The recent wave of accounting scandals in Corporate America has led to
             a resurgence of interest in the subject of business ethics. As a result,
             most business firms, large and small, have developed and implemented an
             ethics statement to affirm that ethical behavior is an important element in
             the work environment. Of course, there are some firms who do not have such
             a formal, published statement, but nevertheless claim to have a code of
             ethics underlying their business practices. Such firms point to their
             organizational values, as embodied in a vision or mission statement as
             proof of their ethical behavior. The company I work for, Standard Parking
             Corporation (SPC), belongs to the latter category.
             SPC's mission statement reads, "To maximize the value provided to our
             clients through excellence, innovation and efficiency in management
             services provided by a superior team of transportation and parking
             professionals dedicated to the highest levels of customer service." The
             preceding statement reflects the values of SPC, including the values
             expected from the individuals who constitute the organization. As Sims
             observes, "Some commonly held organizational values are the importance of
             resources, return on investment, the welfare and well-being of employees,
             service to customers and clients, and loyalty to the organization." (1994,
             Although SPC, like all organizations, transmits its code of ethics
             implicitly through its mission statement, corporate policies, and
             operational procedures, it does not have an explicit code of ethics or
             policy statement that addresses issues such as "leadership, integrity,
             equity, employee rights, employee developmentâ€nondiscrimination, quality of
             work life, and the like." (Sims, 1994, p. 4) Therefore, to understand the
             specific ethical principles espoused by my organization, I set out to
             interview the Head of our Human Resources Depa...