Despite the recent examples of the leaders of Enron, Tyco, WorldCom, Parmalat (10 executives recently arrested) and others, it is possible to have ethical leadership. Leading by values is the key. Living those values in the workplace, walking the talk we espouse, is the only way we can expect ourselves and others to be accountable to the values we profess.

Many organizations these days have mission and/or vision statements. Often those statements include the values of the organization. Curiously, however, many employees are unable to recite the vision/mission statement, let alone quickly tell you the key values of the organization. What good are those statements if they aren’t well known enough to guide the day-to-day actions of the members of the organization? Enron had a 350+ page Ethics Code (copies sold on eBay not long ago for $1 per page). All the details, rules, guidelines and even laws won’t make any difference if leaders don’t live out those values and set the example for others.

When was the last time you encountered a “gray area” in your decision making and you recalled the values of your organization as guidelines for your decision? Employees of companies like Harley-Davidson Motor Company and US Cellular know their corporate values (see below paragraph) as they are succinctly stated and posted in many areas to remind employees of what the organization stands for. Employees are encouraged to hold each other and management accountable to making decision congruent with these values. What might have happened (or not happened?) if such accountability were encouraged at Enron??

Harley-Davidson Motor Company

• Tell the Truth
  
• Respect the Individual
  
• Be Fair
  
• Keep your Promises
  
• Encourage Intellectual Curiosity

US Cellular

• Customer Focus
  
• Respect
  
• Ethics
  
• Empowerment
  
• Pride

March is National Ethics Awareness Month. I encourage you to get out the magnifying glass - identify your corporate values, do an inventory of your behavior to determine how congruently you are “walking your talk” and consider putting into place (or requesting) an annual review of the corporate vision, mission and values combined with basic ethics training for all employees to assure prevention of a corporate scandal (large or small) in your organization. Beware of the “I’m ethical - it can’t happen to me” syndrome. None of us is that perfect, nor are our co-workers. Temptations and ethical dilemmas of varying degrees confront us daily. As Ben Franklin once said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

A copy of “The Six Components of Ethics Training” is available by request - email (patricia@lightly.com) or call 414-374-5433 and leave your US Mail address. This and other articles are available for inclusion in your company newsletters. Just ask!

Patricia Clason has given over 4,000 presentations internationally since 1975. Keynotes, workshops, spouse programs for associations, corporations and non-profits on ethics, time management, negotiations, conflict resolution, communication, team building, empowerment, entrepreneurship, excellence with elegance in the workplace. Every program is customized, blending practical, skill-building activities with humor-filled education. Her many return engagements are evidence of the high quality of her presentations.