Module Identifier EC32810  
Module Title CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BUSINESS ETHICS  
Academic Year 2007/2008  
Co-ordinator Mr Oliver Marnet  
Semester Semester 2  
Pre-Requisite (EC10120 and EC10320) or (EC10510 and EC10610)  
Course delivery Lecture   12 Hours.  
  Seminars / Tutorials   4 Hours.  
Assessment
Assessment TypeAssessment Length/DetailsProportion
Semester Exam1.5 Hours  80%
Semester Assessment 1500 word essay20%
Supplementary Assessment1.5 Hours examination and/or resubmission of coursework100%

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
Through lecture presentations, seminar presentations, discussions and direct ed reading, students should be able to understand and analyse the following topics:













Aims

This module aims to

Brief description

Business ethics and corporate governance are highly topical issues in the modern world of business, and this is reflected in the growth of corporate codes of conduct, environmental auditing, and ethical investment. It is also reflected in the spate of recent official reports into corporate governance structures and executive remuneration, and growing public concern about the roles of owners and managers and issues concerning 'rtakeholder? participation. This module provides students with the knowledge on the importance of responsible corporate behaviour and good corporate governance. Students should also be able to acquire in case study context the skill of debating the merits and demerits of a particularly ethical course of action.

Content

   What is corporate governance and why is there a need for corporate governance?
   Business confidence, failure and behaviour
   Governance structure and corporate social responsibility
   Ethical and codes of conduct

   Use of codes and 5 Principles of good governance
   The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) public governance principles and framework
   International Corporate Governance Network- areas of development

   Accountability to the shareholders
   Board composition and administration
   Roles of the Board Chairman, CEO, directors, Non-executive directors, independent directors and non-independent directors

   Knowledge of risk and corporate performance
   Risk strategies and who should be the boss of risk?
   Managing, assessing and controlling risks through commitment, facilitation and participation
   Mapping the risks of board reporting, the impact and the probability
   The control environment and criteria, models, types and concepts of internal control

   Ethical background and standards
   The approaches to ethical behaviour, social responsibility and unethical pressures
   Common social and moral codes
   Business pressures and commercial advantage

   Activating the ethical codes
   Fair dealing, trading and business practice
   Ethical policy

   Shareholders and stakeholders
   Impact on stakeholders on Boards? decision
   UK Combined Code Principle
   UK, Europe, US and Asia corporate governance and code of conducts
   Other countries Code of corporate governance and common regional benchmarks and practices

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Text
Blair, M M (1995) Ownership and Control: Rethinking Corporate Governance for the Twenty-First Century The Brookings Institution: Washington DC
Cannon, T (1994) Corporate Responsibility Pitman Publishing
Chait, R P, Ryan, W P, and Taylor B E (2004) Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work on Non-profit Boards John Wiley & Sons
Charkham, J (1994) Keeping Good Company: A Study of Corporate Governance in Five Countries Oxford: Clarendon Press
Chryssides, G, and Kaler, J (1996) Essentials of Business Ethics McGraw Hill
Cowan, N (2004) Corporate Governance Prentice Hall
Dallas, G (2004) Governance and Risk 1st edition. McGraw-Hill
De George, R T (1999) Business Ethics 5th edition. Prentice Hall
Derwent, R A and Jones, M E (1996) The Corporate Governance Handbook Gee Publishing
Gordon, J N and Roe, M K (2004) Convergence and Persistence in Corporate Governance Cambridge University Press
Hoffman, W M and Frederick, R E (1995) Business Ethics: Reading and Cases in Corporate Morality 3rd edition. McGraw Hill
Jenkinson,T and Mayer, C (1992) Corporate Governane and Corporate Control Oxford Review of Economic Policy

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 6