RUNNING HEAD:UNIT 1 BUSINESS 5115 WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT

The case of The Baha Mar Hotel and Attorney General Allyson Maynard Gibson: Conflict of
Interest or lack of integrity?

Business 5115-

Term 4

University of the People

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UNIT 1 WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Abstract

The paper addresses the questions: do laws and policies help promote ethical behavior? A

situation involving a conflict of interest is examined to help answer this question. Strategies are

suggested for organisations to promote ethical behaviour.

Keywords: Conflict of interest, ethical behaviour.

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Do laws and policies help promote ethical behavior?

Laws and policies are useful in promoting ethical behaviour, the key, is persons must be

predisposed to behaving ethically. Laws, must be supported by organisational policies that lead

to procedures for managing ethical behaviour. According to (Heing, 2018) “A company with a

strong code of conduct will attract and secure employees with ethical behavior, which benefits the

company culture and the bottom line.”

The purpose of a code of ethics is to guide employees in handling ethical dilemmas. It is

essentially a moral compass which expresses the organisation’s values and provides employees

guidance in making ethical decisions. Having codes and policies in place that address ethics is

not enough. Employees need to be taught how to respond in situations involving ethics.

Therefore, many managers enroll their employees in an ethics training programme. Ethics

programmes often involve activities that encourage ethical behavior and reinforce a company’s

ethics code/policies. Although it is important, or even required in some cases, to have an

established and effective code of ethics, it is crucial to the stability of an organisation to first hire

ethical employees. It is better to hire someone who is naturally inclined to behave in an ethical

manner than to rely on a company code of ethics to encourage an unethical employee to make

ethical choices.

Best practices in the selection and hiring of ethical employees involve including the

organisation’s most ethical employees in the interview process. Interviewers already doing the

job a candidate is applying for can ask relevant questions that can lead to answers that reveal a

lot about the candidate, such as a propensity to make unethical decisions. One of the best

enforcement tools is a “whistleblower reporting system,” which is a phone number or other

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method for employees or other stakeholders to report suspected acts of impropriety, such as

fraud, waste, abuse, misconduct, or violations of policy, laws, or regulations. These reports are

usually confidential and may be anonymous. Colleagues often see suspicious behavior and are

well-positioned to report it. However, many employees are reluctant to speak up for fear of

retaliation from the organisation (Ethics Research Centre, 2020).

Like an insurance policy, ethics programmes help mitigate the worst consequences when

employees do misbehave, and they help prevent “accidents” by raising employee “safety”

awareness.

Introduction notes from Unit 1, Business 5115 defined as follows:

“Conflicts of interests (COIs) fall into certain categories including,

financial, relational, and competitive/confidentiality and others

depending on the nature of the organization (Rowan, 2014).”

Online legal dictionary, relative to the appearance of a conflict of interest, states:

“The appearance of a conflict of interest is present if there is a potential
for the personal interests of an individual to clash with fiduciary duties,
such as when a client has his or her attorney commence an action against
a company in which the attorney is the majority stockholder.”

These two definitions serve to explore the “conflict of interest” case herein;

An organization is chosen and a particular conflict of interest is identified

Organisation: Baha Mar Hotel and The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Attorney General
(AG)of The Bahamas: Mrs. Alyson Maynard Gibson (Burrows, 2018; Gibson, 2016).

Summary of the COI situation: The Bahamas is an independent country, a former British

colony and functions under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Nations including Canada,

Great Britain amongst other former British territories. As such, The Bahamas follows the UK
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UNIT 1 WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT CONFLICT OF INTEREST
parliamentarian system of law (UK House of Commons Code of Conduct. Issues of corruption,

ethical behaviour and integrity has historically plagued the country and recent cases of clear COI

such as the case herein is typical. The former AG while in office purchased interests in the

BAHA MAR hotel to improve her personal situation, disregarding all confidentiality rules and

using the information for family and personal financial gain.

Type of COI: financial and competitive/confidentiality

Laws pertaining to the particular COI have been located and described.  If no laws are
described, reasons are provided.

