Managerial profession is inevitably linked with responsibility towards others.

In order not to harm any

stakeholder, managers need to understand how their behaviour and decisions are intertwined with the
company environment. In case they underestimate or overlook the negative effects of unethical
practices, it brings in a lot of risks and unsolicited results for both the people and the companies. Often,
the failures of entire companies might be attributed to the lack of a sound tone of management (Soltani,
2014). As Mintz (2005) argues, even the most superior governance mechanisms may be meaningless if
managers establish an unethical tone. For that reason, this study aimed to uncover the systematic
differences in managers’ perception of UTAT based on their demographic characteristics, to shed more
light into this complex issue and to specify some useful recommendations of how companies could help
themselves in increasing managers’ sensitivity to harmful top-down practices and support ethicality in
the workplace. To conclude, this study has certain limitations. First, the sampling strategy allowed us to
gather only a convenience-based data set. Second, the quantitative research design caused certain
reduction in the variety of the demographic factors that could make a difference in managers’
perception of the harmful influence of UTAT. Despite these limits, the sample size, the methods used
and the depth of analysis allowed us to draw several practical suggestions for companies, how to
minimise the threats that stem from an unethical tone sent out by managers towards other employees.