Business incorporation is the development of a new corporation serving as a business under the laws of the state and country. This corporation can be a non-profit organization, or a profitable organization. With the forming of a new business corporation, there remains associated the code of ethics that the corporation usually maintains to provide its best business services to its clients and customers. Business ethics are moral principles that are applied in the corporate and commercial world to provide guidelines to all employees of the organization for acceptable behavior throughout their policies and strategies.
Is the Corporation a Legal Entity?
The first code of ethics for the business organization is that whether the organization is a legal entity or not. Being the owner of a business corporation you are required to file the articles of incorporation declaring the address of your organization, the names of the vice presidents and the shareholders, the number of stocks the organization hold, and the name of the partners if any. The law usually considers an organization as a person who has a distinct personality and thus it demands morality from the corporation. Filing of articles of incorporation is the first step to give your organization a legal entity.
Employee, Employment and Business Ethics
Your organization being a small or a large publicly traded one requires that it follow the laws for fair terms of employment. Under the U.S. jurisdiction, an employment relationship is usually governed by the at-will principle. The fair judgment from the employer is generally expected by employees of the organization. The employer also holds authoritative powers to dismiss any employee without prior notice under an at-will doctrine. The violation of laws maintained by the organization also results in the termination of employment.
Each corporation has its own ethics policies. Corporations usually choose the course of highest integrity while maintaining the codes of ethics and moral principles. Every senior and junior employee of the organization is expected to deal fairly with each other and also maintain a good relationship with the corporation’s customers, competitors, suppliers and even other third parties. Employees who deal unscrupulously and profit at the cost of violations of the law are not tolerated by any corporation.
Business Ethics and the Government Rules
The corporation is solely responsible for maintaining government rules, laws and regulations as applicable to the business. Local customs and traditions are subject to change from place to place. So, it is important for a corporation to recognize this and conduct their workflow accordingly.
In today’s economic climate, LLCs require any form of support they can muster in order to preserve their survival. One form of support is given by the federal government. This support comes in various forms some including:
• Contracts: The government provides billions of dollars in contracts to LLCs. These contracts take the form of military, construction and support services. This type of system provides millions of jobs and ensures the economy stays afloat. To qualify, companies must be current with their tax payments and be free of any controversial practices. They then bid for these contracts, with the ones providing the best value for money selected.
• Preferred Taxation: One of the main benefits is protection from double taxation. Members of LLCs enjoy pass through taxation, where the LLC does not pay taxes of itself but the taxes are passed onto the member as one.
• Financial Support: LLCs enjoy financial support through various grants issued by the federal government. These come in two forms:
o Start up funding: Once the state deems a proposal viable and the state sees where it is beneficial to its citizens, the state will extend support to these organizations to ensure their stability during their incubation stage. The organization then gets ample time to repay these loans after they have attained stability and realize profits.
o Soft Loans: The federal government has pledged billions of dollars in support for business, once they qualify for support especially now in these troubled times. These loans are either distributed directly through financial institutions, or take the form of loan guarantees. These loan guarantees act as collateral for organizations when they apply for loans from financial institutions. They are only called upon if there is a default on payment.