Emmanuel Kant sought to explain the aspects of morality and business ethics. Kantian approach implies a strong criticism and limitation of the communitarian view of good. Only a vision of the good that is compatible with universal principles of morality may be accepted as valid for value-driven management.
The Kantian business ethics is about how to conceive, manage and structure business firm in capitalist economy according to the principles of Kant’s ethics. Kant formulated three versions of the categorical imperative which is the foundation of morality (Rendtorff, 2009, p. 55):
- An action is moral if it can be a universal law
- Never treat human beings only as a means, but always as ends in themselves
- The ideal of the moral law in the Kingdom of Ends of individuals who respect each other in their autonomy and dignity
If business were based on these principles, one might say that this approach represents an international perspective on the business corporation. The moral law of the categorical imperative is meant to deal universally with all moral situations; however, this is the reason why good will is needed at the level of ethical aim to support the Kantian vision (Rendtorff, 2009, p. 59). It has been argued by many critical voices the Kantian approach is purely formal, though it justifies the need for communication morals. As indicated, the norms that establish the firm as a virtuous community have to be universally validated (Orend, 2000, p. 43). The norms and virtues of any given corporation should also be related to those of other stakeholders.
The Kantian approach to the corporation is closely linked to the communicative concept of stakeholder capitalism. Structuring the firm according to the principles of the categorical imperative means that actions should be based on duty and the moral law provides the basis for decision-making (Rendtorff, 2009, p. 62). This is indicated by the first formulation of the categorical imperative. From this perspective, business corporations are obliged to treat all individuals or rather parties with as much honesty as possible.
The Kantian theory provides the formal framework for concrete developments of ethics in a firm. Moreover, it provides a universal justification for values-driven management in concrete situations (Orend, 2000, p. 51). In theories of management and organizational behavior, the Kantian approaches to business ethics help to justify the protection of rights of individual members of any given firm, as well as stakeholders.
The Kantian approach seeks to promote trust among different parties in any given setting. He argues that instead of being viewed as a dimension of strategic interaction, trust is a positive condition for any type of relationship with a great emphasis on business relationships (Kuusela, 2010, p. 22). It is significant that of the little he knew about Adam Smith’s economic philosophy, Kant admired his work on moral sentiments.
The second categorical imperative establishes the necessity of respecting the dignity and integrity of human beings as rational persons with intrinsic value. The requirement to treat human beings not only as means, but also always as ends in themselves, indicates the importance of mutual respect, dignity, and self-respect for business life. In particular, the Kantian approach focuses on respect for all parties in an organization including the employees. The idea of equal respect and impartiality follow from the idea of moral reason and rationality (Rendtorff, 2009, p. 67; Brown, 2009, p. 120). In the corporate setting, Kantian business ethics puts strong emphasis on giving employees meaningful work without reducing them to some sort of slaves. Employees should not be coerced and their dignity should be highly safeguarded, for example with job security, protection of their rights as well as creating initiatives for their empowerment at work (Kuusela, 2010, p. 18). The approach favors corporate citizenship and social responsibility as expressions of the moral debt of corporations to society. Deliberative democracy and collaborative work efforts are built on procedural concept of justice where concerns for fairness imply that all people are respected as ends in themselves.
In conclusion, his approach seeks to promote good relationship between different parties especially in the business setting. This requires justice, honesty, truth and trust. Additionally, it requires people to uphold morality and respect for everyone not only in the corporate setting but also in the community.
References
Brown, G. (2009). Grounding Cosmopolitanism: From Kant to the Idea of a Cosmopolitan
Constitution. Edinburgh, GBR: Edinburgh University Press.
Kuusela, Oskari. (2010). Key Terms in Ethics. London, GBR: Continuum International
Publishing.
Orend, B. D. (2000). War and International Justice: A Kantian Perspective. Waterloo, ON:
Wilfrid Laurier University Press.
Rendtorff, J. D. (2009). Responsibility and Legitimacy of Corporations. Frederiksberg,
Copenhagen: Copenhagen Business School Press.
