Ethics : Ethical And Communication

This paper will first discuss briefly what ethics are and provide the definition for an ethical issue. An ethical leadership issue is identified and explained for this author’s practice area. We will then identify and discuss key strategies for leadership that are pertinent to the ethical issue. Next, empirical evidence which supports the strategies discussed will be analyzed. Then, the impact and importance of the strategies will be stated. The final step will be to provide a conclusion to the reader that summarizes the content and strategies.

In Normative Ethics there are three distinct schools of thought, and each differentiate through moral intentions. Consequentialism relies on the consequences of an action in order to distinguish whether or not something is morally acceptable. Deontology considers the morality of an action by one’s reason for doing a certain deed. Lastly, virtue ethics bases morality off of virtuous character, and how a virtuous person would act given a certain predicament. Ultimately, consequentialism provides the most practical explanation for morality due to the notion of providing the best possible result. Contrarily, deontology and virtue ethics do not always provide an individual with the most sensible course of action, and therefore prove to be

Since my journey here at Bryant began in September, I have changed so much. Coming here, I expected certain things such as my study habits, daily routine and friend group to be altered. One change I was not anticipating making was my approach to ethics. Over the course of the past fifteen weeks, my knowledge of ethics as well as my approach to ethics has changed. I have become more knowledgeable about the different approaches to ethics and have gained insight as to where I stand in my approach to ethics.

In a Monster.com featured article titled, “How Leaders Can Be Ethical Role Models” author Cheri Swales takes an intricate look at leadership and being an ethical role model. As she reveals, these things are not mutually exclusive events. In fact, in order to keep businesses, programs, and other opportunities alike equal and honest, ethical role modeling likely needs a firm place in leadership roles everywhere. Yet, Swales knows that acknowledging a need for change accomplishes nothing unless there is also a plan. For this reason, her articles includes a list of ten actions that leaders can take to be ethical role models. For example, one of the first recommendations is to include ethics training to employees. In addition, the article also suggests

I agree with what the videos say that ethical leaders have both individual as well as organizational responsibilities. As to individual responsibility, if an ethical leader acts ethically, he will inspirit other people to follow him as an example. If leaders act unethically, subordinates will copy these unethical actions. The videos show that personal examples set by firm leaders is the single factor that has the biggest impact on ethical culture of a firm. As to organizational responsibility, leaders should organize and manage the culture of their companies so that they can urge their subordinates to act ethically.

A personal definition of ethical leadership is “deliberate behavior that is consistent with organizational values and expectations, which in turn builds trust and maintains a leader’s moral authority to hold the organization or individual followers accountable.” Although morality and ethics are different, they are closely connected. A dictionary definition for moral authority is, “trustworthiness to make decisions that are right and good” (Moral authority, 2016). One can expect a workforce or unit that perceives their leader to retain moral authority will respect that leader’s decisions and demands because of an alignment of values. Whereas ethics

Brown, M. E., Trevino, L. K., & Harrison, D. A. (2005). Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. Organizational behavior and human decision processes, 97(2), 117-134.

Ethical leadership encompasses the manner in which one leaders that respects the rights and dignity of other individuals. According to Preston (1996) “ethics is concerned about what is right, fair, just, or good; about what we ought to do, not just what is the case or what is most acceptable or expedient” (p.16). Ethical leadership calls for ethical leaders in the organization. However, although an organization’s beliefs, valves, customs and philosophies need to start from the chief executive, the managers and employees must be dedicated to the organization’s goals for a culture be shaped (Butts Ed.). In order for a strong organizational culture to be successful, components of key valves must be in place and followed. With the

The Internet has changed business-conduct transparency by substantial proportions! When the video of a FedEx employee hurling a computer over the fence of a customer’s home went viral, outrage over the event scarred our reputation of excellent service worldwide. A large, multi-national company has an even greater responsibility to act ethically because its scope is so expansive. More specifically, if a company expects to succeed globally, it must maintain a rigid standard of values-based leadership throughout its organization. The customer does not segregate the action of a single individual apart from the company as a whole; he is the company. As the introduction to Chapter 3 summarizes, “Ethics and values-based leadership aren’t just good ideas—they’re vital to attracting talent and retaining loyal customers and business partners.” (Principles of Management (2010). pp:

This gives room for another question; how and where do leaders learn to lead ethically? Leaders can learn about values and good character from families, religious faith, schools and in some rare cases society. On the other hand, learning about leadership is a different kettle of fish entirely, as they could learn about leadership but not learn anything about ethics. They usually learn about ways and skills on how to get people to work for them. These skills and methods can be put into good or bad use. Bernard Bass, once argued that transformational leaders could either be heroes (good guys) or villains (bad guys). A typical example would be Gandhi and Hitler. Other leadership scholars are of the opinion that a lot of research has been focused on leadership while neglecting ethics.

This broader concept of ethical leadership empowers leaders to incorporate and be explicit about their own values and ethics. The following list provides a framework for developing ethical leadership. It is based on the observations of and conversations with a host of executives and students over the past 25 years, and on readings of both popular and scholarly business literature. Written from the perspective of the leader, these ten facets of ethical leaders offer a way to understand ethical leadership that is more complex and more useful than just a matter of “good character and values.”

The purpose of this paper is to examine leadership ethical views in different cultural and organizational setting. The researcher will compare and contrast leadership ethics in different cultural and organizational settings. Finally, the researcher will provide a conclusion.

In order to be a successful ethical leader there are many activities that can be promoted to encourage ethical behavior in one’s organization. An ethical leader will create programs that endorse integrity in business. Programs can include setting guidelines for dealing with ethical issues, open discussion on ethical issues, and establish a protocol for people to get advice (Yukl, 2010). By establishing programs an ethical leader is really changing and encouraging moral behavior which can affect an organizations work environment and improve moral. By empowering your employees to know how to handle ethical dilemmas you create a new found trust.

Ethical leaders “teach” ethical conduct to employees through their own behavior. For social learning of ethical behavior to take place, role models must be credible in terms of moral behavior. By treating others fairly, honestly, and considerately, leaders become worthy of emulation by others. (Brown & Mitchell, 2010, p. 585).

I will examine the importance of personal ethics in leadership and how ethics produce effective leaders in organizations today. The importance of understanding ethics, motivation to act as a role model and developing a plan of action for an organization are discussed because of their importance regarding development of good leadership. These key points suggest personal ethics positively affect leadership and when made a priority for leaders will produce ethical and effective leadership. With so many definitions of leadership, the question evolved from “what is the definition of leadership?” to “what is good leadership” (Ciulla, 2004, p. 13). To develop a system of values one must compile a list of the most important instrumental values and terminal values. These lists are unique to every individual because they are determined by personal importance. Instrumental values, such as honest, helpful, ambitious, responsible, etc. should reinforce terminal values. Once a leader’s means are consistent with desired goals, their value system is unified and they have climbed the staircase from the lobby to the first level of values. The climb from the first floor to the second floor results in a person incorporating principles into their newly developed values. Although values act as the bedrock of ethics, principles are required because alone, “values are far too vague to have much meaning in ethical analysis” (Cooper, 1998, p. 12). Morals are ideals that help us decipher between right