Many of our simulations offer students the opportunity to work as a team on a role-playing exercise that imitates a real-world issue in organizational ethics.

• ABIG Research Company: A team role-playing exercise addressing the appropriate use of employee email, employee privacy, employee incentives, and product quality.
• All Sports: A team role-playing exercise addressing misuse of company time, the proper use of social networking sites, sexual harassment issues, and potential religious discrimination.
• La Luna Medical and Pharmaceuticals: A team role-playing exercise addressing bribery accusations, price-fixing, and product misrepresentation.
• On Command Corporation: A team role-playing exercise addressing sexual harassment concerns, possible employee retaliation, and the appropriateness of the product.
• Prafac International Engineering and Construction: A team role-playing exercise addressing accounting issues, fraud, and a possible breach of contract.
• TastEE Foods: A team role-playing exercise addressing conflict of interest, product contamination, and wrongful termination.
• Turbo Bull: A team-role playing exercise addressing bribery, potential conflicts of interest, and gender discrimination in the workplace.
• Xylon Aviation: A team role-playing exercise addressing cost-cutting alternatives, the possibility of manipulating financials, and high employee turnover.

Recently Revamped Cases

• An Apple a Day: Ethics at Apple Inc.
• CVS Smokes the Competition in Corporate Social Responsibility
• Enron: Not Accounting for the Future
• Google’s Search for Solutions to Privacy Issues
• Herbalife Nutrition Achieves Success by Managing Risks
• The Hershey Company’s Bittersweet Success
• Home Depot Works on Stakeholder Relationships
• Bayer Rounds Up Monsanto
• The NCAA and an Education in Ethics
• From the Outside In: Corporate Social Responsibility at Patagonia
• Starbucks Serves Up Its Social Responsibility Blend
• Tesla Accelerates the Transition to Sustainable Energy
• TOMS Reinvents the One for One Movement
• Uber Collides with Controversy
• Volkswagen Cleans Up Reputation After Emissions Scandal
• Big-Box Retailer Walmart Makes Big Moves in Social Responsibility
• Wells Fargo Banks on Recovery
• Whole Foods Refreshes Its Commitment to Stakeholders
• Zappos Finds the Perfect Fit

Classic Cases

• The Challenges of Expense Account Fraud
• WorldCom's Bankruptcy Crisis
• Arthur Anderson: An Accounting Confidence Crisis
• Countrywide Financial: The Subprime Meltdown
• Fraud in Dixon Illinois: Who's to Blame?
• Caterpillar, Inc. Encounters Challenges to Its Ethical Reputation
• J&J: It Will Take More Than a Band-Aid
• Sseko Designs Engages in Social Entrepreneurship
• The Ethics Program at Eaton Corporation
• Ford Motor Company Responds to Ethical Challenges
• Managing Social Responsibility and Growth at Ben & Jerry's
• Snyder's-Lance Inc. Snacks on a Troubled Diamond Foods and Now Campbell's Soup Simmers: It's Complicated
• Best Buy Fights Against Electronic Waste
• Better Business Bureau: Protecting Consumers and Dealing With Organizational Ethics Challenges
• Sunbeam Corporation: "Chainsaw AL," Greed, and Recovery
• POM Wonderful Faces Misleading Advertising Allegations
• Uber Technologies Inc.: Managing Opportunities and Challenges
• VW Creates an Environmental Reputation Disaster
• Ashley Madison Experiences Fallout from Hacking Scandal
• Peyton Manning and Ethical Leadership: Omaha and Peyback
• IKEA Addresses Ethical and Social Responsibility Challenges
• Multilevel Marketing Under Fire: Herbalife Defends its Business Model
• Fracking: Energy Revolution or Environmental Catastrophe?
• T-Mobile's Strong Ethical Culture
• The Coca-Cola Company Struggles with Ethical Crises
• Whole Foods Strives to Be an Ethical Corporate Citizen
• Zappos: Delivering Happiness to Stakeholders
• The Container Store: An Employee Centric Retailer
• Wyndham Worldwide Excels at Stakeholder Management
• The Ethical Challenges Facing Public Officials: The Case of the Former Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner
• The American Red Cross Faces Organizational Integrity Challenges
• Barrett-Jackson Auction Company: Family, Fairness, and Philanthropy
• Bueno Foods: Community, Tradition, and Globalization
• NiSource and Columbia Gas of Kentucky Maintain a Values-Based Ethics Program
• Banking Industry Meltdown: The Ethical and Financial Risks of Derivatives
• The Wreck of Exxon Valdez
• Firestone's Tire Recall
• Harmless Harvest : First Fair to Life Coconut Water
• Hospital Corporation of America: Learning from Past Mistakes?
• Lululemon: Encouraging a Healthy Lifestyle
• Martha Stewart's Insider Trading Scandal
• Microsoft Manages Legal and Ethical Issues
• Nike: Managing Ethical Misstep—Sweatshops to Leadership in Employment Practices
• Nu Skin Faces Pyramid-Scheme Allegations in China
• Petco Develops Successful Stakeholder Relationships
• Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI): A Responsible Retail Cooperative
• Seattle Fish Company of New Mexico: A Commitment to Sustainable Seafood
• Target: Putting Customers First?
• Tyco International: Leadership Crisis

