Sponsored by

Supported by

Mary ConnaughtonDirector, CIPD Ireland

The challenge for HR in maintaining an ethical

workplace

The challenge for HR in maintaining an ethical

workplace

Mary ConnaughtonDirector, CIPD Ireland

Economy

Value

Work

Workplace

Workforce

Networked, collaborative, flexible

Formal organisation and informal social structures. Digitalisation

More volatile and less predictable

Continued shift toward Intangibles

Increasingly

Increasingly

Increasingly

Increasingly

More diverse, more demandingIndividualisation

Increasingly

CIPD

Can HR create a culture of ‘doing the right thing’?

Why are business ethics so important?

• 74% of the public (24 countries surveyed) believed organisational social responsibility is an important factor when deciding which product or service to purchase. 84% believe that companies should do more to contribute to society Ipsos MORI, April 2013

• societal expectations giving businesses 'a license to operate‘

• stakeholders aspirational association with responsible organisations

• fair, honest and consistent treatment of customers, suppliers, investors and employees builds trust

• avoidance of costly crises and scandals damaging reputation

• clearly articulated values and an ethics policy = good governance

• operating with integrity is a key part of sustainable success for business

HR as ‘guardian’ of ethical practice in business

• develop codes of corporate ethics and disseminate to all employees

• ensure appeal processes are in place to highlight unethical practice

• train/educate employees at all levels on ethical behaviour / conduct

• appoint internal compliance officers to monitor ethical behaviour

• incorporate ethical behaviour in performance systems and as a parameter for rewards

HR as ‘guardian’ of ethical practice in business

• leadership - design systems that:

• hold leaders accountable for the ethical dimension of their leadership and own behaviour

• identify ethical leaders and rely on them for role modelling and mentoring others

• incorporate the ethical dimension of leadership into all leadership training and development programmes

• regular assessment of organisational culture – and how it supports ethical conduct

How much time do we assign to this?

The need for ethical HR itself

• ethical behaviour and role modelling - essential for development and maintenance of positive relationships with workforce

• workforce needs to trust the HR function - only possible if the function acts fairly and decently at all times and practice what it preaches

• ethical standards - key determinant of employer brand and reputation

• prospective and existing employees are increasingly considering ethical factors when deciding which companies they are willing to work for

Ethical HR practices ???

• lack of transparency in internal reward and performance management systems

• inequity in favouring graduates for fast track promotion

• failure to promote equality, diversity, dignity, well-being, etc

• failure to maintain employee confidentiality

• employing low-pay (sweatshop) workers

• breaching data protection (unlawful as well as unethical)

• incorrect application of internal disciplinary and capability procedures

How do we support those who challenge the system?

10

HR’s struggle?

CIPD Labour Market Outlook, Autumn 2013

“HR struggles to debate and challenge organisation issues with sound reasoning”

2%

4%

11%

22%

34%

31%

42%

45%

46%

51%

3%

4%

12%

25%

35%

36%

38%

41%

44%

50%

None of theabove

Don’t know

Curious

Role model

Collaborative

Decisive thinker

Personallycredible

Skilled influencer

Driven to deliver

Courage tochallenge

All HR Professionals Wave 3 (n=1033)

All HR Professionals Wave 1 (n=1315)

Base: HR Professionals who have responsibility for running an HR function

Which three behaviours are you trying to encourage most within your HR function?

The CIPD Profession Map

Leading with integrity, consideration and challenge

Insight

Integrity, compassion and challenge -

stops business savvy becoming boardroom servility.

Serving stakeholders not power structures

Challenging our own impact first and foremost

Challenges

Face and manage the emotional consequences of

business decisions

Compassion does not mean avoiding difficult decisions

Values, integrity, conviction are key

Business perceptions

Hay Group 2013 – UK, US & China

Line managers:

• 76% feel HR keeps data close to its chest

• 42% feel HR are slow to respond

• 39% believe Google is a better source

• 34% feel unempowered re HR

• 30% believe HR actively obstructs

HR Directors:

• 88% want to empower line managers

• 71% think line managers expect an immediate response

• 58% believe policies are inefficient

• 43% believe they spend too much time dealing with line manager queries

So, what’s going on…….?

Importance of issues facing HR in Ireland

CIPD members survey, 2015 Ireland

Talent acquisition and reten-tion

Leadership

Employee engagement

39%

37%

24%

30%

30%

40%

31%

33%

36%

Least important (3) Medium importance (2) Most important (1)

Engaging managers…

• are effective performance coaches

• empower their people to grow

• are tuned-in to people.

