CHP 7: The role of values and ethics at work

(1) loss of customers and sales; (2) increased turnover and loss of good employees; (3) demoralized and cynical managers and workers; (4) loss of ownership equity; (5) high operating costs due to misspent energy and poor execution; (6) additional legal expenses and possible fines, penalties, and settlement costs; (7) high funding costs imposed by lenders and investors; (8) loss of public trust and goodwill; and (9) loss of financial viability and ultimate failure of the enterprise

The social and economic costs of ethical misconduct can include

courage

The superordinate quality of ____ is necessary for a person who wishes to have a character and lead by values

I, II, III.

The terms profit-maximizing, trusteeship, and quality-of-life management correspond with Kohlberg's levels of morality—

conventional

Trusteeship reflects _____ morality. The organization behaves to conform to the expectations of others and to satisfy higher authorities.

Failure to establish a written code of ethics. Failure to include ethical conduct as part of performance appraisal. Unwillingness to take an ethical stand that may impose financial cost. Consideration of ethics solely as a legal issue or public relations tool. Lack of clear procedures for handling ethical problems. Condoning unethical leadership practices.120

What are danger signs that an organization may be allowing or even encouraging unethical behavior?

Leaders at all levels must be selected and rewarded for their performance in meeting both integrity and business standards; and if ethical violations occur, even leaders who were otherwise successful must be held accountable and disciplined, sending a powerful message that ethical behavior is valued and will be upheld in every instance.

What is the central solution for maintaining an ethical work environment?

sacrifice for is the most important.

When people define character, what they say is important, what they do is more important, but what they

greatest good for the greatest number

When we weigh the consequences of moral behavior by considering the best interests of everyone involved, we are being ethical according to utilitarian ideals.

values

a branch that deals with ____ is axiology

full-swing values

a concept used to describe the strength of one's values; full-swing values are known, cherished, declared, acted upon, and acted upon habitually. See values and axiological arrest.

Excellence

a state of exceptional merit or goodness; a performance ideal. See quality. in all work performed, reflecting the Greek ideal of excellence as a virtue, and resulting in both public admiration and personal pride.

(1) What values or principles do I wish to promote? (2) Are my actions helping accomplish that goal?

Because of the ability to influence moral behavior, the leader should address two questions:

They try to satisfy all their constituencies—customers, employees, owners, suppliers, dealers, communities, and governments. They subscribe to the utilitarian ideal—the greatest good for the greatest number. They are dedicated to high and broad purposes. Profit is viewed as an essential means to a higher end—human service and quality of life. They are committed to learning, investing enormous resources and effort to remaining current and responsive to change. They view employee growth and development as a critical foundation of business success. They try to be the best at whatever they do. Their performance standards rise continually. Excellence in product and service is an organizationwide commitment and source of pride.107

In his influential book Vanguard Management, James O'Toole identifies the key characteristics of ethical and successful organizations:

character

In its highest form, _____ is based on a value system that is known, cherished, stated, lived, and lived habitually. Caring to the point of personal sacrifice is the highest form of living by one's values, reflecting integrity.

her success.

It is safe to say that a leader's value system will be known. It won't be a secret because it will reveal itself in the policies and decisions she makes, the way she spends her time, and for what she sacrifices. In general, a leader's belief or value system will determine

Hitler, Stalin, and many other tyrants in history can be cited.

It must be recognized that a leader may have false or harmful values that are injurious to others. The examples of

hypocrisy

It should be noted that value statements can mask ____. If a company espouses quality in its written vision or promotional literature, but sacrifices it for short-term profits, cynicism will prevail among customers and employees.

(1) customers—anticipating their needs and providing state-of-the-art products; (2) employees—providing a healthy work environment, treating them with fairness, and helping them achieve their professional potential; (3) shareholders—maintaining a strong growth rate and return on investment; and (4) community—exemplifying the highest standards of ethical behavior and contributing to the well-being of society.

The overall value of the caring leader is to serve guided by the Golden Rule of treating others as one would like to be treated. In the business world, this means service to four groups of people. The caring leader focuses on the welfare of

Theoretical.

The primary interest of the theoretical person is the discovery of truth

integrity, and it is possessed by all truly great leaders.

