Ethics, particularly Ethical Leadership, is a seemingly never-ending media topic as leadership actions, business practices and executive excesses are called into question by stakeholders, public officials, and oversight groups. Enlightened organizational leaders will embrace Ethics and Ethical Leadership as integral parts of the way their organizations do business, rather than perfunctorily assuming
that all is well and concluding that continuing vigilance is unnecessary. A good beginning for enlightened leaders to determine if their organizations have an ethics problem is to try the strategy of conducting an Ethics Pre-Assessment.The Strategy: Conducting an Ethics Pre-Assessment
Answer "YES" or "NO" to each of the following questions - without qualification.
1. Does your organization have a recognizable, positive and wholesome "ethics attitude?" If you have to ask for a definition of an ethics attitude, you should answer NO to this question.
2. Does the ethics attitude have as its core a formal ethics policy that articulates the ethics principles to which the organization is committed and that focuses on all levels of the organization - top to bottom?
3. Is the ethics attitude championed by the CEO and executive team and
supported by the Board of Directors?
4. Has the CEO designated one officer on the executive team who is accountable for ensuring that the ethics attitude is supported throughout the organization as one of the principles that defines how the organization does business?
5. Are all major leadership and management decisions measured against ethical principles and with due regard to the consequences?
6. Is the fair and equal treatment of employees within the spirit and meaning of all laws a central component of the ethics attitude?
7. Is the ethics attitude, including the ethics policy, communicated routinely throughout the organization through Employee Orientation and Training programs?
8. Does the organization systematically reinforce the ethics policy through ethics awareness activities?
9. Is there a process in place for employees at any level to report suspected unethical behavior and/or to ask questions to clarify understanding of the ethics policies and principles - without fear of retaliation, retribution or reprisal?
10. Do the major players routinely talk
about elements of the ethics policy and principles in staff and other meetings and expect members of their teams to do the same?
11. Are ethics infractions highly publicized within the organization, with due regard to confidentiality and privacy rights of employees?
12. Is there a regularly scheduled review of the ethics policy and principles to ensure relevance to operating realities (annually, semiannually)?
If you answered "NO" to any one of these questions, there is a high probability that your organization has an ethics problem. The extent and severity of the problem and attendant risk can be determined
by a Comprehensive Ethics Assessment.
Final Thought
If you would like to discuss this Ethics Pre-Assessment or a Comprehensive Ethics Assessment for your organization, including findings and recommendations for resolution of any ethics
problems, please E-mail me at jim@jimjoseassociates.com OR call me at 520 / 825 - 8015.
We invite you to respond to this subject, share your thoughts and opinions, and, most of all, let us know the results after you have tried this strategy or solution. Your responses may be posted on the website. If you do not want your response published, please let us know.
Copyright 2003 Jim Jose Associates LLC. All rights reserved. We encourage you to reprint with appropriate credit.
