A Comparative Study of DoD and Non-DoD Ethics Policies and Practices in Industry as Applied to the National Industrial Base

Abstract : DoD is moving from industrial sectors for defense and commercial products to a common, integrated national industrial base. One of the principal objectives of DoD's acquisition reform is to open the defense market to commercial companies and technology. The purpose of this study is to examine the current ethics culture within industry and the perception of the ethical practices within the companies surveyed as well as in the industry. Specifically, this thesis focuses on the similarities and differences in the ethical environments of the Defense and the non-Defense industries. A survey was utilized to identify trends in the ethical behavior of the industry and a thorough review was conducted of the ethics policies provided by the responding companies. The research identifies significant differences and trends in the ethical environments between these two diverse industries and makes recommendations to the DoD acquisition professional to ensure an ethical environment exists when dealing with businesses not familiar with the ethical standards of DoD acquisition.