University of St. Thomas Center for Business Ethics Director Dr. Daryl Koehn recently gave several presentations on the topic of ethics in business.

Koehn spoke to around 80 senior executives who are members of the Financial Executives Institute, Nov. 14, at the Houston Country Club. She gave a keynote speech entitled “Why Do Business Ethics Scandals Keep Recurring?” Koehn drew upon various behavioral theories to suggest that business ethics scandals keep occuring in part because consumers naively rely too much upon reputation and disclosure to safeguard their interests. As a gesture of gratitude for her pro bono speech, FEI will award a scholarship to a deserving business student in the Houston community in Koehn’s name.

Koehn also gave the keynote speech to the annual conference of the Japanese Association for Business Ethics Studies (JABES), Oct. 27, in Tokyo. She is the first non-Japanese keynoter to speak to JABES. Her speech was a comparative analysis of why business ethics lapses occur in the United States versus in Japan.

“The Japanese are in general more concerned about business ethics scandals than Americans,” said Koehn. “They are especially concerned about the large number of food contamination scandals that have been documented in Japan recently.”

In recognition of the extensive work Dr. Koehn has done to foster closer connections between JABES and the Society for Business Ethics in the United States, JABES made Dr. Koehn an honorary member.

Pictured: Professor Masakazu Mizutani, president of JABES, presenting a plaque to Dr. Koehn.