The Institute of Business Ethics/European Business Ethics Network-UK Student Competition in Business Ethics

Abstract

In the following pages you can read the winning student entry in the postgraduate category of the first joint student competition in Business Ethics, sponsored by the Institute of Business Ethics (IBE) and the UK Association of the European Business Ethics Network (EBEN-UK). As the leading corporate-facing business ethics organisation in the UK it is part of the mission of IBE to engage with the academic community in the encouragement of the teaching of business ethics to those who will form the business community of the future. EBEN-UK is the leading academic body in the UK, affiliated to the European Business Ethics Network and with a wide membership from across the Universities in the UK. Its members teach business ethics within Business Schools and publish textbooks and scholarly articles on the subject. The idea of a joint student competition was borne out of the desire of both institutions to promote business ethics teaching and the visibility of business ethics in business schools throughout the UK. The competition had undergraduate as well as postgraduate categories and required the submission of an assignment or an original essay or case study on any aspect of business ethics. Business schools were asked to submit the best piece of work in each category from their school. A joint panel was established and judged the entries against criteria of topicality, clarity of expression, use of theory and application to practice. The d500 prizes were awarded at a ceremony at IBE’s offices in London in July 2003. The undergraduate prize was awarded to Martyn Thompson of Manchester Metropolitan University for his essay on whistleblowing. The postgraduate prize was awarded to Chris Beer of Nottingham University Business School for his essay on stakeholders. That essay is reproduced here. The competition received some very high calibre pieces of work, as you can judge from the article that follows. The competition is being repeated in 2004 and we look forward to equally high quality entries.