Ethics Matters Blog: Perspectives on Responsible Business is an online forum for the discussion of business ethics, corporate responsibility and themes pertinent to Seattle University. It features articles by faculty, scholars, business leaders, and students.
Meet Monica Lopez Reinmiller, a seasoned ethics and compliance leader and the newest member of the Center for Business Ethics’ Advisory Board. Read more to learn about her career, service, and commitment to Seattle University.
Jun 27, 2023
Read More about Newest Board Member Blends Ethics, Compliance and Service
Professor of Communication and Faculty Fellow Jiangmeng Liu discusses the impact of social media influencers on corporate social responsibility and corporate social advocacy, arguing that corporations need to adopt strategies to preserve trust and authenticity.
Mar 16, 2023
Read More about More than Just a Marketing Tool: Social Media Influencers and Social Impact
Professor of Computer Science and Faculty Fellow Xin Zhao explores workplace diversity in the Information technology sector and what can be done, not only in business but also in higher education.
Feb 16, 2023
Professor of Politics and Faculty Fellow Onur Bakiner continues his exploration of the EU’s regulation of online platforms. Read more about the scope and implications of Europe’s pending Digital Services Act for technology firms.
Jun 14, 2022
Read More about The European Union’s Digital Services Act: A New Era for the Internet?
The European Commission has released a new proposal to regulate artificial intelligence (AI). Faculty Fellow Onur Bakiner discusses this proposed regulation, its approach to AI risk, and its implications for American business.
May 12, 2022
Faculty Fellow Caitlin Ring Carlson discusses free expression and social responsibility in the wake of Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter.
Apr 26, 2022
Read More about Ethics and Twitter: Elon Musk’s Quest for Free Expression
The Center’s Faculty Fellow Caitlin Ring Carlson, recently had a virtual conversation with Siva Vaidhyanathan, author of Anti-Social Media and Professor of Media Studies at the University of Virginia, where they discussed the problems caused by social media as well as possible regulatory responses. Read Professor Carlson’s reflections about this conversation.
Feb 14, 2022
The Center’s Director, Jeffery Smith, recently discussed the case of the Boeing 737 MAX with the Society for Corporate Compliance and Ethics. With the assistance of Rong Jin, the Center’s Frank Shrontz Scholar, this piece examines the interplay between ethics and regulation as well as how business leaders can responsibly support the regulatory process.
Nov 18, 2021
Faculty Fellow and Professor of Business Ethics, Marc Cohen, discusses his latest research and how managers can create a culture of trust.
May 12, 2021
Faculty Fellow and Associate Professor of Business Law, Geneva Sedgwick, writes about discrimination, privacy and autonomy in the use of facial recognition technology for hiring.
Apr 22, 2021
Read More about Facial Recognition in Hiring: Occupational Segregation on Speed
What are the problems associated with vaccine passports? Center Director Jeffery Smith recently discussed the ethics of vaccination requirements with the Albers Point of View (POV).
Apr 22, 2021
What is the relationship between the economic and moral case for investing in sustainability? Faculty Fellow Tina Zamora examines how the answer to this question varies, looking at the perspectives of investors, employees and regulators.
Mar 25, 2021
Faculty Fellow and Professor Marc Cohen has published extensively on trust in business. In this post, he examines a fundamental question: how should we control the behavior of employees and business partners if we want to build a culture of trust?
Jan 21, 2021
Like the administrations at all other Jesuit colleges and universities, the leaders of Seattle University have always understood the fundamental importance of ethics in a well-rounded education, even for students in the professional fields. Three leaders in the Initiative in Ethics and Transformative Technologies talk about digital ethics and their work in the intersection between technology and ethics.
Jan 21, 2021
Read More about Examining Digital Ethics at Seattle University
Valentina Zamora, Associate Professor of Accounting and current Faculty Fellow, provides perspective on her current research, which examines corporate reporting around environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. Public corporations and their stakeholders are increasingly interested in companies’ ESG policies. Drawing upon the work of Costco Wholesale and Sheri Flies, Costco's Vice President of Sustainability and Compliance, Zamora argues that while measuring ESG is important, its real impact rests with the company values and courage expressed by a commitment to ESG.
Nov 24, 2020
Stacey Robbins' work as a Faculty Fellow this past year explored how pod-based peer coaching, small group coaching in which participants take rotating roles, can support women’s leadership development in organizations to help address the gender leadership gap. Research shows that while women have entered the workforce at the same rate as men for the past 25 years and earn at least as many bachelor’s and master’s degrees, fewer than 20% of the top leadership jobs nationwide are held by women. The gender leadership gap persists notwithstanding research that suggests that inclusion of women in high status leadership roles yields strategic and financial benefits for businesses and the moral and ethical imperative that organizations be representative of their stakeholders and society.
