Ethics and Success
Day-to-day, employees look to organizational leaders for guidance on operational and ethical matters. Although ethical theories have long-been discussed among philosophers, the topic has only recently made its way into business practice. The idea that it’s more important to be feared than loved as a leader no longer holds true. Modern trends show that there are heightened benefits to being an ethical leader in today’s business world.
Ethical behavior in the workplace has positive effects on employee morale, employee commitment to the organization, and overall company credibility. One of our goals at the Nevada Association of Employers is to provide training for leaders to help them facilitate ethical behavior in their workplace. Through proper training, we believe your company and its employees can reach their full potential.
Employee Morale and Motivation
As discussed in our last blog post, employee morale and motivation is important to the success of an organization. Similarly, ethical tendencies of a leader contribute greatly to the outcomes of morale within the organization. Leaders who go above and beyond a normal “boss” role inspire employees and aid them in establishing more favorable job attitudes and productivity. They also encourage good behavior through proper planning and project execution. Without planning and collaboration, employees may cut corners; something no leader wants. We at NAE believe that ethical leaders provide model behavior. In turn, the members of the organization mimic this behavior and create a workplace where individuals feed off each other and to promote positivity.
Another effect that ethical behavior has on an organization is an increase in employee commitment. Not only does this entail commitment to a certain task or goal, but commitment to the company as a whole. Perhaps you have had a boss whose regular actions were blatantly detrimental to the organization. They probably made you feel confused, and perhaps less motivated to act in the best interests of the company yourself. When employees observe moral behavior from a superior, they are less likely to have thoughts of leaving the organization or causing potential damage to company operations. Ethical environments have a way of bringing employees together towards a common goal. Overall, if we as leaders act ethically, we can expect greater commitment to our businesses from employees.
The Impression Your Company Makes
When people think of your company, you want those thoughts to be strong and positive. Company identities are increasingly playing a role in the success of business. There is much more transparency in business actions due to modern technology and news distribution. Credibility is an external factor of business -i.e. leaders cannot directly control it, but they can influence it through their actions. If you run a business and want to increase your credibility among clients, a good place to start is with your own ethics. As stated, if you as a leader act ethically, then your employees are more prone to follow suit. Clients are likely to notice these positive cultural elements when doing business with your company, and thus you can expect more positive word-of-mouth as a result. Leaders are often stumped on how to bolster their business’s reputation, but NAE wants to help. Our goal is to help Nevada employers by teaching them that by looking at your own actions first, you can get people to notice positive changes in your business.
With modern analysis showing that ethical behavior in the Nevada workplace plays a large role in company success, it is imperative as a leader to incorporate these values into both you and your employees’ activities. At NAE, we provide training to help organizations achieve operational efficiency and in turn promote ethical behavior. Although there is no perfect formula for being a great leader, there are certainly steps one can take to boost employee morale, employee commitment to the organization, and overall credibility of the company. Contact the Nevada Association of Employers to schedule a training and provide ethical insight to your operations.
