Dr. Debbie Thorne LeClair This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. eSocrates, Inc.

   secure.esocrates.net/testimoni - [Cached]

   Published on: 1/22/2004   Last Visited: 6/16/2005

   Debbie Thorne LeClair, Assistant Professor of Marketing and Director, Center for Ethics, The University of Tampa, Tampa, FL

2. 2. Face 2 Face - Winning the Privacy Debate

   www.whateverittakes.com/newsst - [Cached]

   Published on: 7/1/2001   Last Visited: 3/24/2005

   Dr. Debbie Thorne LeClair, director for the Center for Ethics at the University of Tampa, says personal databases provide numerous benefits for the business world, but also create a formidable challenge. "Striking the balance between privacy rights and business information needs is a critical issue within the business community," says LeClair. "While the advantages are great, personal data used for sales and marketing must be initiated with ethical guidelines and boundaries."
   
   According to LeClair, consumers are becoming better educated about the direct marketing business. They understand list development, how people's names get on lists and that lists are sold or exchanged. Many even understand demographic targeting. "To most consumers, the process is relatively benign and part of doing business while others see it as invasion and somehow threatening to their privacy and safety," she says. Beyond privacy issues that focus on direct mail, online commerce through the Internet and World Wide Web enable companies to now track a person's access to sites for targeted marketing. "From a sales and marketing perspective, some companies feel this is taking the technology too far while others believe the information is public domain," notes LeClair.
   ...
   "Creating a privacy policy statement is the first place to start," says LeClair. "This serves as the flagship for a formal code of ethics followed by employee training and education."
   
   For companies that rely heavily on personal data for targeted sales programs, legal and ethical standards established by corporate leaders must be clearly understood throughout the entire organization. "Companies that self-regulate the use of certain types of data create a internal culture where the right decision is an easy decision," says LeClair. "It also reflects an image of sound business morals and ethics where trust, honesty and integrity are at the center of the relationship with the customer."
   
   Widespread access to public records, protection of medical and financial information and new telecommunications technology are today's hot buttons in the privacy protection debate. "Privacy challenges from the outside can be addressed successfully if direct marketers keep their own house in order," LeClair says.
   ...
   Debbie Thorne LeClair is assistant professor of marketing and director of the Center for Ethics at the University of Tampa in Tampa, Fla. For more information, contact her via email at dthorne@alpha.utampa.edu.

3. 3. eSocrates, Inc.

   www.esocrates.com/testimonials - [Cached]

   Published on: 1/21/1999   Last Visited: 9/10/2006

   Debbie Thorne LeClair, Assistant Professor of Marketing and Director, Center for Ethics, The University of Tampa, Tampa, FL