Renewed Emphasis on Ethical Practices

In recent years, business ethics has become front-page news as companies like Walmart have engaged in unethical, and in some cases illegal, activities. Whether or not salespeople in these companies were directly involved in illegal activities, they suffered as a result of management’s ethical lapses.

One outcome of these scandals has been a renewed interest in ethics at every level in the organization.⁴ From the board of directors to the lowest level, employees have become more aware of their company’s ethical practices. Many large companies have published their code of conduct or values (there are many phrases), which defines the way they do business. Exhibit 4.1 is a summary of Dell Computer’s Code of Conduct.

Not surprisingly, one of the areas most affected by the focus on ethics is selling. The relationship between buyer and seller is based on mutual trust. Any ethical lapse by the seller can severely damage the customer’s trust. A recent survey of sales managers reported that 70 percent of their clients consider a company’s ethical reputation when making purchase decisions. In addition, companies are starting to realize the importance of ethics training in improving salesperson and sales manager satisfaction.⁵ Ethics will play an increasingly important role in the sales decision process for both buyer and seller.

The focus on ethics is not limited to the United States. Around the world, companies are reacting to and in many cases proactively dealing with ethical problems by establishing worldwide ethical policies. This is difficult because ethical practices vary by region and even from country to country. What is acceptable behavior in Latin America may be against the law in the United States or Europe. For example, offering bribes or payments to enhance the probability of success is often seen as part of doing business in parts of Latin America and the Middle East but is illegal in the United States. As we explore in chapter 14, internationalizing ethical practices and policies is not easy for any company, no matter where it is from originally.

Companies Take the Lead in Social Responsibility

Beyond the question of ethical behavior is a larger question that companies face on a daily basis. What is my social responsibility as a corporate citizen? As Walmart demonstrated, lost shareholder wealth and thousands of layoffs are only two of the consequences of poor ethical judgments. Those decisions, which hurt thousands of people in many ways, are prime examples of bad corporate citizenship. Companies have a responsibility to many groups. Certainly they have a responsibility to their customers. They also have employees (who count on continued employment), shareholders (who invest their money for a financial return), and a host of other entities (among them suppliers, government, and creditors) who expect the company to act in an ethical manner. Exhibit 4.2 details the best corporate citizens, as identified by Corporate Responsibilty magazine.

Issues with Customers

The contemporary selling process, as we have discussed already, is built on the simple premise of creating value for the customer. Research in sales confirms the benefits of a customer orientation in directing customers to purchase from salespeople who seek to understand their needs and develop a relational rather than transactional relationship.⁶ However, while creating long lasting customer value is the goal salespeople will sometimes look for "shortcuts' to success. In addition, customers will put pressure on salespeople for their own purposes. The result is the potential for ethical problems. There are four primary ethical concerns for salespeople in their relationships with customers. They are dishonesty, gifts (entertainment, bribes), unfair treatment, and confidentiality leaks. We will explore each in detail.

Dishonesty. Salespeople sell. That is their job, and as part of that job they are expected to present their products to customers in the best possible light. It is perfectly acceptable for a salesperson to be passionate about products and services; however, there is a line between enthusiasm and illegal, dishonest behavior. Under no circumstances is dishonesty acceptable, and provide false or deliberately inaccurate information to customers. However, what happens when the customer asks if the company can meet certain shipping deadlines for a product and the salesperson is not sure if recent delays in manufacturing could severely push back the requested shipping dates? The question here is not legal but ethical. How does a salesperson ensure that enthusiasm does not become poor ethical judgment? This is a question salespeople face almost every day.

The adage that defined the 20th-Century sales model was caveat emptor (“let the buyer beware”). It was generally considered the buyer’s responsibility to uncover any untruths in the seller’s statements. Even in 21st-Century contemporary selling, the salesperson must decide how much information to give the customer. Successful contemporary selling is based on mutual trust and ethical behavior, which means the salesperson should not hold back information or tell half-truths.⁷ When customers become aware of such half-truths (as they always do), the long-term damage to the relationship can be far worse than any short-term pain caused by being honest.⁸ Dishonesty not only harms the customer relationship but can lead to legal action (which we will discuss later in this chapter) and huge financial judgments against the company.

