Ethics, Purpose, and Leadership '603'​ (2024)

Ethics is defined as moral principles that govern behavior and conduct. Purpose is defined as one’s intention or objective. Leadership is defined as the act of guiding a group. In consideration of these three words, there is another word that surfaces: foundation. Ethics, purpose, and leadership are all concepts that define the quality of an organization. Just because something is unethical, it may not necessarily be illegal. MacKinnon and Fiala (2018)'s chapter on equality and discrimination highlighted the many ethical issues that are rampant in present day society: bias, oppression, social harm, hate crimes and civil injustices. Many of these problems that we tackle in this era of society have deep roots in the foundation of this country. “From the founding of the United States onwards, there were deep and often violent conflicts about which members of society should be granted civil rights” (MacKinnon and Fiala, 2018, p. 320). In other words, as the social consciousness of a society matures, so must its ethics and ethical leadership. Without intentional leadership, the values present during the foundation will continually prevail. This is because leaders are intended to show you the way.

In fact, negative ethics have prevailed in this country, for centuries. Often times, the United States is defined by its lack of social equality or its lack of competent leadership.As a result, many minorities experience hardships such as racial profiling and many descendants of white origins experience preferential treatment. The theology of ‘why’ is not very complex. It is because these social values were ingrained at the foundation of America. What prevails is what early leadership, the founding fathers at the time, valued and believed should prevail. The progress and advancement of equality that has taken place thereafter, has been the result of massive organized efforts that put pressure on leaders to adapt to the needs of the people. The civil rights movement is an example of purposeful leadership and one of the most profound examples of organized effort in the history of the United States. The civil rights movement was responsible for many laws that granted average citizens freedom from oppression. As these movements pressure the government, the government is forced to update its laws. In this country civil rights laws have been a significant instrument in improving the conditions of citizens in the US.

As highlighted in The Institute of Internal Auditors (2015)’s YouTube video, organizations often consider ethics only when it comes time to check a box. Rather than taking the time to develop a culture that is purposefully ethical, ethics are treated as an afterthought. Bad ethics represents poor leadership. As a person placed in charge of the wellbeing of a group, and the longevity of a culture, one must always consider ethics as a forethought. Otherwise, as demonstrated, people will not lose trust in the organization. Good leaders are intentional about how they guide a group of people. And they aren’t intentional necessarily because they are good people, but because they have the foresight to be able to recognize that the success of an organization is fickle and can be threatened if the values and practices are not clearly defined. Not only must values be clearly defined, they must protect the employees. Leaders must always consider the future.

Resources:

Davis, Gillian (2014). 3 Leadership Qualities Every Leader Must Master. Entrepreneur Handbook. https://entrepreneurhandbook.co.uk/leadership-qualities/

MacKinnon,B., & Fiala, A. (2018).Ethics : theory and contemporary issues(9th ed.).Cenegage.

St. Bonaventure, Online. (2022). The Important of Business Ethics. St. Bonaventure University Online. https://online.sbu.edu/news/importance-of-business-ethics

Switzer, Tirrah (2020). Code of ethics: why are they important. Your Membership. https://www.yourmembership.com/blog/code-ethics-important/