Corporate Governance and Business Ethics: insights from the strategic planning experience

Abstract

In this paper we develop an integrated approach towards corporate governance and business ethics. Our central argument is that organisations can learn from the development of strategic planning in the 1970s and 1980s. We identify three weaknesses – a bureaucratic and formalised approach, lack of implementation and lack of integration throughout the organisation – which were prevalent in strategic planning in the past and which are potentially just as problematic for an integrated corporate governance approach to business ethics. We suggest ways these weaknesses might be avoided and provide questions for boards of directors to consider when integrating ethical concerns into their organisations' corporate governance structures.