The Bahamas does not have a set of laws or standards of conduct for Bahamian politicians,

although, codes of conducts are adopted throughout many organisations such as the Bar

Association, the financial sector, real estate sectors for example. However, there is no law or

detailed code of conduct for Parliamentarians (The Nassau Guardian, 2015).

Organizational policies pertaining to the COI are discussed, particularly the main features
of the policy.

The main policies pertaining to conduct for Bahamian Parliamentarians pertain to attendance
policies.

Do you feel that the laws, as they are currently, are sufficient and effective?

A substantial discussion (The Nassau Guardian, 2015) highlights the need for laws that govern

the ethical behaviour of Bahamian Parliamentarians and other government officials. The ongoing

corruption is a testament to the lack of laws. Parliamentarians continue to act immorally, without

integrity and engage in many obvious “COI” situations.

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UNIT 1 WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Ways that managers can use both policy and the existing laws in your home country to discourage
employees seeking their own interests over that of the employer are discussed

Here are 4 ways to foster an ethical workplace that reaps the rewards of good behavior (Heinig,
2018):

1. Lead by example and model ethical behaviour

2. Provide actionable resources: ethics training programmes along with

publication/transparency

3. Ask employees to write a personal code

4. Reward ethical behaviour

In the Bahamas different sectors have attempted to enforce Code of ethics standards and
statements (Government Laws, n.d.).

The paper suggests ways that the laws and/or policies could be improved to both motivate
employees to pursue the interests of their employers, as well as to minimize the costs of employers
complying with or enforcing the laws.

Ethical leadership creates a trickle-down effect that helps to attract and retain the best

employees, develop a reputation for sound ethics, and implement more sustainable practices. A

company with a strong ethical reputation generally attracts similarly minded employees. In turn,

when employee ethical standards align with that of employers, costs in retaining good employees

is minimised as less employee turn-over, misconduct and other management issues are less likely

to occur. In turn, the company is able to focus on its goals.

Conclusion

The line between a lack of integrity and a conflict of interest is entirely blurred as seen in the

case herein this paper. Laws are useful in promoting ethical behaviour, but, people have to be

morally based to embrace them as well as be taught the difference between right and wrong in

their organisations.
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UNIT 1 WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT CONFLICT OF INTEREST
References

Burrows, D. (2018). Conflicts of interest and integrity. Retrieved 14 April, 2020 from
https://thenassauguardian.com/2019/07/18/conflicts-of-interest-and-integrity/

Callaghan, H. (n.d.). What is government ethics? Retrieved 14 April, 2020 from

https://www.scu.edu/government-ethics/

Ethics Research Center, “National Business Ethics Survey (NBES) 2013,” 2017,Retreived 14
April, 2020 from  https://www.ethics.org/ecihome/research/nbes/nbes-reports/nbes-2013 ↵

Heinig, I. 2018. How can companies encourage ethical behaviour in the work-place. Retrieved
14 April, 2020 from https://medium.com/@the_manifest/how-can-companies-encourage-ethics-
in-the-workplace-5c36318e98a4

Gibson, A. 2016. Wherever you look with Baha Mar: Conflict of Interest Abounds. Retrieved 13
April, 2020 from https://www.weblogbahamas.com/blog_bahamas/2016/09/wherever-you-look-
with-baha-mar-conflict-of-interest-abounds.html

Online legal dictionary. Conflicts of interest. Retrieved 13 April, 2020 from

https://dictionary.law.com/

Rowan, K. (2014, Apr 15). Conflict of Interest Examples: Avoiding Lawsuits in the Workplace.
Udemy blog. Retrieved from: https://blog.udemy.com/conflict-of-interest-examples/

The Nassau Guardian, 2015. Code of ethics for all parliamentarians recommended. Retrieved 14
April, 2020 from https://thenassauguardian.com/2015/04/07/code-of-ethics-for-all-
parliamentarians-recommended/

The Bahamas Government Laws online (n.d). Retrieved 15 April, 2020 from
http://www.govnet.bs/wps/portal/public/ATTG%20Bills%

The OWL website can be accessed .APA writing

format: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
UK House of Commons Code of Conduct and Guide to rules. Retrieved 14 April, 2020 from

https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/commons/hoc-code-of-conduct/