The salesperson who chooses to provide complete information even when it presents the company in a less than favorable light can create a high degree of credibility with the customer. Cisco, for example, instructs its sales force to be totally open and honest with customers, to present the most accurate information available even if the information is not positive. Interestingly, the mere fact that the company states this policy has had a positive effect with customers.

Gifts, Entertainment, Bribes. A gift is a nonfinancial present. A bribe is a financial present given to a buyer to manipulate the purchase decision.

Meeting a customer for lunch is an accepted business custom. Historically, it has been a way for the buyer and seller to build a more personal relationship while getting work done. The vast majority of salespeople take their customers to lunch at least occasionally. But what about taking them to dinner or a nightclub? Does it make a difference if the lunch cost $15 per person or $75? These are the kinds of questions salespeople must answer on a regular basis.

Why do some salespeople offer bribes or illegal gifts to customers? Unfortunately, the answer is, it works. Research suggests that gifts can affect whether or not the order is given and the size of the order.⁹ Customers often place salespeople in an almost impossible situation. Even if the salesperson desires to be ethical, a customer may ask for “special consideration” in placing the order.

To deal with these difficult ethical questions, many companies on both sides of the buyer–seller relationship have established policies for handling gifts and entertainment. On one hand, companies like Hewlett-Packard tell their salespeople explicitly that under no circumstances should they offer gifts of any kind to secure an order. On the customer side, companies like Target and Home Depot significantly limit the scope of gifts (pencils, coffee mugs) and type of interaction (they must meet at corporate offices) between their purchasing agents and salespeople. It is important to note that ethical issues are not just a domestic concern; in many countries the same ethical challenges occur. Check out the Ethical Dilemma to experience a very real ethical challenge.

Unfair Treatment. By their very nature, each customer is different. Some customers buy more or have greater potential for new business. It is quite appropriate to offer special pricing or better terms to them. However, salespeople need to be aware of ethical concerns when customers ask for more than is reasonably expected in the course of business.

There are several problems associated with unfair treatment. First, providing special treatment to customers is costly and may not be a good use of the salesperson’s time. Consider, for example, the established customer who expects a busy salesperson to drop off orders. Diverting the salesperson away from his or her primary focus could lead to lower productivity. Second, providing special services to some customers will almost surely lead other customers to feel as though they are not important enough to warrant special treatment, which will lead to a weaker relationship with those customers.

Confidentiality Leaks. A key element of the trust between buyer and seller is confidentiality, which is the sharing of sensitive information. Salespeople learn critical facts about their customers all the time. At a minimum they know how much, at what price, and when shipments of their own products will be purchased by their customer. Today their knowledge often goes much deeper. For example, in working with customers they may learn about the development and introduction of new products. They can also learn a great deal about the pricing structure and strategy of existing products. This information would be useful to the customer’s competitors, some of whom could be the salesperson’s customers already.

It is essential for the credibility of a salesperson and his or her company that any information shared by the customer be held in the strictest confidence. Divulging sensitive information to others, even to nonessential employees in the salesperson’s company, is one of the surest ways to lose a customer. Customers have long memories in these situations and do not easily forget or forgive any salesperson who shares confidential information with individuals or organizations not authorized by the customer.

Issues with Employers

Not all of a salesperson’s ethical concerns deal with the customer relationship. Three ethical concerns related to the salesperson’s employer are (1) cheating, (2) misuse of company resources, and (3) inappropriate relationships with other employees and customers. Let’s look at each issue more closely.

Cheating. Salespeople work, for the most part, away from their employer, so the company relies on their honesty and integrity. More importantly, the salesperson is the primary (if not the only) source of direct communication with the customer, and companies must have confidence in that information in order to make sound business decisions. Salespeople report on things like the number of sales calls, expenses, and even how sales are recorded to the company and this information is assumed to be true and accurate.

Unfortunately, when salespeople do not make enough sales calls, want to win a sales contest by booking orders within a certain period of time, or any of hundreds of other situations they can be tempted to cheat. For example, if a salesperson is evaluated on the number of sales calls he or she makes each week but has not made that number, is it ethical to list a sales call with a customer this week that he or she intends to contact by phone next week? What would you do in a similar situation?

Misuse of Company Resources. Salespeople need a number of resources to do their jobs effectively, so it is expensive to equip and maintain a sales force in the field. Among the resources are technology (smartphones, computers) and transportation (cars, air travel). Legitimate business expenses include taking a customer to lunch, for which the salesperson is entitled to be reimbursed. Salespeople are often given direct control of some resources, such as cell phones and computers. For other expenses, such as travel, they submit expense reports and are reimbursed by the company. In still other situations, salespeople are given a budget for items like a car and submit a report at the end of the year detailing how they used the money.

