1.5 CPE Ethical decision-making usually means making a choice between two rights and balancing various needs in order to make what is considered an ethical decision. This is what makes ethical decision making hard, because there isn't always one correct answer. In fact, most ethical decisions can be described as being making a choice between:
- Truth or loyalty
- Short-term or long-term
- Individual or group
- Justice or mercy
In this course, we will discuss models and tools for making ethical decisions, and will cover:
- What are ethics?
- Classical ethical approaches—making decisions for ourselves and our companies
- Classic ethical dilemmas
- Universal human values and how they play into decision-making
- Examples of ethical decision-making models prevalent in the world
By understanding how these ethical decision-making models work, we can determine a model that is best for us to use in making these difficult “right versus right” decisions.
Note that this course is CPE earning for "personal development" but may not meet the Ethics credit standards of your state. Please check with your state accounting board prior to counting this course towards your CPA ethics requirement.
Learning Objectives
- Identify the core human values upon which any ethical decision should be made.
- Define the types of ethical decisions and which are applicable to the decision you need to make
- Familiarize yourself with commonly accepted ethical decision making models and recognize the common elements necessary for developing an ethical decision making model.
Last updated/reviewed: March 21, 2024
54 Reviews (206 ratings)
Reviews
Anonymous
(CPA)
Still a good course; however, it doesn't differ significantly in video or slides, from the other ethics course. I'm also a bit disappointed in my lack of ability to easily answer some of these questions - I thought I was ethical and understood ethics! That said, I can see some of where I went wrong.. but having the ability to review incorrect answers would truly help one understand if there was a flaw in the online testing or if this is a learning shortfall.
Anonymous
(Not Provided)
Useful for developing ethics training. And I was glad to find clear and formal description of approaches I used unconsciously, with links to more detailed materials. But to apply these models, people should be able to assess impact on others in certain situations. Not all are adequate at that, in my experience. Maybe author should warn about this, or add a few words on what can go wrong with implementing ethical decision making models.
Jacob Rothman
(Portfolio Manager at Rothman Investment Management)
The course did a fair job of providing a reasonable definition of ethics, but seemed a bit squishy. It tried to group all ethical dilemmas into a few categories, but these were neither exhaustive, nor necessarily well defined. Long-term vs. short term makes sense, as does individual vs. group, but truth vs. loyalty was weak. These aren't always held in tension, and sometimes it's not loyalty that competes with truth.
Anonymous
(Internal Audit Manager)
Interesting case study in the course and I think that case study (and possibly others like it) may be a good promotional tool for ethics that it is not just the "right thing to do" but it also makes business sense as well. I think an interesting follow-up course would be how to sell ethics in an environment which may not be the most ethical.
Anonymous
(Analyst)
The ideologies of socialism and relativism are heavily wove into most of the models presented. I’m not sure whether most models are like this, or the instructor decided to focus on one’s that are like this, or….If this disturbs you, you may want to go another direction on your choice of an ethics course(s).
Anonymous
(Treasury Director)
Good course. I particularly enjoyed the presentation of the various ethical decision making models. I was not aware of any of these. The story behind the Rotary Four-Way Test was fascinating and proof that acting ethically can truly affect business results.
Excellent session. Mr. Mefford uses his speaker gifts very well: voice, clarity, to the point, and relevant. Thank you.
Suggestion: could this be 2CPE credit session in the future? That would allow little more time for bringing real life examples.
Lawrence DeParis
(Founder & CEO at C-Level Solutions LLC)
Terrific course. Well-structured and delivered. The conceptual frameworks provided are practical and the instructor provides many relevant examples along the way. I highly recommend this course to anyone with an interest in the topic.
Bill Lathrop
(Chief Financial Officer at Artful Home)
Good course and presenter. I encountered some streaming problems with some of the videos - hope this was not the videos themselves but because we are at the end of the year and everyone is doing CPE.
Anonymous
(Experienced Manager)
I appreciated learning the history and various value-systems I had never heard of before this course. This course also shed light on the difference between a right/wrong and ethical dilemma.
Keith Johnson
(Director SOX Compliance at Waterjet Holdings)
I appreciated the methodical approach to this subject, by breaking it down into historical and practical implications, and providing the options to develop our own ethical decision models.
Hyoe Nakagiri
(Internal Auditor Chasing New Opportuniti.. at Independent)
Provides excellent tools which I feel will make ethical dilemmas less overwhelming to deal with. I would make this required learning for all new managers - the sooner you learn, the better.
Syed Ahmad
(Finance at ZFTRW)
I really liked the flow of information presented. Presenter was knowledgable and I walked our of this course learning more than I though I would in the beginning!
Anonymous
(CPA)
Good overview of different approaches to ethical decision making. I would have preferred a continuous play option that is available in other Illumeo courses.
Antonio Fernandez Floro
(Regional Project Lead for Europe and Afr.. at Kirche Jesu Christi HLT (D),)
In a very logical way introduces the subject of the ethical dilemmas, providing examples. Then it proceeds to provide practical ways to solve ethical dilemmas.
Anonymous
(Director)
The course was very good. The speaker was very good. He provided a lot of inputs and valuable insights. The material was well organized and well structured.
Paul Whatley
(Lead IT Auditor at Gulfport Energy)
This was a great treatise on different approaches to ethical decision making. It provides view of different frameworks and ethical implications of each .