In every field—science, art, government, business, service, religion—the highest level of leadership is full-swing. At this level of leadership, the leader is impelled to act because the act itself is deemed good, and for no other reason—not self-gain or public acclaim, but only because conscience dictates that the act is the right thing to do. The quality of doing the right thing for the right reason even in the face of adversity and personal loss is called

pleasure

The idea that pleasure, broadly interpreted as physical enjoyment and avoidance of pain, is the highest state of goodness dates back at least to Aristippus (about 435-366 bc). This pupil of the philosopher Socrates believed that experiencing pleasure and avoiding pain should be the goals of human existence, and that definite pleasure of the moment should not be postponed for uncertain pleasure of the future

utilitarianism

The moral philosophy of Bentham and Mill that reflects the official ethics of both the American democracy and Marxist communism is known as

will of God

ethical good is defined by most religions as

strong and caring leaders.

every workplace needs high ethical values upheld by

Respect

honor and esteem for another; regard for others as demonstrated through listening and being responsive to their beliefs and needs whenever possible.

Honesty

is the most important leadership value. It is the single most important ingredient in the leader-follower relationship. The effective leader holds truth as a central value and foundation for all other values

determine ethical beliefs independently

kant believed that all people must be responsible for their actions bc people

natural simplicity

nature in essence is good, and because humanity is part of nature, human beings too are naturally good. It follows that to achieve the highest good, one must strive to be most purely natural.

Persistence

—being determined; if at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Consideration

—doing unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Honesty

—knowing oneself and being honest in all dealings with others.

Excellence

—living by the motto "Anything worth doing is worth doing well."

Responsibility

—taking the attitude that life is what you make it and choosing to make a difference.

Commitment

—viewing the great essentials of life as someone to love and something to do.93

by whom virtue is expressed

According to Nietzsche, the best people are those

allowing the external environment to remain pristine

According to Thoreau's opinion of natural simplicity, an invidivual's inner self should be developed while

Social

. The highest value for this type of person is love.

Political

. The political person is interested in power and influence, although the person's activities may not fall within the narrow field of politics.

Government relations. How does the organization pay its taxes and obey national and international law? Employee relations. How does the organization deal with employee welfare and grievances? Business relations. How does the organization deal with suppliers and competitors? Production. What are the standards of quality for the organization's products and services? Consumer relations. How does the organization price and advertise its products and services? Community and environmental relations. What are the effects of the organization on its social and physical environment?

A comprehensive code of ethics for an organization includes guidelines in each of the following areas:

Point 1 is to know one's values. Point 2 is to cherish one's values. Point 3 is to declare one's values. Point 4 is to act on one's values. Point 5 is to act habitually on one's values.

A full swing comprises five points, from beginning through completion

character and strength of the organization

A lack of agreement on core values by which all members will live reduces the

with profit, customer loyalty, employee retention, vendor support, and public trust.

A positive reputation correlates

values, and ethics is applied axiology

In ethical dilemmas, a values home run results only when one completes a full swing and does not suffer axiological arrest. Axiology is the branch of philosophy dealing with

investors, customers, employees, suppliers, and the general public.

An organization's ethical climate impacts its reputation with

experiencing the pleasure of an instant should be the goal of human existence

Aristippus believed that

(1) To survive and achieve success, an organization must have a sound set of values on which it premises all policies and actions; (2) the single most important factor in an organization's success is its leaders' faithful adherence to those values; and (3) if an organization is to meet the challenges of a changing world, it must be prepared to change everything about itself except its core values.

In A Business and Its Beliefs: The Ideas That Helped Build IBM, Thomas Watson, Jr., explains the importance of values:

honesty respect service excellence integrity

Certain values are mentioned most often in the American workplace:

(1) build a great global business by adopting a global standard of ethical practice or (2) follow the path "when in Rome, do as the Romans do"—in other words, follow local practices.

Consider two paths for business ethics across cultures:

terminal and instrumental.

In The Nature of Human Values, Milton Rokeach identifies two kinds of values:

rightness and wrongness of all that he or she does.

Even as important as vision is to leadership success, more important are values, because the values of the leader will determine the

(1) profit-maximizing, (2) trusteeship, or (3) quality-of-life management. Each climate provides different levels of organizational support for ethical decision making.

In dealing with moral dilemmas regarding people, products, prices, and profits, organizations typically reflect one of three ethical climates:

Members lack clear understanding about how they should behave as they attempt to meet organizational goals. Different individuals and groups have fundamentally different value systems. Top leaders send mixed messages about what is important. Day-to-day life is disorganized, with the left hand and the right hand often working at cross-purposes. Members complain about the organization to neighbors, friends, and family. Like the person who has ears but hears not, the organization has values but does not practice them

How can an organization know if it needs to clarify or reinforce its values? Red flags are the following:

employees become cynical

If a company has a written vision but exchanges it for gaining a short term profit,

power

If life is a struggle for survival and human beings are fundamentally selfish and greedy, then the best individuals are those who adapt to these market forces and become masters of manipulative relations. So believed Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), an Italian diplomat and political writer. He maintained that flattery, deceit, and even murder may be necessary if a person is to win and retain power

power, personal integrity, natural simplicity, God's will, pleasure, greatest good for the greatest number, pragmatism, and duty and right action.

