Ethics
Ethics
Ethical and moral behaviors form the foundation for creating an exceptional organization. Ethical failures often bring excellent organizations into legal trouble or out of business. Worldcom, Tyco, and Enron provide classic examples of ethical failures destroying excellent organizations. Unfortunately, ethical dilemmas are rarely straightforward or black-and-white, requiring managers to analyze the situation and decide the best course of action. The Ethical Leadership program gives organizational members the skills to make sound and reasoned ethical decisions. The skills and tools provided by the program reduce the probability of ethical missteps and raise the organization’s moral foundations.
Ethical issues often require multiple approaches and views to enable ethical decisions. Any one ethical perspective often proves incomplete or insufficient to make good decisions. Module One, Ethical Perspectives, looks at five approaches for looking at ethical issues to help participants see the issue clearly and make better ethical decisions. The module includes the analysis of five ethical perspectives:
- Utilitarian : The outcome or result of the decision takes precedence.
- Deontological : The decision rests on rules that define ethical behaviors.
- Virtue Ethics : Ethical decisions occur through the development of character traits and virtues. Ethical decisions should be consistent with the training and vitrues.
- Justice as Fairness : Justice as fairness analyzes the tension between freedom and equality in ethical decision-making.
- Divine Command : Analyzes the view that a higher power dictates ethics and moral behavior. Ethical actions and behavior follow the truth.
Through the module, participants develop an appreciation for multiple views of ethical situations, leading to a clear understanding of the issue and improved ethical decision-making. The module includes challenging ethical situations to work through as a team to enhance ethical decision-making skills.
The Ethical Perspectives module provides five views of ethical problems to help people break the problem down from multiple viewpoints, leading to improved understanding. Understanding is the first step. Module two, Ethical Decision-Making, provides three proven models to analyze the situation, leading to heightened decision-making. The module includes a breakdown of three models:
Awareness : Recognize that ethical issues exist.
Judgment : Assessing possible actions to determine the best choice.
Intent : Prioritizing ethical values ahead of personal objectives.
Action : Selecting and implementing ethical actions.
Includes reflection activities to understand the virtues and values essential to the issue and ethical learning and growth resulting from the problem.
Purpose : Focus on the desired results. The goal of the action should serve a meaningful purpose.
Perspective : Examine the ethical standards that apply to the situation. These can be personal, professional codes of conduct or essential to the organization.
People : Understand people who will be affected by the decision. Understand and appreciate the impact and potential harm to the group.
Power : Understand and examine the things that prevent action.
The models provide three step-wise approaches to making ethical choices. Arm with the models and the knowledge to implement the models simplifies the ethical decision-making process.
Building Your Ethical Voice:
Knowing what is right and doing what is right takes courage—through planning, practice, developing the skills and confidence necessary to “do what is right” and take ethical actions occurs naturally. Building Your Ethical Voice examines the expertise and behaviors required to speak truth to power. Most people want to act ethically and utilize their values but lack the ability, resilience, or courage to take action. The Ethical Voice module provides participants with the skills and techniques to voice their ethical beliefs with confidence and conviction.
The module helps participants understand their values and beliefs to help them plant their ethical flag and develop the courage to respond. Responding requires emotionally intelligent behaviors. The module briefly reviews the concept of emotional intelligence to help reach positive outcomes. Finally, the module helps participants understand the purpose behind the decision to act to build the capability to respond with courage and conviction.