Why the World Needs More Ethical Leadership

The Evidence

You only have to open a newspaper or switch your television on these days to see another example of a failure in leadership, banks are repeatedly the culprits with LIBOR and IRSAs, newspapers with phone tapping were and now its supermarkets and horsemeat. Even leaders of large retail outlets such as Jessops, Blockbuster and Comet have been susceptible. So why do I blame it all on leadership? Surely some of it is down to the environmental and societal changes?

Absolutely right to a degree, but it is the leader’s duty to ensure that the organisation at least keeps up with the environment that sustains it. Leaders must always be in touch with what is going on around them.

The Problem

The modern business leader has to balance three conflicting issues: the first is the requirement to generate profit for the organisation and its stakeholders; the next is the requirement to give value to customers so that they become advocates of and indeed return to the organisation whenever possible; the third aspect is what I call brand and culture this concerns the public and indeed self image of the organisation. It is how we do things round here when no one is looking. It involves values and ethics that need to be maintained and sustained. I am not advocating rigid traditions here but a set of clearly understood values and standards that are regularly reviewed for their relevance.

The Need

Modern Business Leadership is a difficult balance between organisational needs- profit, customers’ needs- value and societal needs- trust if we look at all the recent issues in business they have arisen where one of these issues has dominated the leaders thinking too much and the balance has been lost. Mostly its profit with the banks and the Horse meat, sometimes its value with Jessops and Comet and then its trust which is the one that is most difficult to rectify for before trust must come the truth! As society moves on our values have changed and matured. No more is it a zero sum game, today’s world is about win win for it is only then that an organisation has true longevity. A modern organisation has to balance its brand with its profit and its customer value.

Here are some questions a modern leader should always challenge a decision with prior to promulgating it.

Is it honest? Is it fair? Is it right for our brand? Does it provide value for all involved?


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