Anonymous
(Operations Manager)
One of more interesting Ethics presentations in which I have participated. Just wish it was approved by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy.
Anonymous
(Senior Lean Development Officer)
Good course to judge the ethical barometer you're operating by and to compare what you think is ethical with what should be proper ethical behaviour
Rui Liu
(Accountant at Amber AI limited)
This course is clear and helpful. It describes the ethical dilemmas we are commonly facing and introduced ethical decision making models to follow.
AYODEJI SALAMI
(Managing Partner at AKOKA CONSULTING GROUP INC)
The course was concise and touched on the key ethical points. The course instructor also demonstrated deep knowledge of the subject matter.
Jodi Massa
(Finance Analyst at Novelis)
Great Ethics review. Layout of very clear and easy to follow.
I like the Herbert Taylor and Club Aluminum four -way test highlight.
Anonymous
(Sr. Accountant)
This course provides a holistic framework for how to approach ethical decisions and gives great examples of those in real life.
Very easy to follow. Concise and broken up nicely. I liked that the student needed to move from module to module.
winston nicholson
(partner at nicholson beaumont)
i liked the course material and it very well presented and i will use this information going forward in my life
Susan Hertz
(Hospital Lab Finance Director at Raleigh Pathology Assoc @WakeMed)
This course is inspiring, providing references for those of us faced with promoting ethical decision making.
ARVYDAS TENENIS
(Head of Internal Audit at JSC VMGcorp)
A pretty good mix of different approaches to decision making. Quite a cocktail to think through. Thanx
Zane Long
(Internal Audit Director at Mylan)
Good job of breaking down the different models. The instructor clearly understood the subject matter.
Anonymous
(Independent Financial Consultant)
Great course. I never knew that there were so many ethical decision making models to choose from.
Anonymous
(Outreach Coordinator)
Always good to go back to the basics and relearn theory as well as how ethics and values came about.
S Marie Vernon
(- at --)
Great course on ethics! Very insightful and helpful when making ethical decisions.
Anonymous
(Chief Financial Officer)
Overall a pretty interesting presentation of what could have been a bland topic.
Anonymous
()
Well developed and structured course. Also well presented
Good information.
Anonymous
(-)
The content was interesting, but the presentation was not very engaging.
Anonymous
(Consultant - Process Specialist)
Great material on ethics. Light to understand and very comprehensible
Anonymous
(Director, Tech Audit)
Good over, explained well, enjoyed the course, good for beginners.
Stephanie Cheung
(Internal Controls Manager at Google)
easy ethical courses with more scenarios and situations basis
Amber Deadrick
(Assistant Controller at Trimble Navigation)
More information than expected. Useful Information
Anonymous
(ABCDE)
Clear definitions, good examples of ethical models
Mercedes Maldonado
(Chief Strategist at Meveau)
The course was clear, concise and easy-to-follow.
Anonymous
(Accounting Manager)
I learned a few new things in the area of ethics.
Anonymous
(-)
Good framework for approaching these decisions.
Sami Jabra Seedhom
(Accounting Department Manager at Edrak Int. For Commercial Services)
Thank you very much for thr valuable course.
Ramakrishna Nalluri
(Senior Financial Analyst at LifeWorks Inc)
Abstract combined with good scenarios
Terry Hartmann
(Trustee at GEVA Theatre Center)
broad balance on the topic is good.
Anonymous
(President)
Nice organization of the content.
Brian Meister
(SVP Corp Compliance & Accounting at ACDI/VOCA)
nice overview. clear and concise.
Richard B. Walser
(Controller at SASCO)
General overview of ethics
Alexander Makielski
( at Pero)
presents nice framework
Anonymous
(-)
Valuable content.
Richard Dandan
(Senior Accounting Specialist at National Food Authority)
Well done!
Saba Kazi
(Manager- Accounting & Finance at Finex Management Consulting)
Excellent
Zhen Chen
(Accountant III at New York Power Authority)
ok
Anonymous
(Chief Financial Officer)
M
Prerequisites
Course Complexity: Advanced
Prerequisite: Exposure to ethical decision making
Advanced Preparation: None
Education Provider Information
Company:
Illumeo, Inc., 75 East Santa Clara St., Suite 1215, San Jose, CA
95113
Contact:
For more information regarding this course, including complaint and
cancellation policies, please contact our offices at (408) 400- 3993 or send an e-mail to
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Course Questions and Answers(2 Questions)
Jason MeffordEdutainer, Executive Coach, Media Producer, Trainer
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Thank you for the excellent course, Mr. Mefford.
One question for you...
Why is a decision regarding taking a job with more compensation now versus limited career development for the longer term considered an 'ethical' dilemma? It seems it might be a personal decision with limited if any impact on others with no moral implications.
Thank you and kind regards,
Larry
Lawrence - this is a great question. Many confuse the words morals with ethics, but there is a distinction. Just because a decision does not negatively affect another individual (which would often be deemed to be immoral) doesn't mean their isn't an ethical dilemma. Often the ethical dilemma is between two "good" decisions. I am making an example of short-term vs long-term dilemma. In this case often individuals will take a short-term increase in salary, which may not be in their best long-term career interest. In effect they are choosing a short-term monetary gain for potentially a better option in the future.