If salespeople misrepresent their business expenses to generate additional income, they cross the ethical line. Often this happens when the salesperson believes the compensation is not adequate or company policies are not sufficient to cover legitimate business expenses. Sadly, this practice is not uncommon. A study by the Department of Commerce estimated employee theft in the United States at $60 billion. Another study reported that 30 percent of all business failures are caused by employee theft. More specifically, 60 percent of sales managers said they had caught one of their salespeople cheating on an expense report.¹⁰

It may be true that the company compensation plan is inadequate and policies regarding reimbursement of expenses are not fair, but this does not justify illegal or even unethical behavior. We’ll discuss in the section on ethical concerns for management the wisdom of having plans and policies in place that are fair to salespeople.

A good rule of thumb is to adopt your own standard of living when you are incurring business-related expenses. Companies should not ask their salespeople to have a lower standard of living on business than at home, but salespeople should not use the opportunity of business travel to live a more lavish lifestyle than they do at home either.

It is not always clear whether the use of business resources for personal use is unethical. Some companies permit the personal use of business assets. Consider the company cell phone. After business hours, is it unethical for a salesperson to use the cell phone for personal use when it does not interfere with business activities? Companies almost always have a stated policy on the personal use of business resources, and the salesperson needs to become familiar with that policy. Violating it can have serious implications for a salesperson’s continued employment with the company.

Inappropriate Relationships with Other Employees and Customers. In today’s workplace, men and women work closely together in a variety of situations, as members of the same organization (peers and co-workers), or as buyer and seller. For the most part, men and women work in an environment of mutual respect and professional business behavior. However, occasionally these relationships become more personal and intimate, which can be dangerous for everyone involved. In a survey, 57 percent of respondents had personally witnessed romantic relationships between salespeople in their companies, but only 15 percent of the companies had a stated policy on personal relationships between employees.¹¹ This creates a gap between what individuals in the organization are doing and company policy on such behavior.

The biggest ethical issues for individuals are the potentially negative implications of the relationship on them, their loved ones, and the company. What happens when the relationship ends? Might the company be charged with sexual harassment? If the relationship is with a customer, how will it affect the business relationship between the two companies? These are tough questions that involve not only business but also personal decisions.

While a number of companies do not expressly prohibit personal relationships among co-workers, it is important to realize there are serious implications crossing the line into a personal, nonprofessional relationship. Simple common sense can help you avoid such compromising situations. For example, always keep the conversation professional and on business topics. Even joking about sexual matters or personal business can give someone the wrong impression. Also, don’t put yourself in a situation that could be misinterpreted. Taking a co-worker to dinner alone after business hours could give that person the wrong idea.

Issues with Salespeople

The impact of sales leadership on ethics in the sales organization is profound and stretches across all aspects of the sales management process. For example, ethical sales leaders tend to recruit ethical salespeople and, perhaps more importantly, ethical sales people seek out organizations that are perceived to have ethical sales leaders.¹² However, it is also clear that sales managers have the ability to engage in unethical behaviors. Sales managers face a number of ethical questions with their employees. If companies expect their salespeople to behave ethically, they must behave ethically as well. Management has a significant role in setting the overall culture of ethical behavior for the sales force.¹³ In their relationship with salespeople, managers most often deal with three ethical issues: (1) sales pressure, (2) deception, and (3) abuse of salespeople’s rights.

The research is clear that sales managers’ behavior towards salespeople plays a critical role in shaping the ethical climate of the organization and indirectly the behaviors and attitudes of salespeople.¹⁴ At the same time, sales mangers must understand the limit of a strong ethical climate on salespeople behavior as their actions are ultimately driven by their own individual characteristics. So, while an ethical climate is important there are limits to its impact of salespersonl decision making.¹⁵

Sales Pressure. Pressure is part of the selling profession. Salespeople are evaluated all the time on how much they have sold, how profitable the order is, and the configuration of the sales order, among other issues. However, when sales pressure is applied unfairly or too forcefully, management may be crossing the line into unethical behavior. Professional salespeople expect management to define clear sales goals without threatening undue pressure.

