The Issue Of Legal Issues

Absent or poorly written codes of conduct are the reason for unethical conduct in organizations. Just look at the recent outbreak of unethical events with Wells Fargo, Enron and Volkswagen (McLaverty & McKee, 2016). Companies and their upper management push for better profits and forget to create a strong ethical culture. Creating large incentives for employees and management for achieving lofty targets create an environment for people to act unethical to meet their numbers. In 2016, Wells Fargo associates opened over 1.4 million accounts without their customers even knowing about the account (Goldfarb, 2017).

There has been increasing numbers of concerns with the ethical leadership of organizations due to historical problems with company’s downfalls due to management. The unethical conduct of leadership is typically found when the organization does not enforce the ethical climate once determined as important. The paper focuses on different approaches for strengthening the leadership for the organization and enforcing the ethical climate. In addition, the important factors for a strong ethical climate are derived based on a solid foundation for an the organization’s policies and procedures and code of conduct. Organizations can accomplish ethical leadership and behaviors by enforcing and practicing the code of conduct and having a high level or integrity in the leaders that run the organization.

Ethical behavior in the workplace is paramount to a successful organization. Commitment to supporting ethical behavior in the workforce must be a top priority for all public service employees. The ethical culture of the organization starts at the very top of the organization. The standards of the agency are adhered to across the entire structure through fair and consistent ethical conduct as defined by leadership. Effective leaders must demonstrate through their behavior that they believe what they say. Those who pronounce that their supervisors and street level workers must adhere to the highest ethical standards must themselves adhere to those same standards (Menzel, p. 70, 2016). Actions may not be considered illegal, however if the action is contrary to organizations

An organization’s culture is based off the shared values and beliefs that are shaped by the organization and its managers. It is this culture that dictates the manner in which employees are to conduct themselves within the organization. Therefore, a culture that creates an environment that influences the employees to act unethically will allow them to do so without thinking of the outcome of their

Ethical leadership is vital for the success of any business; this case study illustrates that the lack of moral values and a healthy ethically incline corporate culture, can lead to scrupulous behavior from the CEO all the way down the company. Scrushy had a demanding and cunning personality, and it was easy for his to influence others in his business to go along with the fraud. Also, having Stanwick and Stanwick, (2013) an active board of directors does have a positive impact on the performance of the firm. Also, good corporate governance supports the ethical requirements established by the stakeholders. A moral leader must cultivate a real ethically driven organization, which has no tolerance for unethical behavior.

“If ethics are poor at the top, that behavior is copied down through the organization,” (Noyce). I believe this quote holds a strong notation towards ethical leadership. Friday September 30th, 2016 I had the privilege of attending a panel discussion holding some of the brightest leaders in the financial and banking industry. The group of panelists were Samuel Golden, managing director and Co-CEO of Alvarez and Marsal’s financial industry advisory services practice, Andrew Moy, executive vice president and eastern division manager for Wells Fargo global banking, Paul Murphy, president, CEO, and chairman of Cadence bank, Daron Peschel, senior vice president in charge of the Houston branch of the Federal Reserve bank and a member of the bank’s

Employees will act ethically only when it's in their best behavior. Capitalistic and American culture dictates the competitive nature of its citizens and business, so to expect a non-competitive or cooperative culture when dealing with relative terms such as ethics is to ignore reality. Assuming a company is unethical because it does not develop specific ethical programs lacks trust and faith in the community. Large scale and sweeping rule changes add very little to the

According to Johnson (2012) leaders are powerful role models, and policies will have a little effect if leaders do not follow the rules they set. In Enron case, corruption and ethical misconduct were deeply embedded in their business culture where profitability was more important than ethics. In this paper, I will address the factors that had led to the development of the culture of profit before principle at Enron. Also, I will create my personal code of ethics that will guide me in my professional and personal decision making and doing the right thing when faced with ethical challenges.

I have witnessed unethical practices in business at almost every level of an organization. I find it absolutely deplorable, especially when the person committing unethical actions is a person in a leadership position. They are supposed to set higher standards for the up and coming employees below them. It hinders the growth and sustainability of the company and poisons the eminence of their employees. When an organization achieves excellence by establishing and marketing ethical practices, a few bad eggs can tarnish a hard earned, pristine image. Once you lose a good reputation, it’s an uphill battle to restore

It is only during moral lapses and corporate scandals that interest groups and the broader public ask themselves the fundamental ethical questions, who are the managers of the organization and were they acting with the ethical guidelines. For a long time, the issue of ethics was largely ignored, with organizations focusing on profit maximization. However, this has changed, and much attention is now focused on ethics management by researchers and leaders. The issue of ethics has arisen at a time when public trust on corporate governance is low, and the legitimacy of leadership is being questioned. Leaders are expected to be the source of moral development and ethical guidance to their employees.

Since the beginning of the 21st century ethical leadership has become a subject of scientific analysis, with a compendium of research and theoretical work examining the antecedents and the consequences. During the same epoch, the unethical comportment of administrative leaders has received a great deal of criticisms. Flabbergasting as it is, several literatures have surfaced recommending solutions to the problem of unethical behavior among leaders.

The top management must decide how they want business conducted then they ethical standards can be carried out. "Setting the tone has to start at the top" (Blank, D., et.al). How can management expect their employees to act and behave in a certain manner if they do not act and behave in that manner? According to Gary Kelly, CEO of Southwest Airlines, "Ethical conduct is manifested in the way you deal with customers, with vendors, buyers, and ultimately the employees. If you don 't have honesty and integrity, you won 't be able to develop effective relationships with any of those stakeholders" (Blank, D., et.al).

Leaders can choose many routes to go, in order to sustain their own job performance and additionally, to show other colleagues what exemplary work involves. On the contrary, they can also be horrible bosses and horrible leaders who essentially follow unethical and illegal protocols merely for their own benefit. In the end, this disgraces the organization along with all of its leaders and employees. Nonetheless, everyone makes mistakes and has their strengths and weaknesses which is completely fine. It becomes a problem when these mistakes involve unethical acts. It becomes even more of a problem when these unethical acts include embezzlement and fraud because that involves breaking the law and stealing. Many times without any shame, it can

Every organization also has a profession responsibility to conduct business honestly and ethically. Our readings reported, “Experts estimated that U.S. companies lose about $600 billion a year from unethical and criminal behavior” Kinicki and Kreitner (2009). The organization could avoid having ethical issues by meeting the

As noted above, organizations operating in certain industries tend to behave unethically. Certain industry cultures may predispose organizations to develop cultures that encourage their members to select unethical acts. If an organization's major competitors in an industry are performing well, in part as a result of unethical activities, it becomes difficult for organizational members to choose only unethical actions, and they may regard unethical actions as a standard of industry practice. Such a scenario results in an organizational culture that serves as a strong precipitant to unethical