Individuals within an organization can hold and practice core values; however, that doesn’t mean that the organization as a whole is ethical. To build an ethical organization, its leadership must establish, publish, and model the company’s core values. While each organization should establish its own ethical framework, two cornerstones must be in place in order to build an ethical organization: mutual trust and respect. Human Resource plays an important role in developing and supporting a culture that not only strives to rise above compliance with the law or engage in socially acceptable practices, but that will integrate ethical practices into the fabric of an organization.
HR must spell out for employees that ethics come before deadlines or bottom lines. It’s a message that can be overlooked in the work rush: In a landmark study of more than 4,000 employees conducted by the Washington, D.C.-based Ethics Resource Center, nearly one-third of respondents said they felt they’d been pressured to violate company policies in order to achieve business objectives. Half of them said they were put under such pressure periodically. It’s good to dispel even the impression among employees that management encourages unethical behavior in obtaining business objectives.
HR plays a vital role in building an ethical based organization. It’s up to HR to train, educate and communicate with employees on rights and wrongs in the workplace. After all, ethics is one topic that begins and ends with people. Roxane Kerr says, “I don’t know how you’d separate standards of behavior from HR, I don’t even know how you’d separate a discussion on ethics from the standards you hold people to. HR and ethics have to be linked. They have to be integrated.” Bernard Fried added that through his experience as an ethics officer claimed that ignorance is the main reason why an employee commits unethical issues even if he/she does not mean to. The HR department can make important contributions to this because the issue of ethics revolves around people.
HR must take on responsibility for training, education and communication. Although a usable ethics code and an accessible ethics office help get the message out, a truly successful effort requires active communication, education and training. Some employees simply aren’t going to go out of the way to reflect on their decisions or to ensure they’re acting within the ethics code. Yet these are often the employees who need education the most.
Human Resource must take the first step on building an ethical-based organization. Employees’ Ignorance said to be the main reason why an employee commits unethical issues even if he/she does not mean to. Therefore HR must take on responsibility for training, education and communication. Employees being knowledgeable on the code of ethics will help the organization establish a good name, reputation and be profitable.
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