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Ethical Reading Webinar

What role do managers play in creating an ethical workplace?

Speaker: Professor Emma Borg,Director, Reading Centre for Cognition Research, The University of Reading

Host: Gurprit Singh,Ethical Reading

Enabled by:

http://www.ethicalreading.org.uk/



What is Ethical Reading?

Ethical Reading is a new not-for-profit social enterprise

Our mission is to help embed ethics into the way we live and work in Reading.

We want to Inspire, Educate & Collaborate

We have 30 Partners and Supporter organisations and over 1,500 individual members/followers

We are comprised of 20 volunteers

Ethical Cities Movement




What we do

Our Action




Emma Borg

I’m a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Reading and an Associate Research Fellow on the British Academy ‘Future of the Corporation’ programme.

My research concerns reasons for action and what companies might owe to society, together with research on the nature of communication.

My email is [email protected] – feel free to email me if you have any questions about today’s session.


mailto:[email protected]



Ethics and Hierarchy?

Are ethical issues different at different levels of hierarchy in an organization?

No: core values don’t change as you progress through an organisation.

If an action is right (or wrong), it is right (or wrong) for everyone regardless of their pay-grade.

This reflects the idea that ethical constraints are not relative (or at least not relative to one’s level of seniority at work).




But…

Moral choices may become more complex as you assume more responsibilities:

There may be more features of a situation you need to take account of (the demands of customers, suppliers, other workers).

The repercussions of your actions may be more extensive.

You have more of an opportunity to influence the actions of others, directly (e.g. incentives) and indirectly (“tone from the top”).

These features place a special burden on those in managerial roles.




Managers often get it wrong Almost every sector has been rocked by

systemic poor behaviour in recent years.

Risky behaviour by the big banks led to collapse, state rescue, etc, but poor behaviour continued (LIBOR, mis-selling, whistle-blowers). Financial sanctions haven’t worked (2007-2015: cumulative fines for the largest global banks exceeded US$300 billion).

Facebook harvested the data c. 87 million people, shared with Cambridge Analytica which used it to target political advertising in the US.

Emissions scandals, NHS scandals, #MeToo…




What can managers do to promote a more ethical climate at work?




1. Ensure a ‘speak up’ culture

Strong leadership promotes a culture where there is an expectation that people will speak out and where all staff are convinced that speaking up will not carry a risk of retaliation.

The IBE’s ‘Ethics at Work’ survey (2018) identified a ‘Speak Up line’ as a core building block of an ethics programme.

They also suggested firms needed:- A code of ethics or similar guidance.- To provide ethics training.- An ‘Advice line’ for advice/information on ethical behaviour.

On average, 21% said their organisation offered all of the above, while 19% of respondents said their organisation offered none.




2. Learning rather than blame

Reports show that a majority of workers believe that ethical matters are neverdiscussed in formal meetings.

But ethics is a complicated matter – it needs time and training.

Adopt a two-track approach to ethical concerns, where any disciplinary action is separated from an investigation of what can be learnt from the situation.




3. Hiring and Employment

Create a clear, values-based job description for all roles. A values-based approach to appointing can help to combat discrimination during hiring.

69% of employees who believe their senior management teams are diverse see their working environments as motivating and stimulating (Deloitte Millennial Survey 2018).

Anti-harassment policies should be formulated in a way that emphasises fair and thorough investigation of allegations, to be followed by fair and proportional responses if allegations are grounded.

Incentive schemes should be designed to reward ethically robust business practices which promote the long-term sustainability of the business.




4. Reporting and Transparency

Make sure that your firm has a clear statement of its code of ethics and social purpose (nearly two-thirds of millennials say companies have no ambition beyond wanting to make money, Deloitte Millennial Survey 2018).

Consider using Ethical Reading’s Code of Ethics as a template.

Ensure that social purpose is well-integrated within the organisation (e.g. hiring and training).

Consider asking staff to sign a pledge agreeing to abide by ethical constraints; cf. the Hermes Investment Management Pledge:

https://www.hermes-investment.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/hermes-pledge.pdf)


https://www.hermes-investment.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/hermes-pledge.pdf



Finally, why should managers bother?

Doing the right thing matters.

Doing the right thing works:

Lots of research to show that an ethically robust business can recruit higher quality employees, and the employees it has are more engaged, more productive, and miss less workdays due to ill health (e.g. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/236483/enhances-benefits-employee-engagement.aspx)

They also have more loyal customers and benefit from a positive reputation.


https://www.gallup.com/workplace/236483/enhances-benefits-employee-engagement.aspx



Conclusion

Managers have a special responsibility for the ethical climate within a firm.

The bad news is that many managers have failed to get things right.

The good news is (i) that managers have a wide range of resources to help them improve things, and (ii) that improving things will benefit both them and their firm in the long-run.




Case Study: Lucy

Lucy receives an anonymous report identifying mis-selling practices.

She knows the firm is under significant stress.

She has three options:

a) publicise the whistle-blower's report and actively investigate.

b) undertake a more private (delaying) investigation.

c) covertly try to identify the whistle blower to resolve in other ways.

What should Lucy do and why?




Call to action - get involved

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THANK YOU for joining us today!


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ethical reading webinar what role do managers play in ... · help us to make reading a better place...

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