David Long Canterbury Christ Church University IPW Helsinki Metropolia Business School, Finland
description
Transcript of David Long Canterbury Christ Church University IPW Helsinki Metropolia Business School, Finland
11
David LongCanterbury Christ Church University
IPW Helsinki Metropolia Business School, Finland May 13 – 17 2013
Integrity: The individual in the
organisation
Individual Integrity
‘an adherence to moral principles or values... a consistency in one’s beliefs or action that endures,
despite inducement or temptation to deviate from them.’
(Crane and Matten 2007)
Integrity: some philosophical perspectives
Confucian viewConfucian view: the virtue of : the virtue of jenjen – more than – more than compliance to a set of rulescompliance to a set of rules
Buddhist-Christian viewBuddhist-Christian view – focus on what is – focus on what is eternally significant, rather than on the ‘self’eternally significant, rather than on the ‘self’
Virtues approach Virtues approach – doing the right thing.– doing the right thing.
33Modified from Koehn D. (2005) JBE 58; 125-136
44
Integrity as a Business Asset
• Integrity is not well defined
• Compliance with moral norms and expectations?
• Business view that integrity has market value
• Avoiding short-term thinking?
• Maintaining healthy relations with all stakeholders
• Selling products and services that are genuinely valuable?
• Having prudence to avoid unwise courses of action
• Respect for diversity.
Koehn D. (2005) JBE 58; 125-136
55
The Importance of Integrity
• Rules do not necessarily encourage ethical behaviour
• No single right answer to many ethical dilemmas• A good person will take the right action • The importance of Professionalism• Sense of moral responsibility is a pre-requisite
for moral action (Trevino & Nelson 2011).
66
Aristotle’s Virtues
– Courage
– Self-control
– Generosity
– Magnificence
– High-Mindedness
– Gentleness
– Friendliness
– Truthfulness
– Wittiness
– Modesty.
77
Views of Joseph Desjardins
Ethical dilemmas are fundamentally ambiguous Human character has been neglected in favour of the application
of general principles to specific situations The ability to apply lessons learned from the past to new
situations in the present The application of reasoning of situations, rather than forced use
of preconceived categorisation A ‘good ‘person (virtuous) will have practical wisdom to do the
right thing (Phronesis).
(Virtues & Business Ethics, Joseph Desjardins, cited in Chryssides & Kaler 1993)
88
Compliance versus Integrity
Compliance: Rule-based Legal approach Prevention of misconduct Sanctions for violations
Integrity: Values-based Encourage commitment Guiding principles Self-governance approach
(Lawtion et al, 2013)
Obedient
Virtuous
99
Characteristics of a ‘Professional’ Person
• Knowledgeable
• Proficient
• Masterly
• Autonomous
• ‘Business-like’
• Emotionally detached
• Honourable
• Trustworthy
• Ethical?
1010
Common Features of Professional Groups
• Educational path– University degree?
• Training and development – Continuing Professional Development (CPD)– Codes of practice
• Membership of a Learned Society or Institute– Specific professional qualifications competence– Licensed practitioners– Maintaining proper standards
• Research and development in particular field• Acknowledged reputation in society?
1111
Role of Professional Societies
• Accredit individual professional competence and integrity
• Advise governments and society of matters related to the profession
• Initiate debate on issues of importance
• Set standards for:– Work– Education
• Provide opportunities for networking and sharing problems and solutions
• Enable specialist groups to develop
• Most importantly, set standards for professional conduct ... Compliance?
Doing Well v Doing Good
Integrity in the workplace involves acceptance of ‘socialised power’
A professional working with integrity will :
Believe in the importance of centralised authority
Have a keen sense of justice and rewards hard work
Feel responsible for developing the organisation
Use power for common good
Create a good working climate
Help others succeed and commits them towards organisational goals.
(Curtis 2003)
1313
Towards an Ethical Agenda:What British people think needs changing
Source: IBE 2013
Challenges to Integrity in Business
Constantly changing business environment
Pressures on costs and revenues
Intensive competition – traditional markets
under attack
Markets – local, national and global
Customers becoming more demanding.
Towards an Ethical Outcome
Gather the facts Define ethical issues Identify affected parties Identify consequences Identify obligations Consider your character and integrity Think creatively about potential actions Check your gut feeling
(Trevino and Nelson 2007)(Trevino and Nelson 2007)
Any questions?