KINGSTON, Jamaica – The collapse of the energy giant Enron in the United States of America has ensured that business ethics is now an important part of the curriculum of business schools around the world, says Earl Jarrett, General Manager of Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS).
The bankruptcy of the fraud-saddled Texan multinational in 2001, pointed to the fact businesses need to focus more on the customer by growing ‘stakeholder value’ rather than ‘shareholder value’, he said.
Caribbean economist, Sir Courtney Blackman has pointed out that the stakeholder perspective, which focuses on corporate social responsibility, was superceded in the 1990’s by the shareholder value perspective, which emphasizes profitability and of which Enron was one of the worst examples.
“Businesses are not simply there just to make money for the owner or shareholders,” Mr. Jarrett said. He was addressing participants in the Annual District Conference of Rotary District 7020 at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, on May 5.
“There is great value in operating at high ethical standards, which can help to build customers and relationships,” he said. As such, Mr. Jarrett suggested that the Rotary Club, “Should consider adopting and sponsoring Business Ethics courses in our business schools and universities.”
The aim would be to, “Shape and frame the minds and thinking of our young people who will become the national and business leaders of tomorrow,” he pointed out. “Today, it is the values of entertainers and persons with greater access to media which seem to prevail.”
Earl Jarrett (right), General Manager, Jamaica National Building Society, discusses the impact of Rotary in Jamaica with incoming Governor for District 7020, Diana White and her husband, Roger. Mrs. White is the first female to be elected District Governor for 77 Rotary clubs in the Caribbean and the south eastern United States. All three Rotarians were attending a luncheon on May 5 during the 36th annual district conference at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel. Approximately 600 Rotarians, some as far away as Australia, gathered for the four-day conference in Kingston.
To promote these objectives, Rotary Club needs to develop programmes and opportunities to promote the benefits of supporting stakeholders in business. The Club aims to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service and encourage high ethical standards.
The Rotary meeting in St. Andrew addressed by Mr. Jarrett was part of a conference attended by more than 700 Club members in its District 7020, which includes Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands, St. Martin, St. Maarten, St. Barthelemy, Anguilla, the British and US Virgin Islands as well as from Georgia, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Florida in the USA.
