To support our partners in fulfilling this new requirement, the Institute of Business Ethics and CIMA have jointly produced two new guidance documents, ‘Embedding ethical values – a guide for CIMA partners’, and ‘Business Ethics for SMEs'.
The purpose of the 'Embedding ethical values' guide is twofold: For organisations that don’t yet have an ethical policy or equivalent, it provides the right resources and support to draw up a code or policy document. For organisations that already have a code in place, this guide directs to resources which helps address what else can be done to embed ethical values and make the code effective.
The second guide, ‘Business Ethics for SMEs’, has been produced alongside ‘Embedding ethical values’, and explores what business ethics means for small to medium-sized business enterprises and how they can introduce and support high standards of business practice.
Although aimed at CIMA partners, these guides are relevant to members or students who seek to embed ethical values to their organisation or find out more about introducing a Code of Ethics.
Ethical values must be strongly embedded in an organisation’s culture. For this to be effective a code should be supported by a programme of communication and training as well as leadership example. Ethical commitments need to be reflected through core business activities and policies and processes.