LEADERSHIP & PROFESSIONAL Lecture 6

DEVELOPMENT
INTEGRITY AND ETHICS
Another influence on you and how you are as a manager is your
integrity and ethics.
As a manager you will be expected to make decisions every day.
These decisions will be made using your skills and experience and
will be influenced by your own priorities.
Each decision will have an effect on the organization and your
colleagues, so take time as you work through this section to try to
analyze your own priorities and values.
INTEGRITY AND ETHICS
As a manager you will be responsible for the welfare of staff, and
some decision making.
This is a huge responsibility, so it is important to look at the ethics
of the work place.
We know that we can influence our colleagues, but we must look
at how we do this, and what values guide our behavior.
INTEGRITY AND ETHICS
We may:
• Be guided by specific rules
• Have our own sense of justice/fairness
• Follow the orders of others
• Follow our individual conscience
• Act out of self-interest
• Choose the way which is most beneficial to the needs of others
• Follow what we feel to be most financially beneficial
INTEGRITY AND ETHICS
• Be put under pressure from our managers
• Pass this pressure on to those who work for us
Rarely will there be a decision that everyone will recognize clearly as having a right
or wrong answer.
It is difficult to please everyone, as decision making is usually a trade-off between
possible considerations.
We must try to remain consistent, and try to collect a broad base of information
before deciding.
Some writers suggest that we can apply ethical theory to business, while others feel
that organizations have their own ethical rules.
MORAL PHILOSOPHY
Refers to principles or rules that people use to decide what is right
or wrong
Presents guidelines for determining how to settle conflicts in
human interests
Guides businesspeople in formulating strategies & resolving
specific ethical issues
There is no one moral philosophy accepted by everyone
MORAL PHILOSOPHY
PERSPECTIVES
Teleology
 Egoism
 Utilitarianism

Deontology
The Relativist Perspective
Virtue Ethics
Justice Perspectives
 Distributive
 Procedural
 Interactional
TELEOLOGY
Considers an act morally right or acceptable if it produces
some desired result such as pleasure, knowledge, career
growth, the realization of a self interest, or utility
Assesses moral worth by looking at the consequences for
the individual
CATEGORIES OF TELEOLOGY
Egoism
Right or acceptable behavior defined in terms of consequences to
the individual maximizes personal interests
Utilitarianism
Conduct a cost/benefit analysis to determine behavior on the basis
of principles of rules that promote the greatest utility rather than
on an examination of each situation
DEONTOLOGY
Focuses on the rights of the individual, not consequences
Believes in equal respect and view certain behaviors as inherently
right
Individuals have certain inherent freedoms
Rule deontologist-
 conformity to general moral principles

Act deontologists-
 evaluate ethicalness based on the act
THE RELATIVIST
PERSPECTIVE
Defines ethical behavior subjectively from the experiences of
individuals & groups
A positive group consensus indicates that an action is considered
ethical by the group
Acknowledges that we live in a society in which people have
different views and many different bases from which to justify a
decision as right or wrong.
VIRTUE ETHICS
What is moral in a given situation is not only what conventional
wisdom suggests, but also what a “moral” character would deem
appropriate
Elements include: truthfulness, trust, self control, empathy, &
fairness
Negative virtues include: lying, cheating, fraud & corruption
THREE TYPES OF JUSTICE
Distributive Justice-an evaluation of the outcomes or
results of a business relationship
Procedural Justice-based on the processes and activities
that produce the outcomes or results
Interactional Justice-based on an evaluation of the
communication processes used in business relationships
(often based on the accuracy of information provided)
INTEGRITY AND ETHICS
Consider the following questions and how you feel about them:
1. Is there a behavior that might be acceptable in business that would not be
acceptable in every day life?
2. Is there a point where ‘profit at any cost’ must stop?
3. Is it acceptable to use business practices in one country that would not be
acceptable in another, e.g. giving and taking bribes?
CONCLUSION
We have looked at self-analysis techniques by undertaking several self-analysis
activities, and hopefully you will have more of an understanding of who you are, and
how you operate, than when you started.
This is an important first step in the development process leading towards the
development of your skills as a manager.
Remember we change with age and circumstances. As we become more aware of
ourselves, we may become more sensitive to others, and therefore more responsive
to their needs, knowing who can take responsibility and who will need more support.
Unfortunately, although it is beneficial to have an understanding of our own
strengths and weaknesses, this is not enough, and we need to use this information to
make the most of these strengths and work on our areas that need development.