Every profession in the world has its ethical ground, which determines the behavior and attitudes of its representatives. Professional ethics includes both defined rules and moral rules, which as a rule are implied (Brooks, 2010). These rules constitute professional responsibilities, and their system is called the code of professional responsibility. Some of the elements of these codes are common for all the professions, while others are specific for some particular ones. In any case, codes of professional responsibilities need to be clearly defined and followed by the professionals.
Indeed, codes of professional responsibility play an outstanding role in any organization. For instance, they regulate the relationships between the workers, focusing on trustful and honest attitudes. Moreover, these codes are very important for spheres, where working with clients is unavoidable. Thus, professional responsibilities improve relationships between the workers and clients, keeping both parties satisfied. In addition, which is most important, codes of professional responsibility develop the moral sustainability of an individual, teaching them how to behave.
It is needless to say, that knowing the codes of professional responsibility is extremely important for the workers of various spheres. In fact, in most cases, professionals know how to handle certain problems, how to behave, or how to resolve issues. They are usually guided by their sense of morality and social norms. However, there are also cases, when even the most qualified professionals do not know what option to choose. In this case, the code of professional responsibilities can serve as a handbook. It presents the norms of behavior, which can help workers react adequately to different situations. What is more, it lists certain values, which need to be accepted by the professionals (Wendel, 2007). The values may vary in different spheres.
Another significant benefit of the codes of professional responsibility is that they regulate the company’s activity about those, who are not members of the company (Professional ethics, 2001). Of course, the primary aim is to provide the satisfaction of the clients and protect their rights. However, it often happens that the mentioned codes also serve for the company’s protection. As a matter of fact, there is a number of cases, when organizations suffer because of unstructured codes of professional responsibility. The risk is not only in violating someone’s rights but also in dealing with problems the professional is not supposed to be dealing with, which means acting not in the interests of a company. Another possible problem is the uncomprehensible definition of values, which may be confusing for professionals. In this case, the workers are not able to define their priorities in different situations. All the issues of such kind can be avoided, in case if the codes of professional responsibility are clearly defined and properly structured.
In the case of accounting, the structure of codes of responsibility in this profession may be subdivided into three branches (Duska, 2003). The first one is responsible for clients. Indeed, a professional needs to do everything in their power to satisfy the client’s needs, provide them with certain services, and, most importantly, protect their civil rights. The second branch is responsible with respect to the materials. The principles of honesty, secrecy, and accuracy are most important in this case. The last branch is responsibility with respect to oneself. A professional has to control their attitude towards the profession; undoubtedly, their task is to treat their job seriously and try to always do their best. A deep sense of responsibility is the main quality of a good professional.
Interestingly, all of the mentioned norms are usually fixed by the codes; however, their application to practice depends solely on individual moralities. In fact, following the professional responsibilities cannot be checked; thus, an individual is to decide, whether they will behave morally or not. A thing to be considered here is that “moral” is a rather variable notion. Nowadays, the main target point of accounting ethics is avoiding corporate collapses, which means that a high level of morality should be developed in the representatives of the profession.
The moral nature of behavior is actually a common feature of the codes of different professions. This is the only universal demand for the workers of various spheres, which defines honesty, fairness, unbiased attitude, and respect as key values. Among the other common elements of codes of professional responsibilities is subordinacy to certain institutions (Important Laws, 1996). Indeed, every organization needs to be controlled by certain governmental institutions, and following the orders of such institutions is obligatory. Acting in accordance with laws is also a part of any kind of professional practice. To give a specific example, it can be said, that there is no profession, which does not demand respect to civil rights from its representatives. This and other forms of legal policy of the country are also compulsory to be followed in any sphere.
As we can see, codes of professional responsibility are extremely important in every profession. They are helpful not only for clients or for companies, but also the professionals. Such codes define certain values, which are the most significant for representatives of one or another profession. Their structure and obligatory character can contribute greatly to the success of an organization. The key point to remember is that one of the basic notions of such codes in any sphere is morality.
Reference List
Brooks, L, Dunn, P (2009) Business & Professional Ethics. 5th edition. New York: South-Western College Pub
Duska, R (2003) Accounting Ethics (Foundations of Business Ethics. New York: Wiley-Blackwell
Important Laws. (1996). In Merriam-Webster&aposis Dictionary of Law. Web.
Professional ethics. (2001). In Encyclopedia of Ethics. Web.
Wendel, M (2007) Professional Responsibility Examples & Explanations New York: Aspen Publishers