• are assignment-assignee match-makers

• promote open two-way communication

• "walk the talk”

• build team spirit

• are hands-on with their teams

• are self-confident

Aon Hewitt Manager Survey 2012

Line managers deliver HR processes

• Bringing policies and procedures to life• Giving development planning and team briefings the time and

care they deserve.

• Making a connection with employees • talking to employees, listening to their concerns, coaching and

counselling them.

• Leading by example • taking a lead on important issues like work-life balance and

equality and diversity.

• Managing performance • praise for work well done • guiding and coaching to improve performance that is not up to

standard, including holding that difficult conversation when needed

Checklist: Are your managers:

• recruited and selected to ensure they have the right people qualities to motivate staff and deal with difficult problems

• trained so that they can carry out their duties effectively and develop their own careers

• given a balanced workload that recognises the need to allocate time for performance management duties

• coached by senior managers so that they openly discuss problems and actively participate in decision making

What practical steps do you take to support managers?

• Do you have skilled HR people assigned to support managers?

• Is there visible support coming from your senior leadership team?

• Do you have efficient tools and technology to support your managers?

• What sort of support networks do managers have?

• Where does accountability lie?

What employees want…

Organisation culture Preferred

An organisation with a family feel, held together by loyalty and tradition 55

A formalised and structured place to work, where procedures govern what people do 20

A dynamic, entrepreneurial, and creative place to work 15

A result-oriented organisation whose major concern is with getting the job done 10

CIPD Employee Outlook, 2015

Current

26

46

6

22

Using workforce analytics to help us• provide reliable, evidence-based insights

• have the ‘right’ conversations

• develop insights into how changes in the business affect the workforce, and vice versa

• monitor, and explain changes in the performance of the workforce

• demonstrate the effectiveness of policies and processes (Cap Gemini, ‘Making Sure People Count’, 2012)

58% business and technology executives agree that moving from data to insight is a major challenge… (PwC, 2014)

Protected Disclosures Act 2014

• The Act aims to protect workers in both the public and private sector in circumstances where they disclose information about alleged wrongdoing in the workplace based on a reasonable belief.

• Policy in place

• Organisation response

• Support for whistle-blower, discipline, bully

• Ethics Officer

Requires good HR and people development Good HR is

context specific and we can’t predict the

future We need to move from prescriptive

best practice to broader

principlesIt takes true

professionalism to apply those principles in

practice

but

so

but

We need to build and maintain

professionalism in HR

so

so

HR becomes a trusted and credible

profession which can CBW&WL regardless of

context

so

Championing better work and working lives

24

Social and ethical

responsibility

Body of knowledge and skills

Situational judgement

What does it mean to be a professional?

Commitment IdentityCPD

Championing better work and working lives (for the benefit of

individuals, businesses, economies and society)

What’s important and what’s not?

Philosophical ethics!

25

• Is HR there to serve the people or the business?• Do hard-working, talented people deserve more money than

those who need it the most?• Does the wellbeing of one person matter just as much as that of

the entire organisation?• Should people have a say in what happens to them at work, or

would it make more sense to leave the decision to those who are competent in making it?

Bucket list of options

What are the possible ‘lenses’ for looking at workplace dilemmas?

Merit Fairness Market

Wellbeing Rights Handing down

Democracy Character

26

Practitioner survey findings

8 out of 10 say it’s the “right” thing to do, but only 23% apply it in current practice

A quarter apply this principle, but another quarter say it’s inapplicable or a “nice to have”

More than half always apply this, although this drops if talking about the categories of staff who aren’t “part of the family”

Handing downCharacter

Rights

Wellbeing Greater good

Merit

DemocracyJustice

Market

‘Right’ thing to do

Not a priority

Prevalent in current practice

Less prevalent in current practice

27

Finally….

“Whether we will succeed or fail in the work ahead will be determined by the response we

bring to the irrefutable evidence of science, the degree of our moral courage, our ethical values,

and the inspiration we can call upon.”

“The first ethical test is in accepting that there can be no compromise with truth.”  

PRESIDENT MICHAEL D HIGGINS. The Power of Ideas for Climate – Making a New Beginning. Address given to the Summit of Consciences for the Climate, Paris, France, 21 July 2015

Thank you