Recently Revamped Debates

• Will carbon restrictions benefit both the nation and the environment in the long run?
• Should the CFO be the key leader to deal with ethical risks?
• Does good ethics mean good business?
• Is healthcare a right or a privilege?
• Does being ethical result in better performance?
• Should businesses be responsible for decades-old advertising?
• Do the positive changes that technology brings to society outweigh the costs?
• Is government support for external whistle-blowing effective?
• Why do people engage in white-collar crime?
• Should companies have the right to track employees through company-owned devices?

Classic Debates

• Is Amazon using its power to take over the world?
• Are principles more important than rules in accounting ethics?
• Are consumers being harmed by antibacterial soap?
• Is a year enough time to ensure auditor independence when an auditor takes a high level position with a client firm?
• Is it ethical for banks to track customers' cell phones as a way to prevent credit card fraud?
• Did Buckyballs represent enough of a threat to child safety that they should be banned?
• When should revenue be recognized in accounting?
• Should executives be forced to give back their bonuses due to accounting restatements?
• Should the use of clearance pricing be regulated?
• Is overcriminalization of business harming society?
• Should major pharmacies discontinue selling cigarettes because they are in the healthcare business?
• Should direct-to-consumer advertising for prescription drugs be allowed?
• Is it ethical for pharmaceutical firms to charge such high prices for drugs in the United States?
• Is fantasy football a game of skill or gambling?
• Is it ethical to charge people different prices based on gender for similar products or services?
• As digital firms gain monopoly status in some markets, should regulators intervene to break their monopolies?
• Will Google Glass make it easier for privacy violations and cheating to occur?
• Are green funeral companies meeting the needs of environmentally-conscious consumers, or does the industry need more regulation?
• As a for-profit company, should Hobby Lobby be allowed to refuse certain types of contraceptives because they conflict with the religious beliefs of the founders?
• Should workers under the sharing economy model be classified as employees rather than independent contractors?
• Will more effective laws enforcing copyright infringement on the Internet halt innovation and undermine free speech?
• Should marijuana be advertised where it is legally sold?
• Is network marketing a legitimate business model that offers a chance to earn viable income or achieve personal goals?
• Should organic farmers have legal protection against Monsanto for inadvertent contamination of their crops?
• Should there be limits on the amount of money that can be contributed by businesses to influence public policy and laws?
• Should genetic modification be used to further economic development?
• Will the FCPA and the U.K. Anti-Bribery Law affect a firm's competitiveness?
• Should restaurants be required to provide calorie counts on their menus?
• Is it necessary to create public policy to regulate the marketing of unhealthy food to children?
• Should the World Trade Organization crack down on China for its protectionist policies?
• Should U.S. companies choose to outsource to Mexico over China?
• Should there be limits on the amount of money that can be contributed by businesses to influence public policy and laws?
• Should the Personal Care Safety Act exert oversight over the effectiveness of cosmetics products?
• Does national culture predict consumer behavior and organizational culture?
• To what degree are CEOs Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling responsible for not preventing ethical misconduct and illegal activities within the organization?
• Was it unethical for prosecutors to use abusive tactics to secure witnesses and convictions in the investigation of Enron's corporate wrongdoing?
• Is it ethical for the European Union to harvest wood from the United States to meet its energy goals?
• Is Facebook leading to more positive social movements or to negative social dysfunction?
• Should Facebook allow outside parties to have access to user information?
• Do the economic benefits gained from the gaming industry outweigh the damage that gambling inflicts on those who are addicted?
• Is it acceptable for companies to exaggerate environmental claims in order to sell products, or is this practice deceiving consumers?
• Is Herbalife operating a pyramid scheme?
• Will the Higher Education Opportunity Act truly cut textbook costs for students?
• Will more effective laws enforcing copyright infringement on the Internet halt innovation and undermine free speech?
• Is it ethical for one company to control all aspects of an industry if it is legal?
• Do the benefits of marijuana legalization outweigh the costs?
• Does the SEC target highly visible celebrities for publicity?
• Is using sex appeal in a marketing campaign appropriate for product promotion?
• Was the Nationwide Insurance advertisement "The Boy Who Couldn't Grow Up" an authentic attempt to save lives or a shameless attempt to promote the brand?
• Is network marketing a reputable business model that offers a chance to earn income or achieve personal goals?
• Despite the fact that nuclear power is a more sustainable energy source than fossil fuels, is it worth the risks it poses to people and the environment?
• Is using native advertising a deceptive practice?
• Has outsourcing production and manufacturing to low-wage countries helped or hurt the United States?
• Should companies get rid of the performance review?
• Are seeds that have been genetically modified a better alternative than pesticides?
• Do some claims of plagiarism go too far?
• Does the Federal Trade Commission's verdict on POM Wonderful's advertising protect consumers or limit the company's First Amendment rights?
• Are less formal systems and agreements likely to be more successful than formal legal and regulatory systems?
• Should employees be allowed to pursue relationships at work?
• When should revenue be recognized in accounting?
• Is the shareholder model the best strategy of corporate governance in managing a public company?
• Should tobacco companies promote smokeless tobacco products due to declining cigarette sales?
• Should tariffs on footwear be eliminated under the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement if it means the loss of American jobs?
• Does Tattoo Barbie send the right message to girls?
• Is it ethical for businesses to engage in tax inversions to lower their tax rates?
• What are the ethical ramifications of showrooming for the consumer and the retailer?
• Should companies reimburse consumers stuck in traffic for missed events?
• Is it fair to allow employees to work from home and then require them to only work in the office?

