Syllabus: Pearson Edexcel GCSE Business
Module: Growing the Business
Lesson: 2.1.4 Ethics

Introduction

Business isn’t just about making money anymore. This topic explores how companies balance profit with doing the right thing – for workers, customers, suppliers, and the planet. Today’s students are part of a generation that expects businesses to take a stand on social and environmental issues. Understanding business ethics helps students see why companies make decisions that sometimes prioritize people and planet over short-term profits, and how ethical considerations have become central to business success rather than optional extras.

Key Concepts

According to the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Business syllabus, the key concepts under Ethics include:

• How Ethical Considerations Influence Business Activity:

  • Possible trade-offs between ethics and profit: Balancing ethical practices with financial objectives
  • Treating workers ethically: Fair wages, good working conditions, flexible working arrangements
  • Treating suppliers ethically: Fair prices, reasonable expectations, timely payments
  • Treating customers ethically: Providing quality products, honest marketing, fair pricing

• How Environmental Considerations Influence Business Activity:

  • Possible trade-offs between the environment, sustainability, and profit
  • Climate change: Business contributions and responses
  • Pollution: Air, water, and noise pollution from business activities
  • Sustainability: Using resources in ways that don’t deplete them for future generations
  • Waste reduction: Minimizing waste production and improving disposal methods

• The Potential Impact of Pressure Group Activity on the Marketing Mix:

  • Pressure groups’ influence on product development and design
  • Effects on pricing strategies and transparency
  • Impact on promotional activities and messaging
  • Influence on distribution channels and methods

These concepts help students understand the complex interplay between business objectives, ethical considerations, and external pressures in modern business environments.

Real-World Relevance

Ethics and environmental considerations shape businesses students interact with daily:

• Ethical Business Practices in Action:

  • When students buy a Patagonia jacket, they’re paying extra for a company that traces its entire supply chain to ensure fair labor practices – and many customers think that’s worth the premium.
  • The Co-operative Bank won’t finance businesses involved in arms trading or animal testing, even if it means losing profitable opportunities – ethics as a core business identity rather than a marketing add-on.
  • John Lewis calls its employees “partners” because they literally own the business and share in its profits – a different approach to worker relations that students might experience as customers or future employees.

• Environmental Considerations Students Can Observe:

  • Those “Plan A” labels in Marks & Spencer aren’t just marketing – they represent a sustainability program that’s actually saved the company over £750 million through efficiency improvements.
  • When Unilever (maker of Dove, Ben & Jerry’s, and many household products) commits to halving its environmental footprint while growing the business, it shows students that environmental goals can align with business growth.
  • IKEA owns more wind turbines than stores – a tangible commitment to renewable energy that goes beyond token environmental gestures.

• Pressure Groups in Action:

  • Greenpeace’s campaign against Nestlé’s palm oil sourcing changed how the company operates – showing students how external pressure can transform business practices.
  • The Body Shop’s pioneering stance against animal testing wasn’t just ethical; it became a powerful marketing message that differentiated the brand.
  • When students see #WhoMadeMyClothes tags on social media, they’re witnessing how the Fashion Revolution movement has forced clothing brands to become more transparent about their manufacturing.

• Real Ethical Dilemmas:

  • Primark’s low-cost fashion creates genuine ethical tensions – more affordable clothing for consumers versus questions about manufacturing practices.
  • Supermarkets reducing plastic packaging must balance environmental benefits against food preservation and customer convenience – there’s rarely a perfect solution.
  • Energy companies investing in renewables while continuing fossil fuel operations show the messy reality of business transition – change happens gradually, not overnight.

These examples connect abstract ethical concepts to brands and products students encounter every day.

How It’s Assessed

In exams, students will typically encounter:

• Multiple-choice questions: Testing basic knowledge of ethical concepts, environmental issues, and pressure group tactics.

• Short-answer questions: Explaining specific ethical or environmental considerations and their impact on business activities.

• Case study questions: Identifying ethical dilemmas in business scenarios, explaining potential responses, and analyzing possible outcomes.

• Extended response questions: Discussing ethical trade-offs for specific business contexts, weighing advantages and disadvantages of different approaches.

Students need to know specific ethical and environmental concepts, understand their business impact, and evaluate different ethical positions. Command words to watch for include “identify,” “explain,” “analyze,” and “evaluate,” with higher marks for balanced arguments that consider multiple perspectives rather than simplistic moral judgments.

Enterprise Skills Integration

Understanding ethics builds practical skills students can use beyond exams:

• Critical thinking: Analyzing ethical dilemmas develops the ability to consider multiple perspectives and make reasoned judgments – essential in any workplace.

• Problem-solving: Examining how businesses resolve conflicts between profit and ethics enhances creative problem-solving capabilities.

• Decision-making: Evaluating ethical trade-offs develops the ability to make difficult decisions with incomplete information and competing priorities.

• Communication: Articulating ethical positions and justifying decisions develops persuasive communication skills.

• Social awareness: Understanding the impact of business decisions on various stakeholders fosters appreciation for social responsibility.

These skills transfer well beyond business studies to any situation requiring thoughtful consideration of competing values and interests.

Careers Links

Knowledge of business ethics connects to numerous career paths:

• Corporate Social Responsibility: CSR Managers, Sustainability Officers, and Ethics Compliance Specialists develop and implement ethical policies within organizations.

• Ethical Supply Chain Management: Ethical Sourcing Managers, Fair Trade Coordinators, and Supply Chain Auditors ensure products are sourced according to ethical standards.

• Environmental Management: Environmental Compliance Officers, Sustainability Consultants, and Carbon Footprint Analysts help businesses reduce their environmental impact.

• Ethical Marketing: Cause Marketing Specialists, Social Impact Communicators, and Brand Purpose Strategists develop marketing approaches that align with ethical values.

• Ethical Investment: ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Analysts, Impact Investors, and Ethical Financial Advisors guide investment decisions based on ethical criteria.

Understanding business ethics isn’t just for future activists – it’s increasingly central to mainstream business roles as companies recognize that ethical practices affect their bottom line.

Teaching Notes

• Start with relatable ethical dilemmas students might face themselves – like whether to report a classmate’s cheating or whether to buy fast fashion – before scaling up to business contexts.

• Use current news stories about businesses facing ethical challenges to show the real-world relevance. The best examples are often those where there’s no obvious “right answer.”

• Try debate activities where students argue different perspectives on ethical dilemmas. Is it better for a clothing company to use plastic-based fabrics (durable but not biodegradable) or natural fibers (biodegradable but requiring more land and water)?

• Create case study analyses comparing businesses known for strong ethical stances (like Patagonia) with those that have faced ethical criticism, exploring the business consequences of different approaches.

• Watch for the misconception that ethics always reduces profits (ignoring potential long-term benefits), or that environmental initiatives are purely cost centers (ignoring efficiency savings).

• For extension, have students research local businesses with strong ethical commitments, or develop an ethical policy for a fictional business that balances multiple stakeholder interests.