Unfortunately, some managers do exert unfair pressure for sales results and set goals they know their salespeople cannot attain. Setting unrealistic goals can, over time, demotivate people, especially if they feel that there is nothing they can do to reach sales targets. It can also cause salespeople to consider unethical practices. Setting sales targets and holding salespeople accountable for hitting those targets are part of the manager’s job, but it is important to set realistic goals that motivate salespeople.

Deception. Deception, the practice of misleading or misrepresenting something, has no place in the manager– salesperson relationship. However, managers are often in situations when being totally honest has negative consequences. Consider, for example, what happens when a salesperson is forced to leave the company. What does the manager tell a prospective employer asking for a reference? Should the manager be honest and say the employee was a consistent poor performer and has no future in sales? In today’s legal environment, being totally honest can lead to expensive lawsuits. In general, though, honesty is still the best policy.

In dealing directly with salespeople, managers must be honest and clear in their discussions. For example, when a salesperson is performing poorly and the future is not bright, it serves no purpose to put him or her in an impossible situation (for example, assigning a poor-performing territory or customers with little business potential) to force the salesperson out of the company. While confrontation is not easy, misleading the person is more harmful in the long run.

Abuse of Salespeople’s Rights. All employees have certain rights, which managers must be aware of to avoid legal and ethical problems. These rights cover a variety of employment matters, including (1) following the policies and procedures related to termination, (2) maintaining the confidentiality and security of personal information, (3) creating a work environment free of any form of discrimination or bias (for example, race or gender bias), and (4) following established policies and rules regarding performance appraisals, compensation, and benefits. Essentially, they involve doing the right thing when you say you are going to do it.

Many problems arise when managers do not follow established company policies and procedures. For example, not reporting instances of bias or discrimination is not only unethical but also illegal (as we shall discuss later in this chapter). Terminating salespeople without proper notification and not following established procedures is also unethical and potentially illegal. Frequently, managers’ mistakes result from omission (not knowing the appropriate procedures) rather than commission (deliberately abusing the rights of the salesperson). It is critical that managers aggressively protect and defend the rights of their salespeople.

Issues with Company Policies

A primary role for any sales manager is to delineate, implement, monitor, and enforce the procedures and policies of the organization as they relate to the sales force. In the vast majority of instances, these policies are fair and ethical. Unfortunately, some company policies create significant ethical challenges for managers and salespeople. We will examine two such examples: unethical climate and unfair corporate policies.

Unethical Corporate Culture. Every organization has a corporate culture, a set of unwritten norms and rules that influence the behavior of its employees. On one hand, companies like CNL Investments follow a strong code of personal and corporate ethics. The climate at CNL encourages people to behave in an ethical manner. It is based on the personal beliefs of senior management, conveyed in the Core Values statement and other documents and demonstrated as a matter of management practice. One of the challenges in today’s global business environment is the impact of a country’s culture on a company. While there are certainly differences among cultures around the world the basic concepts of ethical business practices are remarkably similar. Global Connection lists the companies outside the United States ranked among the World’s Most Ethical Organizations by Ethisphere, a leading research-based think tank on issues related to business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption, and sustainability.

On the other hand are companies like Enron, which in the late 1990s exhibited a consistent and profound lack of moral and ethical judgment beginning with senior management. The problem for many frontline sales managers is that the corporate culture is the result of many things beyond their control. Specifically, senior management style (do their actions match their words?), the established culture of the organization, and external pressures (like customer dissatisfaction) can create a climate where unethical or illegal behavior is tolerated, even encouraged. At Enron, salespeople perceived that unethical behavior was acceptable because they could see that was the company culture.

Managers need to create a climate in which ethical behavior is considered the norm, not the exception. Encourage open communication so that salespeople can be honest with management without fear of negative consequences. Generate an atmosphere of mutual respect that will not tolerate discrimination of any kind. Research suggests that an ethical climate can improve salespeople’s job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and willingness to stay with the company.¹⁶

Unfair Corporate Policies. Often managers do not make corporate policies and procedures, but they must enforce them. Company policies are developed from a variety of areas inside the organization. In matters of hiring, termination, work rules, expense reimbursement, grievance procedures, and performance appraisals, the human resources department almost always approves company policies. Its focus is not necessarily on the sales force. Sometimes policies and procedures that work fine for the rest of the organization create a problem in the sales area. For example, a company might require that employees submit business expenses once a month, but a salesperson who travels a high percentage of the time can face an unfair financial burden while waiting for reimbursement.

