week 2
Practicing Leadership: Principles and Applications
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
Executive Leaders Create Ethical Culture
Ethical Culture: a number of formal (e.g., codes and rules) and informal (e.g., behavior norms) systems that work together to support ethical conduct in the organization.
Leaders must be moral people as well as “Moral Managers”
Moral managers make ethics a priority by visibly modeling ethical conduct, communicating openly and regularly with employees about ethics and values, and by using the reward system to hold everyone accountable to the standards regardless of one’s level in the organization or the level of productivity.
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
Three Forms of Leadership that Fall Short on Ethics:
Ethically Neutral Leadership: occurs when there is a leadership vacuum when it comes to ethics. Persons in positions of power of influence neither promote nor actively work against ethical conduct.
Hypocritical Leadership: when a person in a position of power talks about the importance of ethics, but then acts in an unethical manner.
Unethical Leadership: weak moral persons and weak moral managers—not true “leaders”
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
A Guide for Ethical Decision Making
The Rights Theory
The right to the truth about things that impact us.
The right to privacy.
The right to what has been contractually promised.
The Common Good Theory
The good of an individual is inseparable from the good of the larger society.
The Fairness Theory
An ethical action treats everyone equally, without showing either favoritism or discrimination against anyone.
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
A Guide for Ethical Decision Making
The Utilitarian Approach
All available alternatives should be evaluated and the choice should be the option that causes the greatest good (or the least harm) to the greatest number of people.
The Virtue Ethics Approach
An action is ethical if it builds personal virtuous traits such as honesty, selflessness, and courage.
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership
Questions for Discussion and Review
Why is it important for leaders to demonstrate ethical conduct?
What impact can a leader’s position on ethics have on the culture of an organization?
Describe the dimensions of building a reputation for ethical behavior.
What is meant by the terms “hypocritical leadership” and “ethically neutral leadership”?
How does the Rights Theory compare with the Fairness Theory?
How does the Common Good Theory compare with the Utilitarianism Theory?
What theory of ethics prevails at the United Nations?
Chapter 2: Ethical Leadership