About the Author

O. C. Ferrell

O.C. Ferrell is Professor of Marketing at Colorado State University. He also has held faculty positions at the University of Memphis, University of Tampa, Texas A&M University, Illinois State University, and Southern Illinois University, as well as visiting positions at Queen's University (Ontario, Canada), University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), University of Wisconsin (Madison), and University of Hannover (Germany). He has served as a faculty member for the Masters Degree Program in Marketing at Thammasat University (Bangkok, Thailand). Dr. Ferrell received his BA and MBA from Florida State University and his PhD from Louisiana State University. His teaching and research interests include business ethics, corporate citizenship, and marketing. Dr. Ferrell is widely recognized as a leading teacher and scholar in business. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Macromarketing, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, and others. His textbook entitled Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases is the leading text in this field. He has also coauthored numerous textbooks for marketing, management, and other business courses, as well as a trade book on business ethics. He chaired the American Marketing Association (AMA) ethics committee that developed its current code of ethics. He was the vice president of Marketing Education and president of the Academic Council for the AMA. Dr. Ferrell's major focus is teaching and preparing learning material for students. He has travelled extensively to work with students and understands the needs of instructors of introductory business courses. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado and enjoys skiing, golf, and international travel.

Geoffrey Hirt

Geoffrey A. Hirt is currently Professor of Finance at DePaul University and Director of Equity Research at Mesirow Financial. He received his PhD in Finance from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, his MBA from Miami University of Ohio and his BA from Ohio-Wesleyan University. Geoff has directed the Chartered Financial Analysts Study program for the Investment Analysts Society of Chicago since 1987. From 1987 to 1997 he was Chairman of the Finance Department at DePaul University and taught investments, corporate finance, and strategic planning. He developed and was director of DePaul's MBA program in Hong Kong and has taught in Poland, Germany, Thailand, and Hong Kong. Geoff has published several books. The sixth edition of Fundamentals of Investment Management was released in July 1998 and is published by Irwin/McGraw-Hill. Additionally, Geoff is well known for his book Fundamentals of Financial Management published by Irwin/McGraw-Hill. Now in its eighth edition, this book is used at over 600 colleges and universities worldwide, and it has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish. Geoff plays tennis and golf, is a music lover, and enjoys travelling with his wife, Linda.

Linda Ferrell

Dr. Linda Ferrell is a Distinguished Professor of Leadership and Business Ethics in The Jack C. Massey College of Business at Belmont University. Before joining the College of Business, she was a Professor of Marketing and Creative Enterprise Scholar with the University of New Mexico’s Anderson School of Management. She co-manages a second $1.25 million grant for business ethics education through the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative at the University of New Mexico with her husband, Dr. O.C. Ferrell. Dr. Ferrell earned a Ph.D. in Management from the University of Memphis. She holds an M.B.A. and a B.S. in Fashion Merchandising from Illinois State University. Her research interests include marketing ethics, ethics training and effectiveness, the legalization of business ethics as well as corporate social responsibility and sustainability. She has published in Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, AMS Review, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, Journal of Business Research, as well as others. She has co- authored numerous books including Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Business and Society, Management, and Introduction to Business. Professionally, Dr. Ferrell served as an account executive in advertising with McDonalds' and Pizza Hut's advertising agencies. Dr. Ferrell is on the Board of Directors of Mannatech, Dallas, a NASDAQ listed, health and wellness company. She serves on the Board of the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy-Center for the Public Trust. She serves on the executive committee, board, and academic advisory board of the Direct Selling Education Foundation. She is on the Cutco/Vector college advisory board. She has significant experience working with the direct selling industry. She serves on the advisory board of Savant Learning. She is also President of the Academy of Marketing Science. Dr. Ferrell also serves as an expert witness in ethics and legal disputes.