Sep 3, 2020
Increasingly people are relying on social media for their news. At the same time there is a growing pervasiveness of misinformation and disinformation across the internet, undermining national elections, public health, and social progress. As misinformation and disinformation spread, we have to take personal responsibility for what we read, share, and post.
Jul 31, 2020
Read More about Reality Check: How to Recognize and Avoid Misinformation Online
With our colleagues, the Center for Business Ethics recognizes that we have a responsibility to address injustice and affirm the dignity of Black Americans. The challenges we face are something that Seattle University, and the Center for Business Ethics, are prepared to undertake.
Jun 8, 2020
Faculty Fellow Colette Hoption explores the responsibilities of leaders and followers. Based on her investigations with recent Seattle University graduate Mary Han ('19) which examined the influence of female caregivers on young adults’ beliefs about followers, Ms. Hoption argues that courageous followership is just as important as strong leadership.
Jun 3, 2020
Is it appropriate to track those infected with the Coronavirus using mobile devices? Center Director Jeffery Smith and Associate Professor of Law Eva Sedgwick examine the tradeoffs between privacy and public health.
May 14, 2020
Brooke Carlisle, Frank Shrontz Scholar and Graduate Assistant at the Center for Business Ethics, explores how the COVID pandemic has affected business and employees. She uses two examples of positive leadership during this crisis.
May 12, 2020
Director of the Center for Business Ethics, Jeffery Smith, met virtually with David Wasielewski, MBA alumnus and Managing Partner of Din Tai Fung restaurants in the greater Seattle area. They discussed the restaurant's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. Wasielewski joined the conversation from Din Tai Fung's University Village location.
Apr 23, 2020
Read More about Responsibly Navigating the Economic Shutdown
Jeffery Smith, the Director of the Center for Business Ethics explores our relationship with a market economy in a time of pandemic. He discusses topics such as predatory pricing, hoarding, competition and cooperation.
Apr 14, 2020
Brooke Carlisle is a Graduate Assistant and Frank Schrontz Scholar with the Center for Business Ethics. Currently an MBA student, she spent the last five years as a biologist in different Northwest Zoos and Aquariums. She’s interested in how leaders can build cultures of respect within organizations.
Jan 9, 2020
WeWork was categorized as a "unicorn" firm, but was it too good to be true? Michael Kenway, a Center for Business Ethics Graduate Assistant and Frank Schrontz Scholar, discusses how a rapidly growing company in the wrong hands can do a lot of damage in worker's lives as well as the economy.
Jan 6, 2020
Difficult questions must be asked of the sports sector regarding its approach to addressing social problems like climate change. Professor Brian McCullough, a new Faculty Fellow with the Center for Business Ethics and co-editor of the Routledge Handbook of Sport and the Environment, explores the intersection of ethics, sport and the common good.
Oct 1, 2019
Meet Brian Webster: the CEO and founder of Kestra Medical Technologies, and a recent member of the CBE Advisory Board.
Jan 6, 2019
Jeffery Smith, Director of the Center for Business Ethics, explores the importance of humility in an article originally published by the Center for Leadership Formation in the Fall 2018 issue of Insights.
Nov 17, 2018
Professor Dean Peterson is spending his second year as a Faculty Fellow to examine the ethical assumptions that underlie the basis for contemporary economic thought.
Oct 14, 2018
Jeffery Smith, Director of the Center for Business Ethics, responds to student conversations sparked by Harvard Professor Mihir Desai's presentation during Albers Ethics Week.
Jun 14, 2018
A reflection on MGMT 5380: Negotiation Skills, a popular elective offered by Albers School of Business and Economics.
Jun 4, 2018
Through her work at Costco, Sheri Flies—a member of the Center for Business Ethics’ Advisory Board since its inception—has illustrated not only the importance of social responsibility but also how one’s personal commitment to higher standards in business can be a catalyst for change.
Mar 27, 2018
Professor Holly Ferraro is spending this year as an inaugural Faculty Fellow to examine the moral imperative of diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Mar 14, 2018
The Outdoor Experiential Learning retreat kicks off the studies for all Albers Professional MBA students, and exposes students to the joys (and difficulties) of successful team building.
Feb 15, 2018
Welcome to Ethics Matters: Perspectives on Responsible Business, the Center for Business Ethics’ online forum for the exploration of ethics in business and business education.
Feb 8, 2018