Ethical Business Leadership

 

Mpho Bosupeng

The following is a summary of the main arguments of my book titled: Ethical Business Leadership by Mpho Bosupeng. The book is currently available on Amazon and other major online book stores. Be sure to get yourself a copy.

Getting ahead and beating off competition through shortcuts have been some of the factors that lead us to unethical business decision making. The question people often ask is: how ethical should I be? Some people often choose to live on the edge of the law. They often reason that as long as you are not breaking the law, then you are probably behaving ethically. That is wrong. Consider this scenario. If I work at some company that is listed and I know that the business is going under, should I tell you? All other members of the public do not know this material information. If I tell you, you will rush to sell the stock and avoid heavy losses. Ethically, it will be wrong to tell you material information because it will not be fair to other stockholders. Even if I do not get caught it will be still be illegal in terms of securities laws and regulations. In short, I believe it is wrong to live just above the expectations of the law. I noticed the following about ethical leaders.

UPHOLDING YOUR MORAL UPRIGHTNESS

Truthfully speaking, being morally upright is often a choice. People do what may be termed unethical because we believe there is the ethical side of those situations. It is like a coin. In many situations, we find ourselves in situations that may challenge our moral stand. This is the same in a business setting. In most cases, people often fall into the trap of unethical acts because of pressure. Sometimes it could be extreme and some people can go to extreme lengths to get you to perform wrong acts. Here are some suggested tips to uphold your moral uprightness:

Define Yourself. The first thing you need to do is define yourself. Basically answer the questions: Who are you? Where are you going? What is important to you? It is true that some officials can put somebody under immense pressure and may want you to discard the person you are. I know quite a number of people who used this technique and it helped them through many situations. I remember my friend Ron once told me about somebody who wanted to bribe him for a promotion. He told me that even though the offer was handsome he refused. He asked himself “Who am I? Am I the kind of person who does not promote justice? Am I the kind of person who wrongly rewards someone who does not deserve it? Ron pestered himself with these questions and he concluded that he will not take the offer. The offer may be lucrative now but it is against the person that he is. Even if you choose to get the bribe you cannot run away from your conscience. A guilty conscience can torment you a lot. I have heard of a story of someone whose conscience could not settle down until he returned the bribe. It is amazing that even though we often want to get ahead, psychologically most people are not up to the task of getting something with a guilty conscience: it is just not who they are! Some people often reason well when they consider their families and the idea of getting them entangled with the wrath of the law. This will immediately stop them from going ahead with an unscrupulous act. You should know who you are in the first place because in that way you will draw your limits when need arises.

Take A Stand and Stick To Your Principles. In business settings, employees are often expected to be flexible and easily adapt to a given situation for the long run prosperity of the company. Organizations often value openness, integrity, honesty and excellence in their work endeavors. It is nice to have standards but what about you? Do you have your own principles of honesty and truthfulness? It is important to have principles of your own apart from those of the organization. Normally organizational principles and mandates hardly interfere with personal principles such as honesty, and truthfulness simply because yours will be personalized and organizational ones are broad.

 The common challenge is that employees and some leaders do not have their own principles to live by. If you don’t have your own principles how difficult will it be for you to refuse a bribe? If you have no principles that you live each day by, refusing temptations such as a bribe will not be a challenge. The most important task is to stick to your principles and stay firm. It is the same thing with your goals and dreams. If you do not stick to them, they will never be realized. So set your own moral principles to live each day by and follow them.

Justify Your Actions. Apart from setting standards you need to justify your actions. There is no use in doing something with no apparent reason. If something is difficult to justify ethically, I suggest it will be better if you do not go through it. Doing what is wrong when you know the right option carries more penalty in my opinion than someone who does something wrong when they do not know the right option. Justification of your actions should not be made only in the short run but also in the long run perspective. If you think ethical problems can be approached by the question, “is it really worth it?” take that route. Consider the consequences that may arise and ask yourself if you will be able to stand the prospective hustles and bustles.

I hope this article has been meaningful to you.