How Committed Are We To Our Values?

Purpose Statement: “Gain insight into our values and how those values influence and foster a culture of ethical Leadership”

Gain insight into your worldviews, values and responses; Gain an understanding of why others respond the way they do, and how the behavior of others influences your behavior; Gain an understanding of how to confront and handle ethical dilemmas in a thoughtful and meaningful way.

15 Thoughts on Ethics and Integrity

1) “Prevention First”  Never take ethics and integrity for granted  Talk about it  Train  Don’t assume it will just happen  Make it part of the organization’s culture and value system

2) “It will be very difficult to have an ethical organization without ethical employees”  Hire for ethics  Have it as a criteria  Talk about it as part of the selection process  Thorough background checks

3) “Just because it is legal doesn’t mean it is ethical”  Don’t confuse “legal” with “ethical”  Not breaking the law will keep you out of jail, but won’t make you a role model of ethics and integrity (consider the spirit as well as the letter of the law)  Our obligation is to maintain public confidence in ourselves and our public institutions  We must hold ourselves to a higher standard than not breaking the law

4) “The greatest obstacle to ethical conduct: The “R” word”  Our greatest enemy is our and our employees’ ability to rationalize that inappropriate conduct is okay  “I deserve………”  “In this case it is okay to ……..”  “We can be seduced by our ability to come up with a “plausible rationale”

5) Beware of “…but no one will find out”  “A secret is a 5-second head start”  There is always someone who will (or could) know  No one finding out is NOT an appropriate criteria  YOU WILL KNOW

6) “The Newspaper Rule”  The best defense to the “seduction of rationalization”  Understand you don’t just have to convince yourself – you have to convince everyone else

7) “The Taxpayer Rule”  What you think is justified vs. what tax payers will think is reasonable  Public funds belong to the public

Examine Values: 1.Think about situations (work or personal) that challenge you the most ethically? 2.Think about a situation in which your positive ethical response was strong and easy to act upon. 3.In pairs, share your ethical challenges and what is it about that situation you recalled that you find inspiring?

8) “You are only really tested when it isn’t easy”  When you have something to lose or gain  When you can suffer personally or professionally for taking a stand  When it is difficult and uncomfortable

9) “If you are an organizational leader, it is not JUST about you”  You won’t simply be held accountable for your conduct, but also for the conduct of those in your organization  You will fail no matter how ethical you are if your organization fails to perform ethically

10) “The three levels of a LEADER’S ethical responsibility”  What you did: Your decisions and actions  What others did – that you knew about: Did you respond How you responded  What others did – that you didn’t know about: Pay attention Ask questions/due diligence “Open to bad news” – Don’t shoot the messenger Should you have known

11) “Responding to an ethical failure: Being judged not just on what happened, but how you responded”  Avoid the “C” word at all costs (“cover-up”)  Early/Full disclosure  Corrective actions  The biggest issue is often not what happened, but how it was responded to  How you respond may well be the primary basis on which you will be judged  “Not deciding” is a decision for which you may be held accountable  Don’t turn an honest mistake into an ethical scandal

12) “Whose responsibility is it – Is it “your job”  If you know about it – it is your responsibility to do something  What you are required to do depends on the circumstances  You don’t necessarily need to be the “Lone Ranger,” but……

13) “As a leader, you need to support the organization and “the innocent” during an ethical crisis”  Protect those who stand up for ethical conduct/integrity  Keep the organization focused during an ethical crisis  Recovering from an ethical failure – learning and getting better

14) “ The three questions you will always need to be prepared to answer”  What did you know?  When did you know it?  What did you do about it?

‘VALUES WE LIVE BY – Identifying Core Values’ Task 1: Circle values that add meaning to your life. Task 2: After circling, select the 8 that are most critical to your life today. Task 3: Write out the 8 in priority order from most important to less important in your life today. Task 4: Write the 5 most important values in your life today on 3 x 5 cards – one value per card

VALUES CARD GAME Task 1 & 2 are complete. Task 3: Looking at the 5 cards in your hand, complete the following statements: 1.If I were to lead my life according to these values my life would be… 2.The value that I would have the most conflict with is (name the value) because… 3.I believe that the reasons that a person might hold this value are (list reasons):

Task Four: Group share the following: 1.As people were taking your core values from your hand, what was the most difficult value for you to give what and what were you feeling? What insights can you gain from this? How might this relate to a current conflict that you have with another person? 2.In pairs, share your core values (the values you wrote on the cards) and the values that you ended up with. Share your responses from Task Three with your partner and help each other understand:  Ways in which conflict might arise between your values and the values of others.  Why the value that you would have the most conflict might be important for another person to have.

Task Five: In your notes, finish these statements: As a result of this exercise: 1.I have learned that I….. 2.I realize that I….. 3.I never knew that I….. 4.I now know that I…..

15) “Leaders need to walk the talk”  Talking about vs. demonstrating ethics and integrity  Leaders need to hold themselves to a higher standard

CASE STUDY GROUP WORK: Teams read case silently; discuss as a group and identify ethical issues involved. How would you deal with it? Identify values involved and obligation of the leader in the situation. Team speaker identifies case study by title and reports out the findings of the group.

ETHICS & INTEGRITY – 15 THOUGHTS….. 1.Prevention first 2.It will be very difficult to have an ethical organization without ethical employees 3.Just because it is legal doesn’t mean it’s ethical 4.The greatest obstacle to ethical conduct: the “R” word 5.Beware of …”But no one will find out” 6.The Newspaper Rule 7.The Taxpayer Rule 8.You are only really tested when it isn’t easy 9.If you are an organization leader it is not “just about you” 10.The 3 levels of a leader’s ethical responsibility: what you did; what other did – that you knew about; what others did – that you didn’t know about 11.Responding to an ethical failure – being judged not just on what happened, but how you responded 12.Whose responsibility is it – is it your job? 13.As a leader, you need to support the organization and the innocent during and ethical crisis 14.The 3 questions you will always need to be prepared to answer: what did you know; when did you know it; what did you do about it? 15.Leaders need to “Walk the Talk”

Summary thoughts… Effective leaders demonstrate ethics and integrity Beware of the “R word” – rationalization If you are a leader, it is your responsibility No one finding out is not the criteria The newspaper rule The taxpayer rule

Next Steps/Action Planning 1.Note one thing you will take away from today. What will you do with that information? Who will you talk with? What will you want them to do? What is the time frame?