ETI452 Diversity and Inclusive Work-life in Firms and Ethics

• Topics

  Background and Short description

  This course covers the ERS (Ethics, Social Responsibility, Sustainability) requirements of a 7.5 credit point course for master students at NHH. It focuses on economic and social sustainability in addition to business ethics. It covers the UN sustainability goals no. 5 Gender Equality, no. 8 Good jobs and Economic Growth, no. 10 reduced inequalities. Hence, this course covers ERS requirements. The course covers economic sustainability by a detailed discussion of inequality in the labour market, and the combination of social and environmental sustainability is covered by focusing on measurement and reporting according to ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance).

  The course consists of 30 meeting hours (lectures and case discussions) plus independent but supervised work on a term paper by the students. It is going to add extra work for students which they are compensated for by less meeting time.

  Topics

  Societies as well as firms increasingly become diverse in terms of workforce composition. Equality is high on the political agenda. More and more firms acknowledge that to recruit the best workers they need a profile embracing diversity and inclusive worklife to attract diverse groups of workers and offer attractive careers. Firms must follow anti-discrimination laws but also increasingly integrate equality and business ethics as part of their corporate management strategy as part of the sustainability agenda. The goals of the course are

  • to study the relationship between discriminatory behaviour in labour markets and the business ethics of organizations
  • to give an empirical overview of main topics in inequality with Norwegian and international data.
  • to discuss how firms report on sustainability that is ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) where the focus is on inequality and governance.
  • to discuss potential correlations between gender equality and environmental sustainability, corporate governance and equity

  The course invites students to a discussion of related questions and cases with an emphasis on gender differences and gender diversity in firms, but also include diversity with respect to race, sexual orientation, age etc. The course leaders ensure that topics in group discussions and term papers reflect a broad range of issues related to diversity and inclusive worklife.

  The course starts with a general introduction to managing business and ethical values. What do we mean by ethical values in business and why are those important for management? How are decisions made on a sound ethical basis? What is corporate social responsibility? We then turn to diversity in firms and ethics. We introduce the topic by discussing whether there is a business case for diversity. Do firms perform better if they have more women in the management or on boards? We learn about the challenges of treating everybody equally in terms of work and pay in organizations. We discuss ethical issues that arise related to discriminatory behaviour in a legal sense. The course uses empirical studies to train students to get an understanding of discriminatory behaviour supplemented by lectures discussing the economic, ethical and legal background. In the last part of the course, we turn to the measurement of ESG indicators with focus on Social and Governance, the legal requirements and reporting systems of ESG as a result of EUs sustainability agenda. This includes an economic discussion of long-term strategies of firms. Students use cases to learn to identify ethical dilemmas of diversity and inclusive worklife in businesses and find solutions taking the position of a corporate manager or an employee. The case discussions take place in groups during the lecture sessions.

  The course outline is:

  1. Introduction: Managing business and ethics.
  2. Writing a term paper and selecting a topic (group assignment).
  3. Discriminatory behaviour and business ethics.
  4. Ethical issues inside the organization and anti-discrimination legislation.
  5. Managing ethics and diversity in organizations.
  6. The responsibility to ensure equal rights and equal opportunities as owners of the firm structure.
  7. Causes and Consequences of Inequality.
  8. Increasing LEGAL requirements: compliance, audits, public relations.
  9. Diversity and Inclusion - the boards’ ESG responsibilities.
  10. ESG reporting: Diversity and inclusive worklife.
  11. Meetings with students supervising term papers (independent but supervised worktime)
  12. Presentations of the term papers (in student groups).

• Learning outcome

  Upon completion of the course, the student can…

  Knowledge

  • Understand of diversity management and ethical issues with particular emphasis on discriminatory behavior in labor markets
  • Recognize the laws of anti-discrimination legislation
  • Explain the legal, economics and ethical background of ESG reporting
  • Describe strategies of becoming/assessing a diverse and inclusive organisation
  • Inspect empirical evidence on inequality
  • Identify the UN sustainability goals, particularly, no. 5 Gender Equality, no. 8 Good jobs and Economic Growth, no. 10 reduced inequalities
  • Explain core issues related to how to manage diverse businesses

