stakeholders; and how well you have shown respect.
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Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to less efficient and inferior work outcomes.
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FALSE Establishing credibility allows you to communicate more easily and more influentially. Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes.
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The level of trust in working relationships strongly impacts financial performance.
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TRUE Establishing credibility allows you to communicate more easily and more influentially. The level of trust in working relationships strongly impacts work outcomes and financial performance.
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In the post-trust era: A. businesses are often thought to operate against the public's best interests. B. communication has become increasingly linear. C. transparency is no longer important in the workplace. D. stakeholders don't require businesses to be accountable to them. E. character-based traits play a very small role in establishing credibility.
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A In the post-trust era, the public overwhelmingly views businesses as operating against the public's best interests, and the majority of employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically.
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Which of the following is true of the post-trust era? A. Communication has become increasingly linear. B. Transparency is no longer prioritized in the workplace. C. Businesses ethics are held unimportant. D. Stakeholders don't require businesses to be accountable to them. E. Most employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically.
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E In the post-trust era, the public overwhelmingly views businesses as operating against the public's best interests, and the majority of employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically.
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Which of the following is true of competence? A. Its importance has decreased in the post-truster B. It is often evaluated by ones track record of achievements. C. It is innate and cannot be gained through experience. D. It is unrelated to your communication style. E. It is demonstrated by seeking passive roles within an organization.
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B Competence refers to the knowledge and skills needed to accomplish business tasks, approach business problems, and get a job done. Most people will judge your competence based on your track record of success and achievement.
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People can demonstrate competence by: A. seeking passive roles within an organization. B. obscuring their motivation and sources of information. C. being accountable only to themselves and nobody else. D. hiding their mistakes from their team members. E. emphasizing results and focusing on action.
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E Competence refers to the knowledge and skills needed to accomplish business tasks, approach business problems, and get a job done. There are two traits associated with competence: a focus on action and an emphasis on results.
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Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following deputy managers should she choose if she is looking for the employee with the highest level of competence? A. Jack, who has missed several deadlines in the past B. Dora, who has a me-oriented communication style C. Maria, who focuses on action and emphasizes results D. Peggy, who works independently of the interests of stakeholders E. Terry, who seeks passive roles in the organization
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C Competence refers to the knowledge and skills needed to accomplish business tasks, approach business problems, and get a job done. The two traits associated with competence are: a focus on action and an emphasis on results.
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A sense of caring can be established by: A. cultivating a sense of community in the workplace. B. not concerning yourself with the aspirations of your employees. C. being result-oriented and not relationship-oriented. D. discouraging employees from working in teams. E. favoring a me-oriented communication style.
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A In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability.
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In what way does caring help establish credibility in the business world? A. It helps people understand serious business problems. B. It encourages people to work as individuals instead of teams. C. It promotes closed communication structures. D. It encourages people to demonstrate accountability. E. It makes individuals less transparent.
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D Caring for others plays an important role in establishing credibility. In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability.
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Which of the following indicates that the sales manager of Blue Inc., Tom, lacks a sense of caring? A. Tom strives to cultivate a sense of community in the workplace. B. Tom attempts to understand the dreams and aspirations of his employees. C. Tom encourages employees to bond and work in teams. D. Tom ignores his employees' need to develop their skills. E. Tom prioritizes the welfare of his employees over that of the company.
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D In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability. Less than half (42 percent) of employees believe their managers care about them. Even worse, less than one-third (29 percent) of employees believe their managers care about whether they develop skills.
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A _____ takes a stakeholder view that includes all groups in society affected by a person's business. A. sense of accountability B. sense of individuality C. sense of team culture D. sense of opportunity E. sense of application
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A In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability. A sense of accountability takes a stakeholder view that includes all groups in society affected by a person's business.
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Performing at the highest standards, not just for oneself, but for the team, for the supervisor, for the consumer, and for the company's shareholders, indicates a sense of _____. A. individuality B. accountability C. opportunity D. future-orientation E. endurance
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B In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability. To perform every day at the highest standards, not just for oneself, but for the team, for the supervisor, for the consumer, and for the company's shareholders, indicates a sense of accountability.
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A _____ involves a feeling of duty to other employees and customers. A. sense of opportunity B. sense of individuality C. sense of accountability D. sense of culture E. sense of application
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C In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability. A sense of accountability involves a feeling of responsibility to stakeholders.
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Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following deputy managers should she choose if she is looking for an employee with a strong sense of caring? A. Jack, who prioritizes his own goals over that of his team's B. Dora, who has a me-oriented communication style C. Peggy, who doesn't understand the interests of her team D. Jenny, who cultivates a sense of community in the workplace E. Terry, who seeks passive roles in the organization
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D In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability.
