Instructor: Daniel W. Skubik, PhD JD MDiv
Voice: 909.343.4288 / Fax: 909.343.4437
E-Mail: dskubik@calbaptist.edu

Ethics in Business & Technology

This course in business ethics is not primarily about how to stay out of jail, although legal concerns will be given some coverage. Neither is it devoted to simple functional calculations of how to take the moral and other values of your potential customers or employers/employees into account for marketing purposes, although some of these considerations will be touched upon, as well. The import of the course is to cover what it means to say that businesses and professionals ought to engage or not engage in particular activities with reference to value claims other than the ledger's bottom line. Students will thus come to comprehend the various bases from traditional philosophical and theological sources for discerning professional, ethical practices. Application of these studies will follow, with individual and team-oriented case studies that highlight contemporary ethical conundrums in business and technology settings, nationally and globally.

Required Texts

Max Stackhouse, et al. (eds.), On Moral Business: classical and contemporary resources for ethics in economic life (MI: Eerdmans, 1995) [Available from the CBU bookstore, or from many web stores, such as Amazon.com (new) and Efollet.com (new and used copies available).]

Additional Internet readings will be referenced, for which students will also be responsible.

Class Schedule

Assessment & Grading Scale

Quizzes = 20% (best 4 of 5 @ 5% each)	90 - 100 = A (90-94 = A-)
Group Project Case Study Outline = 25%	80 - 89 = B (80-82 = B- / 87-89 = B+)
Group Project Case Study Presentation = 20%	70 - 79 = C (70-72 = C- / 77-79 = C+)
Final Exam = 30%	60 - 69 = D (67-69 = D+)
Participation = 5%	0 - 59 = F

Quizzes

Five (5) objective-question quizzes will be given on the days noted (comprised of true/false, multiple choice, short answer, fill-in the blank, or matching type questions). Your worst quiz mark will be dropped, the other four (4) each counting 5% towards your final grade, for a total of 20%. Quizzes can be made up only if arrangements are made prior to the time the quiz is given. No make-ups will be permitted without prior arrangement, and each quiz must be made-up before the subsequent class session.

Final Exam

There will be a final exam, and it is scheduled during the final class session, though I do not really expect you to come to do it on Christmas day.

Instead, the final exam will be available on the web, and you must complete the exam and send your completed responses to me via email no later than 10:30pm on Wednesday, December 27th. Please note the time stamp referenced is the one given when my server receives it, not when your server sends it. Since there can be delays, be conservative; don't wait for the last moment to hit the send button. Late receipt (between 10:31pm Wednesday the 27th through 10:30pm Thursday the 28th) will be subject to a 20% penalty. No exam responses will be accepted for grading after 10:30pm, Thursday, December 28th.

The exam will be comprised of a set of objective and essay questions relating to a single case study. You may use your notes, your book, and even work in teams or groups to construct your responses. But each one of you must submit a final exam for yourself for grading; no team or group submissions will be accepted.

The case study will be placed on the web, along with a set of questions, no later than 5:00pm on Wednesday, December 20th. You will then have one week to complete the exam and email it to my attention.

Group Projects

You will be presented case study materials for group review and discussion, requiring you to apply the various theories we have discussed to identify and resolve any action dilemmas in an ethically or theologically justifiable manner. "Group" means three or four persons working together, pooling their knowledge and judgments, to reach one or more conclusions about what ought to be done given the circumstances of the case provided. [I prefer you self-select, but lots will be drawn if necessary to create and fill needed groups. Know too that each case will present different scenarios so no two groups will be working with the same materials.] You will be responsible as a group to write-up your analyses and conclusions in one full outline format, and to be prepared to present a synopsis of those analyses and conclusions to the class in an open session on December 18. Presentations should be timed to take 20-30 minutes each. All members of the group will share the same project grade for the presentation (20%) and the outline (25%). Each group member must be present on Dec 18 in order to share the group grade.

A list of cases will be provided on November 27, and you will supply a ballot to me on that date. Groups will be formed and cases assigned on Dec 4. If you cannot be present on either of those dates, send your preferences via a proxy, or you will be randomly assigned to a group and case in your absence. Note that I will take peer evaluations into account when assigning marks for the group case study work to be completed.

Attendance & Participation

Attendance: You are expected to attend all seven (7) class sessions. You are counted present if you arrive no later than 60 minutes after the beginning of an evening session and remain through the class meeting.

Participation: Although speaking in class, publicly putting and defending a position, can be daunting, you are strongly encouraged to learn to think through your own and others' experiences and insights within the context our discussions. Especially in this small group setting, I expect you to come prepared for discussion, having done the readings before each session.

To give direct incentive to so engage, 5% of your mark for the course will be comprised of my assessment of your overall classroom participation. This includes, but is not limited to, my assessment of your participation during our sessions (e.g. making relevant comments during discussions, being prepared to respond to questioning, asking relevant questions, and following directions concerning reading assignments, and making contributions to the Web discussion forum). The point is to determine your active engagement with the material in the context of the class.

Extra Credit

You are permitted to write up to two (2) brief critical review essays (1-2 pages in length), worth up to 3% each that can be added to your final grade tally. Assignments will be based upon your critique of articles on my web site. You must enter into a contract with me before you begin the assignment. Assignments will not be accepted for extra credit unless you contract with me ahead of time for the work. If you enter into a contract with me to complete an extra credit project, and you do not submit it to me by the agreed date, 1.5% will be deducted from your final grade tally. In short, you can gain points by doing extra credit, but you can lose points by failing to do extra credit.

Caveat

This syllabus is composed in good faith, with a schedule of readings, etc. which will guide us throughout the term. Still, the instructor reserves the right to make adjustments to this schedule as deemed necessary for the overall enterprise of the class. Any changes will be communicated as far in advance as feasible, and you are responsible for knowing if and when any changes have been made. Always check the Web site if you have questions about readings, assignments or meeting dates and times.

Make-Ups

Quizzes : if you are going to miss a quiz, contact me prior to that class session to arrange a make-up time before the subsequent class session. Make-ups will not be permitted if prior arrangements are not made.

Group Projects : if you cannot participate in the group case study, you are permitted to contract to complete an individual research assignment (12-15 pages) that will be due no later than Dec 18. See me for details.

Final Exam : no make-up for the final exam is possible. You must submit the final via email by the scheduled date and time to receive a passing grade for the course.

* N.B. The start time of 5:00pm indicates the time I will be available on site for office hours, i.e. the time you are welcome but not required to come to talk about course material, homework and other matters about the class. Instructional time begins at 6:00pm, the time you are expected to be in class and ready for the evening's work.