These ethics requirements are designed to better prepare young professionals to handle the ethical dilemmas they will face in their careers. According to Alfonzo Alexander, Ethics and Diversity Officer of NASBA and President of the Center for the Public Trust, Auburn is the first university in the country to require its business school graduates to complete ethical leadership training and attain independent certification. Since 1908, NASBA has served as a forum for the nation’s 55 State Boards of Accountancy, which administer the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Examination, license more than 650,000 CPAs and regulate the practice of public accountancy in the United States.

“Ethical conduct has always been a key component of the accounting profession — in fact, it is a core competency for all business leaders,” reported Alexander. “The development of this new curriculum and certification serves the growing need to educate our young professionals to meet the critical demand for ethical conduct in today’s challenging business environment.”

The course and curriculum were developed by a panel of leading business ethics professors from across the country, including Drs. O.C. and Linda Ferrell from Auburn’s Harbert College of Business as well as NASBA’s Alexander. The online curriculum, which has been developed for all functional areas of business, is available for any university to adopt through NASBA’s Center for the Public Trust.

According to O.C. Ferrell, James T. Pursell, Sr. Eminent Scholar in Ethics and Director of the Center for Ethical Organizational Cultures at Auburn University, instilling ethical conduct is critical to shaping organizational culture in today’s highly competitive business environment.

“Students need to understand their ethical responsibilities in an organizational culture and how to develop the skills necessary to motivate and manage those who report to them later in their careers. Recruiters are asking us for more certification programs,” noted Ferrell. “Ethical conduct is an important component of an Auburn education, and this initiative is the latest in an ongoing effort to equip our business students with the tools they need to be successful throughout their careers.”

“The Ethical Leadership certification has been extremely beneficial to college students across the nation,” added Alexander. “The curriculum is continually updated and can be customized to meet specific university needs. We hope that Auburn University’s decision to require this independent certification for all its business students will serve as a role model for other colleges of business and a call to action for them to join this critical initiative.”

The certification program has six modules. Students are required to complete all six modules and pass an exam at the conclusion of each section.

• Overview of Ethical Leadership
• Ethical Decision Making
• Organizational Support of Ethical Leadership
• Role of Leadership in Managing and Preventing Conflicts and Ethical Risks
• Role of Communication in Ethical Leadership
• Implementing Ethical Leadership