Online Business Ethics Training Courses and Education Programs

Controversial news stories periodically highlight the role of ethics in the decision-making processes of business executives and managers. Aspiring and current organization leaders may take online business ethics training courses to enhance their ability to prevent and resolve conflicts.

Overview of Online Business Ethics Education

Postsecondary schools offer online business ethics training and education through standalone courses and those that are part of undergraduate and graduate programs in business and related areas. Additionally, for-profit organizations may provide online ethics courses that help businesses train employees and comply with industry standards. Providers use similar technology to deliver course materials through video lectures, media uploads and posted materials. Students learn to understand risks and benefits, corporate operations, legal obligations, organizational management, trickle-down accountability and how to evaluate outcomes when making ethical decisions.

Online Content Delivery

Students taking for-credit or noncredit courses through a college or university commonly log on to a personal account through learning software such as WebCt, SkillPort or Blackboard. Then they can check e-mail, post to discussion forums and receive syllabus updates through this portal. Some programs require a minimal amount of participation and track students' contributions. Individuals should be comfortable using personal computers in terms of keyboarding, downloading materials, installing basic programs and communicating online. They must also have strong time-management skills, since classes may occur asynchronously and rely on student discipline to stay on top of readings, assignments and test due dates.

Course Topics

Online ethics classes typically cover the same topics as on-campus programs. They may share the same syllabus and follow the same semester schedule. Through online classes, students examine the relationship between organizational culture and ethical practices by analyzing human behavior and psychological justifications. Classes may be broken down to address ethics in specific fields, such as finance, human resources or health care. They focus significantly on case studies to analyze real instances of ethical dilemmas and provide solutions based on their learning.