09/ 14/ 2005
by Charles R. McConnell
You don’t have to look far or long to see the crisis of ethics in American business. Much of the behavior is unconscionable and greed-driven, but perhaps some of it comes from the increasingly competitive nature of business. With competition attaining cutthroat dimensions in some industries, some companies are fighting for their existence. Many employees—and managers at all levels—see themselves fighting for their jobs or careers or, at least, struggling to get ahead in an uphill playing field.
We hear a lot about high-profile ethical breaches. Hardly a week passes without news of alleged wrongdoings in high places as CEOs and other leaders enrich themselves through questionable means at the expense of employees and shareholders. In classrooms, students hear that ethics should be a vital concern, but outside of school, they see that the workplace doesn’t give it serious attention.
What are employees supposed to think when they see the unethical behavior typified in recent high-profile cases? Numerous CEOs and others have sapped up company profits and left their employees financially devastated. These major scandals have undercut worker trust and whatever loyalty employees might have felt toward to their employers during volatile times. Scandals at high levels in the government further feed worker distrust.
The majority of today’s ethical problems don’t make high-profile cases. The prominent cases simply feed attitudes that prevail at lower management and rank-and-file levels. Here are just a few of the numerous ethical decisions employees face every day:
- Should I call in sick when I’m really not ill?
- Do I work a full eight-hour day or can I start late, leave early, spend time socializing or amuse myself by surfing the net or playing computer games?
- What’s the harm in taking care of personal business during work time?
- Is it really up to me to point out the error being made by the sales clerk who is giving me too much change?
- Surely it’s all right for me to punch a friend’s time card because I’ve been asked to? After all, lots of others do it.
These are but a few of the ethical breaches occurring regularly in the majority of businesses. We might even call these the smaller breaches. Bigger ones include theft, sexual harassment, deliberate discrimination, violations of confidentiality and cutting corners or jeopardizing safety or quality for the sake of meeting deadlines, schedules or budgets.
One might reason that taking an unwarranted day off once in a while or fudging a few dollars on an expense report are insignificant compared to what some highly placed “leaders” do regularly. Up and down the line, the reasoning becomes: They’re doing it––why shouldn’t I?
Ethics is commonly defined as a set of moral principles or values. Perhaps this broad definition is part of the problem, since moral principles and values differ significantly among people. Often, the dilemma is a rules-based perspective dictated in laws and policies versus a values-based perspective, or an individual’s personal beliefs and sense of right or wrong.
The strongest examples of unethical behavior are visible breaches that occur at high organizational levels. The problem is not a lack of rules; most larger companies have a published code of conduct or ethical standards. The problem is a lack of observance of the code and, especially, the absence of modeling behavior.
Every business should have a code of ethics actively modeled by top management. It’s critical that the people at the top be visible models of ethical behavior. Whether they realize it or not (and if they fail to realize it, perhaps they’re unsuited for their elevated positions), top management’s behavior sets the tone for the rest of the organization.
A business’ ethical standards should be written in positive, constructive terms, laying out practical guidelines for ethical practice. This is no place for legalese that can be variously interpreted or ignored as some might choose. All employees should be aware of this code and share an understanding of appropriate conduct. Also, every system needs features that protect those who report unethical conduct. Ethics has to be taught and actively communicated to employees without assuming that everyone in the company automatically shares an understanding of ethical behavior.
The creation and maintenance of a dedicated and motivated workforce begins with the ethics and character of its leaders. The old catchphrase “walking the walk” has never been as true as it is concerning management’s ethical behavior.
