Journal of Business Ethics 10 (6):423 - 436 (1991)
Abstract |
Competitor intelligence, information that helps managers understand their competitors, is highly valued in today's marketplace. Firms, large and small, are taking a more systematic approach to competitor intelligence collection. At the same time, information crimes and litigation over information disputes appear to be on the rise, and survey data show widespread approval of unethical and questionable intelligence-gathering methods. Despite these developments, few corporations address the ethics of intelligence gathering in their corporate codes of conduct. Neither managers nor management educators have paid sufficient attention to this topic. From a review of questionable intelligence-gathering practices reported in various literatures, the author identifies some important ethical principles to help managers draw the line between legitimate and illegitimate methods of information acquisition. The paper also discusses the costs of failure to heed these principles and suggests steps managers can take to provide ethical leadership in this area.
|
Keywords | No keywords specified (fix it) |
Categories | (categorize this paper) |
DOI | 10.1007/BF00382825 |
Options |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Download options
References found in this work BETA
No references found.
Citations of this work BETA
Unethical Practices in Competitive Analysis: Patterns, Causes and Effects. [REVIEW]Shaker A. Zahra - 1994 - Journal of Business Ethics 13 (1):53 - 62.
An Ethical Decision-Making Framework for Competitor Intelligence Gathering.Terri L. Rittenburg, Sean R. Valentine & James B. Faircloth - 2007 - Journal of Business Ethics 70 (3):235-245.
The Effects of the Recession on Attitudes Toward Business Ethics: An Inter‐Temporal Study of Business Students in 2001, 2009, and 2010. [REVIEW]Lydia Segal, Maria Haberfeld & Lior Gideon - 2013 - Business and Society Review 118 (1):71-104.
Similar books and articles
Freedom and Privacy in Ambient Intelligence.Philip Brey - 2005 - Ethics and Information Technology 7 (3):157-166.
The Role of Ethics in Gathering Corporate Intelligence.William Cohen & Helena Czepiec - 1988 - Journal of Business Ethics 7 (3):199 - 203.
The Ethics of Business Intelligence.Norman O. Schultz, Allison B. Collins & Michael McCulloch - 1994 - Journal of Business Ethics 13 (4):305 - 314.
Business Intelligence and National Intelligence: Should the CIA Spy for American Companies?David L. Perry - unknown
Business Intelligence Methods — How Ethical.John H. Hallaq & Kirk Steinhorst - 1994 - Journal of Business Ethics 13 (10):787 - 794.
All Enemies, Foreign and Domestic: Erasing the Distinction Between Foreign and Domestic Intelligence Gathering Under the Fourth Amendment.Dan Fenske - manuscript
The Impact of Emotional Intelligence on the Ethical Judgment of Managers.John Angelidis & Nabil A. Ibrahim - 2011 - Journal of Business Ethics 99 (S1):111-119.
Investigating the Limits of Competitive Intelligence Gathering: Is Mystery Shopping Ethical?Ng Kwet Shing Michelle & J. Spence Laura - 2002 - Business Ethics 11 (4):343-353.
Analytics
Added to PP index
2009-01-28
Total views
51 ( #194,190 of 2,403,718 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
1 ( #550,229 of 2,403,718 )
2009-01-28
Total views
51 ( #194,190 of 2,403,718 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
1 ( #550,229 of 2,403,718 )
How can I increase my downloads?
Downloads