Linda B. Samuels

Entrepreneurial failure and discrimination: lessons for small service firms

This paper draws lessons from a case decided by the USA Supreme Court, wherein the firm failure was perceived by the minority entrepreneur as an outcome of racial discrimination. Implications of this case are significant because the failure rate of minority-owned US businesses has been consistently higher than the average failure rate of US business. We argue that the impact of discrimination by a customer is greater for small service firms. Through the Dominos Pizza case, we assert that issues relating to equal employment, inter-company contracting and choice of business organisation must be managed by the owner of a service firm.

The Importance of Ethical Standards and Computer Crime Laws for Data Security

Abstract A recent survey shows that most people access computer resources without the benefit of clear standards of ethical and legal behavior in the MIS environment. This uninformed access leaves the organization – which is the legal custodian of computer data and software–susceptible to theft of resources and privacy and copyright violations as well as legal prosecution from law enforcement authorities. This article describes a survey of a cross section of MIS personnel and other system users in business, academia, and law enforcement and analyzes its results in the context of the current legal and ethical environment. It also suggests several remedies for reducing an organizations exposure to computer crime.