The Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem is a totally independent, Israeli non-profit organization (Amuta). It has been located at the Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) since 1992. Its founder, Dr. Meir Tamari, previously the Chief Economist in the Office of the Governor of the Bank of Israel, is a leading international authority in the field of Jewish Business Ethics.
The Center's mission is to encourage and promote high standards of business honesty and integrity in economic affairs by creating an awareness of Jewish ethical teachings. The Center has a highly qualified, multi-disciplinary, academic staff including specialists in economics, corporate finance, intellectual property, accountancy, Jewish law & ethics, environmental studies, management, business studies, curriculum development and pedagogy.
The Center promotes programs of activities in Israel and overseas for business, the professions, the education sector and academia. The Center’s main activities include development of training programs, study programs, educational curricula, seminars, publishing of books and research.
The Center hosts the leading international website promoting Jewish Business Ethics and its syndicated weekly Jewish Ethicist Internet column is seen by tens of thousands of people each week.
In December 2000 the Center opened a new Business Ethics Library and Educational Resource Center. The facility, endowed by the Noaber (formerly Baan Brothers) Foundation from Holland, provides a wide range of resources and includes a unique collection of books, pamphlets, codes of ethics and audio-visual materials. The resource center regularly arranges training programs and lectures for teachers, students, business people, IDF officers and academics.
In 2001 the Center was instrumental in introducing business ethics for the first time into the Israeli matriculation (bagrut) syllabus for secular and religious schools in the business management studies framework. In 2003, the Center organized, in Tel Aviv, the first ever formally-recognized 56 hour in-service teacher training program on "Business Ethics, Management, Economics and Jewish Values." In 2006, the Center introduced the "Ethics and Intellectual Property Rights" educational program in cooperation with the Israel Ministry of Education, the US Embassy, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals (Israel) Ltd. and Microsoft Israel Ltd. The Center's Chairman is Shlomo Hendel, a member of the top management of the Migdal Insurance group and previously the director of Bank Leumi's international department. He is a leading Israeli expert in corporate governance and internal auditing.
The Center has two departments serving a wide variety of audiences:
The Corporate Department promotes business ethics in general and specifically promotes the development of corporate ethics codes and programs. Its activities include the publishing of books and practical articles on business ethics, discussions and workshops both within and outside companies, conferences, short term and long term consulting with companies preparing a code of ethics and applying and internalizing it among their employees.
The Education Department develops and implements a variety of programs for teachers and students in junior and senior high school. The programs deal with business ethics, intellectual property and social responsibility and are appropriate for needs of teachers and students.