Good and right have been defined in terms of

a leader who believes that truth is the basis of all values is the most effective

In the context of honesty as a leadership value, which of the following is the feature of an effective leader

honesty

In the context of the values that are commonly referred to in an american workplace, ___ is the basis for all other values

ethics ombudsman

Increasingly, organizations are creating the role of an ____to monitor ethical practices and procedures. The ______ is responsible for communicating ethical standards to all employees, for designing systems to monitor employee's adherence to those standards, and for teaching managers and employees how to respond appropriately to ethical dilemmas.

duty and right action

Kant believed that people must be their own lawgivers, freely choosing their obligations, and that these, in turn, become their duty. Because people are free to determine ethical beliefs and have free choice in moral dilemmas, all people must be responsible for their own actions. Further, he believed that if an individual acts from a good motive and a sense of duty, the act is good regardless of the consequences. Thus, if a person seeks to help another, but because of unforeseen circumstances the result is a worsened condition for the other, the helper is nonetheless a good and ethical person.

pregmatism

Pragmatism is a philosophical belief that originated in the United States with the work of Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914), William James (1842-1910), and John Dewey (1859-1952). Many regard pragmatism to be America's most original contribution to philosophy. Many also see it as a reflection of a superficial society. Pragmatists maintain that what is true must be based on evidence, and that philosophical beliefs should be evaluated in terms of the role they play in solving life's practical problems.

preconventional morality.

Profit-maximizing reflects _____ In this case, the organization's focus is on self-gain and avoidance of punishment.

postconventional

Quality-of-life management reflects _____ morality. Here, the ethical climate of the organization is to do what is right, over and above self-interest and apart from the influence of others.

god's will

Religious leaders announce visions and make moral judgments, drawing on the authority of a supreme being (or many gods)

Ubuntu

Represents a collection of values, including harmony, compassion, respect, human dignity, and collective unity.

different standards of ethical conduct.

Research on business ethics across cultures shows that different countries have

being honest, being helpful, and being responsible.

Sample instrumental values are

family security, career success, and personal growth.

Sample terminal values are

personal integrity

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) believed that human resoluteness, born of independent judgment, is the highest good. Nietzsche was a champion of individualism and encouraged the individual to be independent in thought and strong in conviction, even in the face of group pressure and government authority.

Aesthetic.

The aesthetic person finds highest satisfaction in form, harmony, and beauty. The value of each single experience is judged from the standpoint of grace, symmetry, and fitness.

social and financial expectations

The best organizations are those that satisfy both the _____of their constituencies.

They reflect the ethical ideals of the ownership or, in the case of public organizations, the public trust; they are reviewed periodically for needed revisions; they are few in number; they are stated clearly; they are communicated to all employees; and they apply equally to all employees, regardless of level of authority or nature of duties.

The best work rules meet the following criteria:

Economic.

The economic person is interested in what is useful. Based originally on the satisfaction of bodily needs and self-preservation, the interest in usefulness extends to the practical affairs of the business world—the production and marketing of goods and the accumulation of wealth.

honesty consideration responsibility persistence excellence commitment

The following are six instrumental values of caring leaders in every field and level of responsibility:

profit

The higher the ethical climate, the higher the level of ____ when computed over a period of years.

Religious.

The highest value of this type of person is spiritual peace.

Service

aid and assistance provided to others; concern for the well-being and the best interest of another person or group.

Codes of ethics

are formal standards based on beliefs about what is right and wrong. Leaders of an organization use these standards to make decisions in moral dilemmas.

Integrity

completion, wholeness, and soundness; a quality of character requiring honesty and courage; a virtue necessary for trust; the most important quality desired in a leader. See values, honesty, and courage. having the courage to act and live by one's convictions, thus providing strength in moral dilemmas.

Ethical climate

refers to the moral standards that have been consistently and clearly communicated, embraced, and enforced in an organization, especially by leaders in both word and conduct.

courage

the ability to overcome fear and live (or die) by one's convictions, even in ambiguous, uncertain, and dangerous situations; the virtue that underlies and gives reality to all other values; the basis for moral worth and dignity.

Honesty

truthfulness; a quality of character necessary for trust, respect, and honor; a foundation value and fundamental requirement for successful leadership.