Story - Quinlan - Ethics In the Wild
Abraham Singer, assistant professor at 黑料门University Chicago鈥檚 Quinlan School of Business, teaches courses in business ethics and is publishing a book about businesses鈥� ethical obligations to democracy. PHOTO BY LUKAS KEAPPROTH
“Ethics in the Wild”: Teaching Students to Remain Responsible in the Business World
Professor Abraham Singer builds on the Quinlan School’s legacy of business ethics
Imagine this scenario: You operate a company that gives away free tampons and pads to increase health equity. You fund the company by selling advertising on the packaging itself. One day, a pornography company with unethical labor practices and a PR problem offers to invest a large dollar amount in your business in exchange for some positive co-branding on your packaging.
Which is more ethical—to expand the ability to get free feminine hygiene products to those in need, or to deny a bad actor the chance to launder its reputation? According to what principles or standards might one make this decision?
That’s the question Abraham Singer, an assistant professor at 黑料门University Chicago’s Quinlan School of Business, posed to some of the students in his business ethics class.
Students in the class come up with a business idea, determine their company’s organizational structure, and identify target customers. Then, at the end of the semester, Singer gives each group a custom ethical crisis to work through—such as the scenario described above.
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Read the story鈥淭he idea is to think about ethics in the wild, rather than as a merely abstract concept in the classroom,鈥� Singer says. 鈥淚f students apply the ideas to a specific business case, it makes it easier for them to apply the thinking to issues they may face in the workplace.鈥�
Singer鈥檚 course and teaching approach is emblematic of the Quinlan School鈥檚 dedication to both experiential learning and creating a new path forward for businesses that combine purpose and profit. It also builds on the research Singer did for an upcoming book about businesses鈥� ethical obligations to democracy.
Legacy of Ethics
The Quinlan School鈥檚 commitment to business ethics dates back to the 1960s, when Father Raymond Baumhart, S.J., who later became 黑料门University Chicago鈥檚 longest-running president, taught a course on the topic鈥攈elping spark an entire field of study.
Business ethics combined Baumhart鈥檚 interests in moral theology and business. He regularly hosted Chicago business leaders to speak with his class about ethical issues they had faced. His passion embedded a commitment to business ethics in the school鈥檚 DNA.
Preparing for Power
Today, business ethics is a required course for both undergraduate and graduate students at the Quinlan School 鈥� but it goes even further, embedding ethics at the very heart of the curriculum.
鈥淚 imagine that at many other business schools, a person who teaches business ethics feels a little like an outcast who is just there for box checking. That鈥檚 not how I feel at Loyola,鈥� Singer says. 鈥淏usiness ethics is a central part of the business education here.鈥�
While Singer teaches a course dedicated specifically to business ethics, lessons in ethics are embedded in other Quinlan classes. For example, students taking data analytics learn about the ethical use of data; students taking finance learn about ethics in finance.
According to Michael Behnam, the dean of the Quinlan School of Business, 鈥淗aving ethics woven throughout our curriculum speaks to the fundamental values of this school and the University. At Quinlan, we are empowering tomorrow's difference makers with the tools to do business in a way that supports people and communities and is ethical.鈥�
For Singer, business ethics goes beyond Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) or Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reports. It鈥檚 about using power carefully and responsibly. He encourages students to think of holding a leadership position in a business as occupying a type of social office, a perch of power.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e not entitled to use that position of power for your own personal ends,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t's less about a businessperson's personal beliefs or commitments, and more about the broader obligations that derive from society's shared commitment to democracy and justice.鈥�
His goal isn鈥檛 necessarily to tell companies and employees how to navigate every potential crisis, but rather to give them a framework for working through those challenges when they arise鈥攁nd to set up governance structures and workplace cultures that enable such reflection.
鈥淲hat I see my work doing is helping to clarify why certain issues are problems that need to be thought about in more detail鈥攁nd then providing a shared vocabulary and conceptual toolkit to help discuss those issues,鈥� he says.
Imparting those critical thinking skills to businesses鈥攁nd his students鈥攊s core to his mission.
Reimagining Business Education
The lessons taught at Loyola鈥檚 Quinlan School of Business are shaping the corporate world, as graduates persuade their coworkers to consider factors beyond profit or revenue鈥攕uch as sustainability, community engagement, and equity and inclusion鈥攚hen assessing a company鈥檚 success.