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Character can be defined as: A. the stated and lived values of a company. B. the knowledge and skills needed to accomplish business tasks. C. a reputation for adhering to high moral and ethical values. D. a set of principles that govern behavior in the workplace. E. the ability to cultivate a sense of community in the workplace.
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C Managers can control their reputation as credible communicators by focusing on three well-established factors: competence, caring, and character. Character refers to a reputation for staying true to commitments made to stakeholders and adhering to high moral and ethical values.
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Which of the following is true of character? A. It is seldom important in long-term, collaborative relationships. B. Character is innate and cannot be cultivated. C. Its importance has decreased in the post-truster D. Character-based traits are central in establishing trust. E. It increases when the level of transparency decreases.
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D Character is central in creating trust. Business executives were asked what the most important determinants of trust in workplace projects were. Overwhelmingly, character-based traits—that is, honesty, ethical behavior, and willingness to exchange information—ranked at the top.
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Which of the following refers to a reputation for staying true to commitments made to stakeholders? A. Team culture B. Character C. Individuality D. Expertise E. Deliverables
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B Managers can control their reputation as credible communicators by focusing on three well-established factors: competence, caring, and character. Character refers to a reputation for staying true to commitments made to stakeholders and adhering to high moral and ethical values.
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Which of the following statements about business ethics is true? A. They are skills needed to identify and overcome business problems. B. They are of decreasing significance in the post-truster C. They are self-formulated values prioritized and adhered to by individual people. D. They measure the extent to which employees care for the needs of the company. E. They are commonly held principles in the business community for acceptable behavior.
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E Ethics are rules of conduct or moral principles that guide individual or group behavior. Business ethics are the commonly accepted beliefs and principles in the business community for acceptable behavior.
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Which of the following is true of transparency? A. Its relevance in the post-trust era has decreased. B. It implies sharing a company's trade secrets with its competitors. C. It necessitates the obscuring of motives and business practices. D. It is currently the dominant business ethic. E. It implies being accountable only to yourself.
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D The dominant business ethic in recent years is transparency. Transparency involves sharing all relevant information with stakeholders.
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Which of the following is true of corporate values? A. Corporate values are those that are formulated and adhered to by individuals. B. Publicly traded companies can decline to adopt a code of conduct. C. The employees of a company are not bound by corporate values. D. Corporate values are most effective when aligned with personal values. E. Corporate values are implied and unwritten rules which are open to interpretation.
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D Aligning personal values—those values that individuals prioritize and adhere to—with corporate values is an important element of character. After all, if one is living corporate values that do not match one's personal values, then there is a lack of integrity.
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The dominant business ethic in recent years is transparency. Transparency involves sharing all relevant information with stakeholders.Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following deputy managers should she choose if she is looking for an employee with a strong sense of ethics? A. Jordan, who is transparent and shares all relevant information with stakeholders B. Dora, who does not consider herself accountable to stakeholders C. Terry, who seldom checks his reports for errors D. Peggy, whose presentations are often misleading E. Jack, who conducts personal business on company time
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A The dominant business ethic in recent years is transparency. Transparency involves sharing all relevant information with stakeholders.
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Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following deputy managers should she choose if she is looking for an employee who communicates fairly in business? A. Jordan, who doesn't obscure his motives or sources of information B. Dora, who does not consider the dignity of other people when talking to them C. Maria, who gives stakeholders little opportunity to provide input during discussions D. Peggy, whose presentations are often misleading E. Terry, who seldom checks his reports for errors
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A One way to evaluate your communications is to use the FAIR test. The FAIR test helps you examine how well you have provided the facts; how well you have granted access to your motives, reasoning, and information; how well you have examined impacts on stakeholders; and how well you have shown respect.
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Which of the following is characteristic of people in high-trust relationships? A. A willingness to cooperate B. High resistance to new ideas C. Complicated and formalized communication styles D. A tendency to assume the worst of other people E. A strong disinclination to help other people
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A Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes. In terms of ease of communication, credibility leads to less resistance from others, increased willingness to cooperate, and less likelihood of miscommunication. In low-trust work environments, people tend to assume the negative regarding others' actions.
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Which of the following is true of people in low-trust relationships? A. They are highly efficient and easy to motivate. B. They assume the best of each other. C. They give each other the benefit of the doubt. D. They communicate poorly and inefficiently. E. They help each other freely and willingly.
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D Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes. In terms of ease of communication, credibility leads to less resistance from others, increased willingness to cooperate, and less likelihood of miscommunication.
