No inner system of guidance can be strong enough to guide employees to always discover and decide what is really, truly ethical and what is not. However, we do have controls to limit the bad and encourage the good. It is one of the important tasks of every leader to develop an awareness of ethical and unethical behaviors in his organization.
Technical and finance skills are vital for any manager. Now it is very desirable to add another set of skills to our competency – the focus on ethics. According to the management.about.com, that is a key factor in realizing the value of diverse, empowered teams.
Cultivate your ethical competence
While corporations have contributed to many of today problems, they can improve it as well. They can be part of the solution, not only the root of all the pollution and alienation we are witnessing today. What will be their reward? The ability to be competitive. To attract customers, organizations must be responsive and seize the ethical initiative.
1. Focus on the long term
As world population is rising to new standards of living, there are many more threats to the environment. The voluntary prevention of pollution and a focus on industrial ecology will help to avoid increased taxes and tighter regulation.
2. Distribution of power
Organizations that are able to create continuous knowledge systems that can quickly disseminated information are more likely to be flexible and responsive. The power to act and to make decisions mustn’t be too centralized. Encourage and promote emerging informal channels and initiatives. Collaboration of workers across departments and complex relationships can help you to become more flexible and successful. However, you must provide your empowered employees with an ethical framework. And when necessary, you must provide them with guidance.
3. Communities and diversity
The design of your organization should encourage both freedom and cooperation. Valuing diversity can help. Effective cross-functional teams, with people with different competencies and talent, is what you get when you form new teams for new projects.
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