By Linda Fisher Thornton Great attention is often paid to values in defining and marketing an organization. But what happens after that? It’s the ongoing dialogue about how to apply those values that brings them to life. Some leaders assume that if…
Tag: ethical leadership
Talking About Ethics (Part 2)
By Linda Fisher Thornton Dialogue is a powerful tool for developing ethical organizations. Workplace issues are complex and opinions vary about what ethical leadership means. This combination creates a kind of “murky uncertainty” that keeps leaders from giving us their best, most ethical performance.
Identifying Ethically-Aware Leaders
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical awareness may have been considered private in the past, but it has become easier to observe in a society that is always socially connected. Since ethical reputation is a defining element in individual and organizational success, it is time that we consider ethical awareness as a key element of experience when selecting leaders for our businesses, community organizations, governments, and nations.
Adaptable Leaders Manage Their Egos
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ego has a way of undoing even our best intentions as leaders. We have to be aware of our ego and manage it to avoid getting off track. In a world that requires rapid adaptation to changing events and circumstances, ego tries to maintain the status quo and works against our ability to pivot in response to change. Think of the adaptable leader as piloting a boat, able to turn at a moment’s notice as the situation warrants it. The ego-driven leader, in contrast, is living in a fortress with a moat around it, protecting status and the status quo at all cost. The fortress can’t move, can’t pivot, can’t adapt to changing circumstances.
Leaders Make the Ethical Path Clear
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leaders are not easily pulled off course – they stay focused on the values that are important to good leadership. They realize that they are influencing others, and they perceive that as both a privilege and a responsibility. They ask themselves, “In my leadership, am I making the path clear for others to follow?” If we see leadership as only a privilege (and not a responsibility) we may be tempted by personal gain. If we see it as only a responsibility (and not a privilege), we may miss the joys of bringing out the potential of those we lead.
Ethical Values Are Good For Business (Part 4)
By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1 of this series "Ethical Values Are Good For Business" I shared the importance of clearing up the confusion employees have in balancing ethical values with bottom line profitability. In Part 2, we looked at the importance of aligning strategy with the organization's values. Part 3 addressed the senior leader's important role. In Part 4 let's look at using values to guide us in challenging times.
Ethical Values are Good For Business (Part 2)
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical values are good for business, but only when values and strategy align. Consumers are seeking brands that support well-being, sustainability, and social justice, realizing that these brands are more likely to have the best interests of consumers and society at heart. Because of this, brands will benefit from assessing their alignment between values, culture, and strategy.
Ethical Values are Good For Business (Part 1)
By Linda Fisher Thornton Even if a company has clear values, applying them is not as easy as leaders might think. According to Gallup (2016), just 23% of U.S. employees strongly agree that they can apply their organization’s values to their work every day, and only 27% strongly agree that they "believe in" their organization's values. In 2022 Gallup reported that "Without strong, lived and embedded values, it is difficult for employees to find meaning in their job."
Bridging Cultural Differences
By Linda Fisher Thornton Openness to learning about other cultures has become a necessary component of leadership. One way to help people respect cultural differences is to build what UNESCO calls “intercultural competence.” To accomplish this, we need an open mind, and a willingness to learn from others who do not think or live as we do.
11 Paths to Mastering Ethical Leadership
By Linda Fisher Thornton Developing competent ethical leaders can be a huge challenge. Why is it so difficult? We live in a globally connected society, and are expected to be globally aware. We are dealing with catastrophic change and uncertainty. We fill many different roles in our organizations, industries and communities. Each role we play and each decision we face has different ethical implications. Ethical competence is definitely not something that “just happens.”
Ethical Leaders: 10 Behaviors to Avoid
By Linda Fisher Thornton In the lifelong quest to become our best selves, we need to stretch and grow and learn from our mistakes. Being a flexible and willing learner, we will more easily stay competent as the world changes. Here are 10 things to avoid if we are to accomplish the elusive goal of becoming our best selves:
5 Compelling Reasons Leader Development is a Strategic Priority
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leadership learning is an issue that is gaining attention. Expectations of “good leadership” are increasing and leaders and organizations are scrambling to keep up. While sometimes people disagree about implementation, there is a strong consensus among scholars and research organizations that today’s leadership requires broad, high level, inclusive thinking.
Ethical Leadership Development: Preparing Leaders For the Future
By Linda Fisher Thornton I spoke with Human Resource leaders attending a Richmond SHRM Strategic Leadership Conference about The Future of Ethics and Business Leadership. The lens I used to frame the discussion was leadership development – how we can prepare leaders to lead ethically in a highly complex, connected future. Here are some highlights from my presentation – a few of the important success principles for developing “Ethical Leader Future.
Ethical Leadership Development: High Level View
By Linda Fisher Thornton What is Ethical Leadership Development? Ethical leadership development is the ongoing process of guiding leaders to become ethical people and ethical leaders. It is not the same thing as compliance training or following legal requirements, although those are also important. This is the human development that happens over time to bring leaders to the point of being able to handle what the world throws at them using ethical thinking and action. The way we develop leaders impacts their growth and readiness to make successful and ethical choices when faced with challenging situations.
14 Reasons Why You Should Invest in Ethical Learning
By Linda Fisher Thornton When we reach a certain level of accomplishment as leaders, it is easy to think we can slide into neutral. Here are 14 compelling reasons why we can never afford to cut back on investing in our own leadership development and competence:
Leading in Context 