  Skills

  • Apply academic knowledge and relevant results of research to practical problems and make well-founded choices
  • Reflect upon his/her own academic practice and adjust it during the dialogues with co-students in group discussions of case studies
  • Find, evaluate and refer to information and scholarly subject matter and present it in a manner that sheds light on the problem

  Competence

  • Show knowledge into relevant professional issues of discriminatory behaviour in the workplace
  • Explain ethical issues of diversity and inclusive worklife and solving them
  • Demonstrate know-how on how to implement ESG reporting with focus on diversity and inclusive worklife and sustainability more broadly
  • Communicate important subject matters such as models, problems and solutions, both in writing and orally
  • Exchange opinions and experiences with others with a background in the field, thereby contributing to the development of good practice

• Teaching

  This course is 7.5 credit points and meets ten times (three hours each) from January to March. It is case-based, supported by lectures covering the main material the academic literature. A main part of the course are group discussions where students solve short and longer cases.  Two of the cases require more extensive reading and students are expected to come well-prepared to the case discussions. These discussions will take place in class both in smaller groups (4-6 students) and larger groups (at most 40 students). These group discussions together with the lectures prepare the students for choosing a term paper topic and writing the term paper. The term project is to write a 5 to 7 page long-term paper, which is a group assignment, due in March 2025. The student teams will also present the term project at the end of the course, approx. March 2025. The specific dates will be announced in the beginning of the semester.

• Restricted access

  This course will be closed for registration after the second lecture.

• Recommended prerequisites

  None. SAM1A is a course presenting an introduction to ERS and ethics and can be advantageous to have taken as a bachelor at NHH, but is not required.

• Required prerequisites

  None.

• Compulsory Activity

  Since case discussions are essential for learning in this course, it is mandatory to attend the 5 classes during which part of the time is used for group discussions. It is expected, yet not compulsory, to attend all 10 classes. A student missing more than one class of the 5 compulsory ones without prior approval will fail the course. While I may grant permission to miss a class for personal reasons, you need to ask for permission in advance.

  This course will be closed for registration after the second lecture.

• Assessment

  The grade is based on a portfolio consisting of class participation (approximately 40%), a written term paper, and the presentation of the term paper (approximately 60%). One grade is given for the entire portfolio.

  The submitted term papers will be evaluated and returned to the students with written comments. Then, students hold short presentations of their findings in the assignment papers taking the comments into account. Presentations are followed by discussions with fellow students in the course. Students will again work in groups. After the presentations, the final grade for the written term papers will be formed. This grade makes up for 60 % of the total grade for each student.

  Class participation is an individual effort. The evaluation of class participation will mainly be based on the case discussions in small and larger groups during the 5 compulsory classes. It will reflect the quality of a student's comments and insights, as well as the intensity of participation. There is no makeup for a missed class.

  The term project is a group assignment, with a written term paper and a presentation as deliveries. The term paper can be written in English or Norwegian. The presentation takes place in English.

  The assignment is to identify and discuss a current ethical dilemma related to diversity and inclusive worklife in business. Students can choose a topic from a list of suggested topics by the course instructor or find their own. To prepare for the term project, students need to work through the course material (all 10 lectures) including the relevant book chapters, cases, and articles from the reading list. The assignment essay should be 5-7 pages, and 2000 to the max. 2800 words in 12pt times new roman. Students work in a group of 2-4 students*. They are expected to develop in the group the topic, link it to the course material, discuss the solution and write the paper.

  Students decide on the topic and list of group members of the term paper during the course (approx. end of January). The deadline is to be announced. The specific dates will be announced at the beginning of the semester. The submitted term papers will be graded A-F and returned to the students. Afterward, students hold short presentations of their findings in the assignment papers, which are followed by a discussion. Students will again work in groups. After the presentations, the final grade for the written term paper will be formed. This grade makes up for approximately 60 % of the total grade.

  The grades awarded may not be appealed due to the nature of the assessment.

  *The size of the group may be adjusted depending on how many take the course.

• Grading Scale

  Grading scale A-F.

• Computer tools

  None.

• Literature

  Core reference:

  Trevino, Linda K. and Katherine A. Nelsen (2021): Managing Business Ethics - Straight talk about how to do it right, 8th edition, Wiley. Available as e-book.(previous version 2017)

  There will also be a list of cases and articles that will be announced in class.