Denis Collins (born January 12, 1956) was an American business ethicist and tenured professor of business at

Edgewood College Edgewood College is a private Dominican college in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. The college occupies a campus overlooking the shores of Lake Wingra. It offers more than 40 undergraduate majors and 25 graduate degrees, and has an enroll ...

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

Biography

Denis Collins was born in

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

and raised in

Carlstadt, New Jersey Carlstadt is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 6,372, an increase of 245 (+4.0%) from the 2010 United S ...

. He received a B.S. in business administration from

Montclair State University Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Clifton and into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public un ...

in 1977, an M.A. in philosophy from

Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a Public university, public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized progr ...

in 1987, and a PhD in business environment and public policy from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

in 1990. He specialized in business ethics, teaching it at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

, the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB or UBPT) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin Unive ...

, and

. He is a terminal cancer survivor, husband and father.

Optimal Ethics System Model

Collins' Optimal Ethics System Model is a compilation of what he says are

best practices A best practice is a method or technique that has been generally accepted as superior to alternatives because it tends to produce superior results. Best practices are used to achieve quality as an alternative to mandatory standards. Best practice ...

for achieving a morally healthy organization (preventing unethical or illegal behavior). They typically take the form of step-by-step instructions, like recipes. Collins offers empirical evidence that sustained financial success requires implementation of this model. The Optimal Ethics System Model offers best practices in five categories: # Hiring practices ## Procedures for recruiting individuals who demonstrate and sustain ethical behavior over time # Orientation practices ## Procedures for orienting new employees to a code of ethics and conduct ## Procedures for orienting new employees to an ethical decision-making framework # Training practices ## Procedures for teaching ethics # Operating practices ## Procedures for nurturing respect for employee and customer diversity ## Systems for reporting ethical misbehavior ## Procedures for ethical leadership and management (rewarding ethical behavior) ## Procedures for engaging and empowering employees to achieve superior performance ## Procedures for managing interaction with the natural environment ## Procedures for conducting meaningful community outreach # Evaluation practices ## Procedures for continually improving best practices

Books

Collins has authored or edited articles and essays on

business ethics Business ethics (also known as corporate ethics) is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics, that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that can arise in a business environment. It applies to all aspects of business c ...

social responsibility Social responsibility is an ethical concept in which a person works and cooperates with other people and organizations for the benefit of the community. An organization can demonstrate social responsibility in several ways, for instance, by do ...

participatory management Participatory management is the practice of empowerment, empowering members of a group, such as employees of a company or citizens of a community, to participate in organizational decision making. It is used as an alternative to traditional vertical ...

, and

service learning Service-learning is an educational approach that uses community service to meet both classroom learning objectives and societal needs. It has been used with students of all grades and stages. Projects based in communities are designed to apply cla ...

; he has also authored, co-authored, and co-edited several books: * ''Business Ethics: How to Design and Manage Ethical Organizations'' * ''Essentials of Business Ethics: Creating an Organization of High Integrity and Superior Performance'' * ''Behaving Badly: Ethical Lessons from Enron'' * ''Gainsharing and Power: Lessons from Six Scanlon Plans'' * ''Sustaining the Natural Environment: Empirical Studies on the Interface Between Nature and Organizations'' * ''Ethical Dilemmas in Business''

Board service

* Encyclopedia of Business Ethics and Society, 2004–2007 * ''

Journal of Business Ethics The ''Journal of Business Ethics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Springer. The Journal of Business Ethics is one of the journals used by the Financial Times for in compiling the Business Schools research rank. The Journal of Bus ...

'', 2003– * ''Journal of Academic Ethics'', 2002– * ''

Organization & Environment ''Organization & Environment'' (''O&E'') is a peer-reviewed academic journal that covers the fields of "management, organizations, and environmental sustainability." The current Editor-in-Chief is Michael Russo (University of Oregon). Formerly it w ...

'', 1996–1999 * International Association for Business and Society, 1995 * Social Issues in Management Division,

Academy of Management An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the g ...

, 1995–1998

Awards

* 2011 Samuel Mazzuchelli Medallion for cultivating intellectual and spiritual resources to empower others,

* 2010 MBA Outstanding Faculty Award,

* 2009 Estervig-Beaubien Outstanding Professor Award,

* Three times voted the outstanding MBA faculty member at the

in ''BusinessWeek'''s survey of alumni * Finalist for the

Distinguished Educator Award

References

External links

Collins’ faculty webpage

Collins’ Business Ethics: How to Design and Manage Ethical Organizations webpage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Denis American philosophy academics 1956 births Living people