1. 1 College and University Auditors of Virginia ETHICS (And Why Good Leaders Go Bad) Craig Anderson Deputy Director, University Audit Virginia Commonwealth University

2. 2 OUTLINE 1. Introduction / Background 2. General Thoughts & Principles 3. “Slippery Slope” Model 4. Closing Comments & Questions

3. 3 INTRODUCTION  My Background / Biases  VCU Experience  Prior Experiences

4. 4 WHAT IS ETHICS ?

5. 5 Merriam-Webster:  Discipline dealing with what is Good & Bad, with Moral Duty & Obligation  Set or System of Moral Values and Principles  A Guiding Philosophy

7. 7 WHAT ARE THE OBSTACLES TO ETHICAL BEHAVIOR & DECISION-MAKING ?  How much Gray exists?  What kind of “Gray” have you encountered? And Many Times:  It’s Easy to Do the Wrong Thing  It’s Hard to Do the Right Thing

8. 8 WHY IS IT EASY TO DO THE WRONG THING ?  Lack of Knowledge of the Expectations or Requirements  Lack of training in the “right way to do things”  Lack of Accountability  Intent

9. 9 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL  Even if You Win the Rat Race, You’re Still a Rat.

10. 10 WHY IS IT HARD TO DO THE RIGHT THING ?  Frustration with Policies or Procedures (without understanding the reason for those P&P)  Time or Departmental Pressures  Competing Priorities  Short-Term Impacts

11. 11 SO WHY DO GOOD LEADERS GO BAD ?

12. 12 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL 1. The Early Years 2. Entitlement 3. Arrogance 4. Greed 5. The Fall from Grace

13. OSCAR WILDE Morality, like art, means drawing a line somewhere 13

14. 14 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 1 - THE EARLY YEARS  “He was impressive, young and aggressive, saving the world on his own” (Jimmy Buffett)  Talent, Hard Work, Very aggressive  Knows & Respects “the rules”  Usually rises rapidly in the organization  What other characteristics do you see?

15. WILLIAM J H BOETCKER That you may retain your self respect, it is better to displease people by doing what is right than to temporarily please them by doing what you know is wrong. 15

16. 16 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 2 - ENTITLEMENT  I Earned It – “You don’t look smart enough to find it if I did”  I Deserve This – “If I can’t get a raise I will get it another way”  It Comes with the Territory – “How will my kids go to college?”  It’s No Big Deal – “I’m not the only one doing this”

17. ALBERT EINSTEIN Relativity applies to physics, Not ethics. 17

18. 18 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 3 - ARROGANCE  They Start to Believe the Press Clippings  All the Successes are due to My Efforts  This Department couldn’t survive without me and my Grants  Better to Ask Forgiveness than Permission

19. 19 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL  Don’t get down in the Mud with a Pig; You Both get Dirty but Only the Pig Enjoys It.

20. 20 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 4 - GREED Earth provides Enough to Satisfy Every Man’s Needs, but Not Every Man’s Greeds GANDHI

21. 21 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 4 - GREED  At this point, the Leader’s Greeds take precedence over the Organization’s Needs  The Leader’s Priorities drive the Organization’s Priorities  The Leader’s Actions no longer support the Organization’s Mission  What can we do to prevent some of these very real issues?

22. NATIVE AMERICAN PROVERB A Native American grandfather talking to his young grandson tells the boy he has two wolves inside of him struggling with each other. The first is the wolf of peace, love and kindness. The other wolf is fear, greed and hatred. "Which wolf will win, grandfather?" asks the young boy. "Whichever one I feed," is the reply. A Native American grandfather talking to his young grandson tells the boy he has two wolves inside of him struggling with each other. The first is the wolf of peace, love and kindness. The other wolf is fear, greed and hatred. "Which wolf will win, grandfather?" asks the young boy. "Whichever one I feed," is the reply. 22

23. 23 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL DENIAL  Don’t Listen/Watch when the Foundation is Crumbling  “This is a Short-Term Problem”  “I Know Better than They Do; I Built this Place”

24. PLATO ~ 400 BC Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws. 24

25. 25 SLIPPERY SLOPE MODEL STAGE 5 - THE FALL  Cumulative Effect of:  Entitlement  Arrogance  Greed

26. POTTER STEWART Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do. 26

27. 27 SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE ?

28. 28 YOUR RESPONSIBILITY  Educate yourself –understand the relevant policies and procedures  Establish strong relationships with your Deans/AVPs/Chairs  Ask for Help when you don’t understand  Lead By Example – if you mess up they will remember and throw it back at you!!!  Speak up when you see something wrong – it doesn’t have to be in a report

29. 29 SUMMARY  Power is the Common Denominator in the most damaging cases I’ve worked on  Absolute Power Corrupts, Absolutely  There is no Reset Button in Life

30. 30 EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ETHICS I LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN

31. 31 CLOSING THOUGHTS  Across our Organizations, Thousands of Good, Sound, Ethical Decisions are Made Every Day.  One Person CAN Make a Difference !

32. MARK TWAIN Always do right; This will gratify some And astonish the rest. 32

33. ELBERT HUBBARD The path of least resistance is what makes rivers run crooked. 33

34. Case Studies: Case Study 1 – Pcard Misuse Case Study 2 – Grant Fraud 34

35. 35 CLOSING  Questions  Comments  Thank You !