I just ran across a fascinating paper by Jane Seybold-Clegg, et al on moral decision making in the corporate environment. The paper, titled A MODEL FOR TEACHING DECISION-MAKING SKILLS IN BUSINESS USING ST. IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA’S RULES OF DISCERNMENT is available as a pdf file here. The pdf file is long (23 pages). I suggest reading pages 1-4 and then skipping to page 16. Just to get you started, here are some extracts:
"The Relevance of St. Ignatius’ Rules of Discernment to the Business Community. What is discernment? Discernment is the ability to perceive the source and motivation of our thoughts, feelings and actions. St. Ignatius identifies the sources as God (or Good Angels), the Enemy (or Satan’s Bad Angels), and our own thoughts and motivations (Ganss, 1991. pp. 202-205, ¶ 313336). It is reasonable to assert that as we become better discerners of our own spirits, we would be better able to discern the actions of others with whom we are in relationship.
Why do we need discernment at work and how can we exercise discernment effectively? Discernment plays a pivotal role in the measure of a company’s fulfillment. It is through the communication that transpires among all employees, management staff, and executives that effective discernment has the opportunity to develop. The degree to which we are conscious of how and what we are discerning is the measure of our success in all of our relationships. Since we spend more time at work than we spend elsewhere, it behooves us to understand what discernment is, how it functions for us and others, and how we can become proficient decision makers through the practice of conscientious discernment." (page 4)
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"Rule 1. Ignatius begins by saying that the Evil One is accustomed to proposing pleasure for those who go from one sinful deed to another. He causes them to experience sensual delights and pleasures as they go from one vice to another. In the business world, the “evil manager” experiences pleasure in demanding strict obedience from employees, cheating on wages, payments, or sick leave, and finding ways to skim dollars off the top of a contract. Out of town conferences become opportunities for getting drunk, high-stakes gambling, having sexual affairs or carrying on an illicit romance with a willing employee from the same firm. The Good Spirit acts in a contrary way, arousing the voice of conscience to a sense of remorse, encouraging good judgment and sound reason to change the manager’s life style and business practices (see ¶ 314, Rule 1)." (pages 17-18)
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