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Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following teams should she choose for the "Stars of the Year" award if she is looking for one that operates in a high-trust environment? A. Team A, whose members are highly efficient and easy to motivate B. Team B, whose members tend to assume the worst of each other C. Team C, whose members rarely give each other the benefit of the doubt D. Team D, whose members have poor communication styles E. Team E, whose members are often disinclined to help each other
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A Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes. In terms of ease of communication, credibility leads to less resistance from others, increased willingness to cooperate, and less likelihood of miscommunication.
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Tess is the general manager of Choc-a-block, an international sweet-manufacturing company. She wishes to give one of her deputy managers the "Employee of the Year" award, and one of her teams the "Stars of the Year" award. Which of the following teams is she least likely to pick for the "Stars of the Year" award if she is looking for one that operates in a high-trust environment? A. Team A, whose members are efficient and easy to motivate B. Team B, whose members always assume the best of each other C. Team C, whose members rarely give each other the benefit of the doubt D. Team D, whose members have simple and direct communication styles E. Team E, whose members help each other freely and frequently
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C Extensive research has shown that high-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes. In terms of ease of communication, credibility leads to less resistance from others, increased willingness to cooperate, and less likelihood of miscommunication. In low-trust work environments, people tend to assume the negative regarding others' actions.
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Why has establishing credibility become so important in the post-trust era?
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In the post-trust era, the public overwhelmingly views businesses as operating against the public's best interests, and the majority of employees view their leaders and colleagues skeptically. In the business world, you often start from a deficit of trust. As a result, one of your first goals should be to gain trust or credibility from colleagues, clients, customers, and other contacts.
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Discuss the role of competence in establishing credibility.
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Competence refers to the knowledge and skills needed to accomplish business tasks, approach business problems, and get a job done. You demonstrate competence by taking an active role in your business and by getting results. How you communicate your plan of action and the results of those actions will determine how others perceive your competence and your credibility.
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What role does caring play in the establishment of credibility?
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Your colleagues, clients, and your customers will trust you far more if they know you care about them. Once an individual is perceived as unconcerned about the interests of others or disinterested in causes above and beyond him- or herself, others distrust such a person. In the business world, caring implies understanding the interests of others, cultivating a sense of community, and demonstrating accountability.
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What does a sense of accountability imply?
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A sense of accountability implies an obligation to meeting the needs and wants of others. It also involves an enlarged vision of those affected by your business activities. It takes a stakeholder view that includes all groups in society affected by your business.
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Discuss the role of character in establishing credibility.
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Character refers to a reputation for staying true to commitments made to stakeholders and adhering to high moral and ethical values. Character has always been important in business relationships, especially long-term, collaborative relationships. Character is central in creating trust. Business executives were asked what the most important determinants of trust in workplace projects were. Overwhelmingly, character-based traits—that is, honesty, ethical behavior, and willingness to exchange information—ranked at the top.
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What are business ethics?
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Business ethics are the commonly accepted beliefs and principles in the business community for acceptable behavior. At a minimum, business ethics involve adhering to laws; safeguarding confidential or proprietary information; avoiding conflicts of interest and misusing company assets; and refraining from accepting or providing inappropriate gifts, gratuities, and entertainment.
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Define transparency.
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Transparency involves sharing all relevant information with stakeholders. As defined by Transparency International, transparency "is a principle that allows those affected by administrative decisions, business transactions or charitable work to know not only the basic facts and figures but also the mechanisms and processes. It is the duty of civil servants, managers and trustees to act visibly, predictably and understandably." As far as corporate communications, the dominant business ethic in recent years is transparency. And for the foreseeable future, it is expected to remain the dominant business ethic related to communications.
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What are corporate values? Why is it important that they be aligned with personal values?
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Corporate values are the stated and lived values of a company. Aligning personal values—those values that individuals prioritize and adhere to—with corporate values is an important element of character. If one is living corporate values that do not match one's personal values, then there is a lack of integrity.
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What are the issues associated with dishonest communication?
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First, by avoiding open and honest communication of business problems, employees doom a business to poor financial performance. Second, dishonesty is among the primary reasons for lower employee morale. Many employees left an organization because of lack of trust—the key reason being lack of communication and dishonesty. Finally, dishonesty can be reason for dismissal.
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What are the advantages of high-trust relationships?
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Establishing credibility allows you to communicate more easily and more influentially. High-trust relationships lead to more efficient and superior work outcomes. In terms of ease of communication, credibility leads to less resistance from others, increased willingness to cooperate, and less likelihood of miscommunication. In high-trust relationships, since individuals willingly and freely give the benefit of the doubt, communication is simpler, easier, quicker, and more effective.
