Workplace Ethics

A professional individual who has ethics is more likely to be successful in their career. Organizations that employ ethical practices and behaviors are more likely to gain public acceptance and financial prosperity. Being ethical involves behaving within a moral code of generally accepted values and principles. Almost every organization struggles with ethical and compliance challenges, and individuals are often faced with moral decisions on the job and in their personal lives. When faced with such a challenge it may be helpful to re-focus on basic codes of ethics such as the following:

• Integrity
o Being honest and trustworthy is essential because these traits show an employer that the employee is dependable and reliable.  Employees with integrity are valued and can be trusted to do the right thing in any situation.

• Respect
o Being polite and communicating clearly with respect leads to less hostile situations where conflicts could arise. Respect is built over time and can be lost with an inconsiderate action. Listening with the intention of understanding and communicating your thoughts clearly with respect can be helpful when it comes to heated issues.

• Improvement
o Developing applicable knowledge, skills, and behaviors that are in accordance with best practices and moral thought .  If a situation arises, it is best to learn from experience and make improvements for future encounters.

It is important for leaders/managers to demonstrate ethical behavior and set the standard of acceptable practices as a regular part of the company culture. Some advocate that ethics are learned in childhood, others that they are learned over time, and some state they cannot be taught at all and is an internal compass of right or wrong that one is born with as a personal conscience. Regardless, society today calls for more ethical behaviors and standards across all industries, organizations, and relationships.

For a listing of coding ethics please see this blog post.