Managers must be flexible enough to consider the unique situation of salespeople when they enforce company policies and procedures. Most of the time salespeople operate outside the company, spending their time with customers, which makes it difficult to follow all the company rules. Good managers understand the importance of applying corporate policies in a fair manner to their sales force.

Uniform Commercial Code: The Legal Framework for Selling

We have talked a lot already about buyers, sellers, and a host of other important concepts in a successful sales relationship. But if someone asked you the legal definition of a sale, would you be able to tell them? What are the legal obligations of the salesperson and the buyer? What is the difference between an express and an implied warranty? These are all important terms, and salespeople must understand the legal implications of what they say and do with customers.

The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), the most significant set of laws affecting selling, defines these terms (as well as many more). The UCC consists of nine articles and is modified by each state. It sets out the rules and procedures for almost all business practices in the United States. The most relevant section of the UCC for selling is Article 2, titled simply “Sales.” It defines terms related to selling and spells out legal obligations for buyers and sellers. Exhibit 4.5 summarizes some of the key terms in selling.

The UCC is the most fundamental legal framework for selling and influences almost all transactions, so salespeople and managers need to become familiar with it. A mistake can cost the company a lot of money and the salesperson his or her job. The salesperson has significant legal responsibilities, which can be summarized as follows:

Unlawful Business Activities

In addition to the Uniform Commercial Code, a number of federal laws have been passed over the years that affect selling. The laws include, but are not limited to, the Sherman Antitrust Act, Clayton Act, and Robinson-Patman Act. State and local municipalities have also adopted similar statutes and in many cases passed new laws that directly affect selling. For example, every state has its own set of real estate laws, which influence the sale of real estate in that state.

While there are a number of unlawful activities, this section summarizes the most significant: collusion, restraint of trade, reciprocity, competitor obstruction, competitor defamation, and price discrimination. Exhibit 4.6 provides recommendations to help management create company policies that encourage legal behavior.

Collusion. When competing companies get together and fix prices, divide up customers or territories, or act in a way to harm a third party (often another competitor or customer), they are engaged in collusion. One example of this kind of activity occurs when two companies fix prices to force a third competitor into an unprofitable or uncompetitive position. Any activity between two competitors that serves to lessen competition is illegal.

Restraint of Trade. It is not uncommon with today’s complex distribution systems to find companies that exert powerful influence over their channel of distribution. However, it is illegal for any company to engage in restraint of trade, which is forcing a dealer or other channel member to stop carrying its competitors’ products as part of its arrangement with the dealer.

Reciprocity. The practice of suppliers buying from one another is called reciprocity and is not illegal per se. A company buys from a supplier and then turns around and sells it another product or service. However, if the arrangement effectively shuts out other competitors, it is illegal and must be stopped.

Competitor Obstruction. It is illegal for salespeople or their companies to actively participate in competitor obstruction, which is the practice of impeding competitor access to a customer. For example, altering a competitor’s products or marketing communications clearly interferes with the competitor’s right to do business and is illegal. A good rule is: steer clear of your competitors’ products when you encounter them with a customer.

Competitor Defamation. While direct competitor obstruction happens occasionally, a much more common problem for salespeople is competitor defamation. It is illegal to harm a competitor by making unfair or untrue statements about the company, its products, or the people who work for it. Unfair statements are statements that are difficult to prove (or disprove) and put the competitor at a disadvantage in the marketplace while untrue statements are deliberate falsehoods. Among the remedies open to the injured party are cease-and-desist orders, which effectively force the guilty company to stop or face several penalties. It can also take the offending party to court and pursue other remedies (financial compensation).

There are two basic types of defamation:

• Slander is unfair or untrue oral statements (for example, a salesperson making false statements during a presentation) that materially harm the reputation of the competitor or the personal reputation of anyone working for the company.
• Libel is unfair or untrue written statements (for example, a salesperson writing unfair statements in a letter or sales proposal) that materially harm the reputation of the competitor or the personal reputation of anyone working for the company.