鈥淗ere, we鈥檙e looking at addressing the great challenges of our time with our business skills鈥攂ut we see that in every sector," says Karen Weigert, director of Quinlan鈥檚 Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility, which houses the selective Baumhart Scholars MBA program for working professionals. 鈥淲e build cohorts of people across for-profit, nonprofit, and government sectors who know each other and know what works, and then we support them in every way we can so their careers take off.鈥�
Launched in 2019, the Baumhart Scholars MBA program is the first of its kind, taking a unique approach to teaching future business leaders.
"This is really about building a community,鈥� Weigert says. 鈥淲e support our scholars in the classroom and outside of the classroom. When you want to change the world, you鈥檙e not going to do it alone. So come do it with everybody here.鈥�
鈥淭he idea is to think about ethics in the wild, rather than as a merely abstract concept in the classroom,鈥� Singer says. 鈥淚f students apply the ideas to a specific business case, it makes it easier for them to apply the thinking to issues they may face in the workplace.鈥�
Singer鈥檚 course and teaching approach is emblematic of the Quinlan School鈥檚 dedication to both experiential learning and creating a new path forward for businesses that combine purpose and profit. It also builds on the research Singer did for an upcoming book about businesses鈥� ethical obligations to democracy.
Legacy of Ethics
The Quinlan School鈥檚 commitment to business ethics dates back to the 1960s, when Father Raymond Baumhart, S.J., who later became 黑料门University Chicago鈥檚 longest-running president, taught a course on the topic鈥攈elping spark an entire field of study.
Business ethics combined Baumhart鈥檚 interests in moral theology and business. He regularly hosted Chicago business leaders to speak with his class about ethical issues they had faced. His passion embedded a commitment to business ethics in the school鈥檚 DNA.
Preparing for Power
Today, business ethics is a required course for both undergraduate and graduate students at the Quinlan School 鈥� but it goes even further, embedding ethics at the very heart of the curriculum.
鈥淚 imagine that at many other business schools, a person who teaches business ethics feels a little like an outcast who is just there for box checking. That鈥檚 not how I feel at Loyola,鈥� Singer says. 鈥淏usiness ethics is a central part of the business education here.鈥�
While Singer teaches a course dedicated specifically to business ethics, lessons in ethics are embedded in other Quinlan classes. For example, students taking data analytics learn about the ethical use of data; students taking finance learn about ethics in finance.
According to Michael Behnam, the dean of the Quinlan School of Business, 鈥淗aving ethics woven throughout our curriculum speaks to the fundamental values of this school and the University. At Quinlan, we are empowering tomorrow's difference makers with the tools to do business in a way that supports people and communities and is ethical.鈥�
For Singer, business ethics goes beyond Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) or Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reports. It鈥檚 about using power carefully and responsibly. He encourages students to think of holding a leadership position in a business as occupying a type of social office, a perch of power.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e not entitled to use that position of power for your own personal ends,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t's less about a businessperson's personal beliefs or commitments, and more about the broader obligations that derive from society's shared commitment to democracy and justice.鈥�
His goal isn鈥檛 necessarily to tell companies and employees how to navigate every potential crisis, but rather to give them a framework for working through those challenges when they arise鈥攁nd to set up governance structures and workplace cultures that enable such reflection.
鈥淲hat I see my work doing is helping to clarify why certain issues are problems that need to be thought about in more detail鈥攁nd then providing a shared vocabulary and conceptual toolkit to help discuss those issues,鈥� he says.
Imparting those critical thinking skills to businesses鈥攁nd his students鈥攊s core to his mission.
Reimagining Business Education
The lessons taught at Loyola鈥檚 Quinlan School of Business are shaping the corporate world, as graduates persuade their coworkers to consider factors beyond profit or revenue鈥攕uch as sustainability, community engagement, and equity and inclusion鈥攚hen assessing a company鈥檚 success.
鈥淗ere, we鈥檙e looking at addressing the great challenges of our time with our business skills鈥攂ut we see that in every sector," says Karen Weigert, director of Quinlan鈥檚 Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility, which houses the selective Baumhart Scholars MBA program for working professionals. 鈥淲e build cohorts of people across for-profit, nonprofit, and government sectors who know each other and know what works, and then we support them in every way we can so their careers take off.鈥�
Launched in 2019, the Baumhart Scholars MBA program is the first of its kind, taking a unique approach to teaching future business leaders.
"This is really about building a community,鈥� Weigert says. 鈥淲e support our scholars in the classroom and outside of the classroom. When you want to change the world, you鈥檙e not going to do it alone. So come do it with everybody here.鈥