Are HRM practitioners required to possess competence in corporate ethics? A content analysis of qualifications in Australia and Asia

Journal article


Segon, Michael, Booth, Chris and Roberts, Andrew. (2024). Are HRM practitioners required to possess competence in corporate ethics? A content analysis of qualifications in Australia and Asia. Asian Journal of Business Ethics. 13, pp. 21-56. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13520-024-00206-8
AuthorsSegon, Michael, Booth, Chris and Roberts, Andrew
Abstract

Ethical cultures, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and sustainability strategies are increasingly being addressed through formal organisational policies and structures. This is evidenced by codes of ethics, conduct, whistle-blowing reporting lines, anti-bribery and corruption policies, and broader stakeholder and environmental engagement strategies. In the United States, corporate ethics managers are responsible for these functions, supported by specific professional and university-level qualifications. However, this is not the case in Australia and Asia where the role appears delegated to human resource personnel in organisations. Human resource management (HRM) is increasingly advanced as a formal profession, yet whether corporate ethics content features as a significant component of the HRM profession is unclear. Expert knowledge is a foundation of a profession along with the duty to act within the limits of that knowledge and expertise. This paper scopes what constitutes professional expert knowledge. It examines corporate ethics expertise and HRM within this context. Major Australian and Asian organisations are examined to verify that HRM Departments, and thus HRM practitioners, are responsible for managing corporate ethics. Given the seniority and strategic importance of this function, the content of selected Masters in HRM and related fields are examined to identify the extent of ethics content. This is considered in the light of the expertise required to manage corporate ethics, and conclusions are drawn whether the HRM discipline is appropriately qualified to manage this function. Finally, recommendations and further research towards advancing the role and function of corporate ethics managers in general are proposed.

KeywordsCorporate ethics ; Organisational ethics; Ethics managers; Human Resource Management; Professional duties of HR managers
Year01 Jan 2024
JournalAsian Journal of Business Ethics
Journal citation13, pp. 21-56
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media B.V.
ISSN2210-6723
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1007/s13520-024-00206-8
Web address (URL)https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13520-024-00206-8
Open accessOpen access
Research or scholarlyResearch
Page range21-56
Publisher's version
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online27 May 2024
Publication process dates
Accepted22 Apr 2024
Deposited19 Sep 2024
Additional information

© The Author(s) 2024

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Place of publicationNetherlands
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https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/item/90yq2/are-hrm-practitioners-required-to-possess-competence-in-corporate-ethics-a-content-analysis-of-qualifications-in-australia-and-asia

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