Examples of statements that defame a competitor:

• • “That company has not met any target delivery dates for new products in the last five years” (untrue statement about the competitor’s ability to meet contractual obligations).
• • “I heard they were going to lay off a lot of people due to poor sales over the last four quarters” (untrue statement about the company’s financial condition).
• • “You know, the salesperson for that company is not very knowledgeable about their products and services” (unfair statement about the personal qualifications of a legal representative of the company).

Not only is defamation illegal, it is also a bad idea. Disparaging the competition is bad selling and will not help build a strong customer relationship. While factual comparisons between your products and competitors’ are accepted sales practice, it is always best to focus on your product rather than belittle your competition.

Price Discrimination. Put simply, it is illegal to discriminate based on price. While the original law, Robinson-Patman, focused on interstate commerce, most states have passed legislation that provides the same protection to intrastate business transactions. Price discrimination is the practice of giving different prices or discounts to different customers who purchase the same quality and quantity of products and services. Of course, companies are legally allowed to charge different prices if (1) they reflect differences in the cost of operations (manufacturing, sale, or delivery), (2) they meet, in good faith, competitor pricing to the same customer, or (3) they reflect differences in the quality or quantity of the product purchase. It is perfectly legal, for example, to charge a lower price to a customer who buys more (quantity discount) or has received a better price from a competitor. At the end of the day the issue is the fair treatment of customers.

Corporate Code of Ethics

Salespeople (indeed, all employees) make ethical decisions using two ethical frameworks: their own personal code of ethics and the company’s ethical code. Not all companies have a written code of ethics, but all companies have a culture that defines acceptable and unacceptable ethical behavior.

Corporate codes of ethics are important for three reasons. First, they are—or at least should be—the framework for the company’s approach to doing business. Second, by defining the company’s values, corporate ethical codes can serve as a point of reference for individual employee behavior. Third, a strong corporate code of ethics can have a positive effect on customers and other organizations that interact with the company.¹⁸

As we saw earlier in the chapter, companies like Dell have a code of conduct that defines what they believe and how they expect employees to conduct the company’s business. A corporate code of ethics, like a personal code of ethics, does not define what to do in every possible ethical situation. Rather, it identifies certain key traits to help direct the salesperson’s decision making. “We avoid even the appearance of impropriety” (see Exhibit 4.1) tells customers clearly that Dell salespeople will do the right thing in every situation. This is a powerful tool for salespeople who know the company will support them as long as they act with integrity.

Of course, it is essential that the values and behaviors spelled out in the code of ethics (or whatever it is called) are actually part of the company’s corporate culture. Companies like Adelphia embraced ethics in their codes, but key senior managers behaved in an unethical and illegal manner anyway. Senior management, in particular, must not only “talk the talk” but “walk the walk” and actually support an ethical business climate.

Individual Code of Sales Ethics

Everyone has his or her own code of ethics, which influences the decisions that a person makes in certain situations. Unfortunately, in some cases salespeople make unethical choices. The vast majority of salespeople and managers, however, are ethical and seek direction in making the difficult decisions we have examined in this chapter.

A personal code of sales ethics can be a valuable tool for everyone in selling. It provides a framework for evaluating situations and helps individuals coordinate their own personal values system with their corporate ethics code and established guidelines for ethical sales behavior. The process begins with your own definition of what is right and wrong. Very early in life we develop a value system that is learned from our parents and reinforced by religious or moral beliefs. We also learn from our company’s code of ethics and accepted business practices. Research suggests salespeople are generally more successful when their personal code of ethics is consistent with those of the company and management.¹⁹

It can be helpful to evaluate the current circumstances and possible decisions against a code of sales ethics. One example is from the Sales and Marketing Executives Institute (a leading professional organization for salespeople and managers). Exhibit 4.7 is the SMEI Sales and Marketing Creed. Many salespeople subscribe to this and other codes that delineate ethical conduct in selling.

Source: Sales and Marketing Executives Institute website (www.smei.org), June 2015.

It also helps to use a checklist to walk through the ethical issues. One such checklist (and there are many) is Exhibit 4.8, which allows you to quantify your ethical analysis and determine how well you have assessed the situation.

The goal of these analyses is to help each salesperson make the best ethical decision. The time to think about ethics is not in the middle of a difficult ethical situation but before you get caught up in the circumstances. This is one reason corporate and personal codes of ethics are important—they give salespeople greater confidence in their final ethical decisions.

Exhibit 4.8 Ethical Checklist

Circle the appropriate answer on the scale; 1 = not at all; 5 = totally yes