this post was submitted on 17 Dec 2023
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(Assuming you aren't misremembering): That honestly sounds like a really shitty professor.
Ethics are 100% a thing and more people need to improve their intelligence in that regard. What you CAN argue is that morality has no place in business (or engineering (or whatever)). But ethics are not morality or the law.
At this point, I think everyone and their mother is aware of the concept of The Trolley Problem. And... that is pertinent for a reason. Are you going to send the metaphorical train careening into marginalized groups, your workers, your board, or even your family? Or, the inverse of that: Are you going to do something that means you can buy your kids really awesome xmas presents, your board new cars, your workers the nice ramen, or even a moment of lessened horror for trans forlk?
And that ignores the various types of ethics. Even under utilitarianism, there are arguments that you are making a better net good for your board... if only because said marginalized groups suffer so much they will barely notice any relenting.
Improved understanding of what ethics actually are helps to understand WHY good (or more likely) bad things are happening. And it helps those who are in a position to make those decisions to make an intelligent and rational, if not necessarily good, decision.
Back in uni, all the engineering majors were required to take Ethics in Engineering. And it was very obvious who were the libertarian tech bros of the future during that course. But it also, honestly, is the most important course I took in undergrad and the one that has the most use.
And, as a result, when I do recruiting trips/lectures, I tend to cover that topic. I have a nice slide deck of some of the latest horrifying late stage capitalism shit to come out of tech companies as well as whistle blowing stories and I go through it with the students to try to make them think about why they are learning while also finding the people who would be fun to work with or mentor more directly.
I didn't say ethics had no place in business, nor that ethics wasn't a thing. I said he renamed it, because business has no ethics. This is the same thing you were saying, but in a lot less words.
I realize words are scary, but maybe read them when you are going to reply to someone? Rather than just assume they must agree with you.
Again, business has ethics. Balancing your fiduciary responsibilities with personal gain (and, in rare instances, societal benefit) is an ethical challenge. Do you choose to strictly follow your contractual/legal responsibilities or do you try to find a way to circumvent that for good or for ill?
Yet again: Ethics are not morality
Lol. Someone woke up on the wrong side of the couch, didn't they?
What you describe isn't business ethics, it's an ethical issues in a business setting. Look, mate. I don't really care that you may disagree or whether you have or don't have good reading comprehension. But leave the reddit anger on reddit. Lemmy is for discourse, not for senseless arguments.
Yes. Embracing ignorance and buzz words rather than understanding how the world actually works and what levers and knobs there are and aren't to work with. THAT is the enlightened standpoint.
Yes that is an ethical challenge. But it's not business. The challenge is how business interacts with that challenge
And that is a distinction without difference
Which... I continue to say that said professor is bad at their jobs. And people who think that matters are the result of that mindset.
Just because you don't understand the difference doesn't mean it isn't there