Overview

The lecture programme will outline the principle areas of content with specific skills honed within seminars. The lecture programme will be introduced through considering past cases of poor ethical practice in financial services industry to motivate the subsequent studies. The module will then develop to consider moral and normative ethics in a business context, the application of ethical principles within key financial services areas including lending, investment and trading. The lecture programme will then consider the role of individuals, organisations and corporate governance arrangements in financial services decision making, expected professional standards and the evolution of conduct of business regulation internationally within the financial services industry.

Assessment Strategy

Threshold c- to c+ (50-59%): Satisfactory performance. No major omissions or inaccuracies in the deployment of information/skills. Some grasp of theoretical/conceptual/practical elements. Integration of theory/practice/information present intermittently in pursuit of the assessed work's objectives. Knowledge of key areas/principles only. Weaknesses in understanding of some areas. Limited evidence of background study. Answer inadequately focused on task and with some irrelevant material and poor structure. Arguments presented but lack coherence. Minor factual/computational errors. Lacking original interpretation.

Good B- to B+ (60-69%): Good performance. Most of the relevant information accurately deployed. Good grasp of theoretical/conceptual/practical elements. Good integration of theory/practice/information in pursuit of the assessed work's objectives. Evidence of the use of creative and reflective skills. Understands most but not all concepts/issues. Evidence of background study. Focused answer with good structure. Arguments presented coherently. Mostly free of factual errors. Some limited original interpretation. Well known links between topics are described. Problems addressed by existing methods/approaches. Good presentation with accurate communication

Excellent standard: 70+ An outstanding performance, exceptionally able. The relevant information accurately deployed. Excellent grasp of theoretical/conceptual/practice elements. Good integration of theory/practice/information in pursuit of the assessed work's objectives. Strong evidence of the use of creative and reflective skills.

Learning Outcomes

• Comprehend the role of the organisations and systems of corporate governance within ethical and professional practice.

• Consider critically what might form professional decision making.

• Demonstrate a comprehension of the key processes underlying the regulation of conduct of business within financial services industries.

• To develop a critical understanding of ethical concepts and how these apply to professional conduct in the financial services industry.

• Understand both how financial services should be provided and when such services are supplied sub-optimally.