In recent years, businesses felt the pressure to emphasize ethical behavior in their organizations. This is important not only to set up a positive workplace culture but to also improve reputation. In this article, we’ll look at the best ways to build an ethical organization.
- Train the Employees
One of the most important is to educate the employees, such as through compliance training. The right training program is an opportunity to relay to the employees the values that the management expects from them. This makes it easier to reinforce the behavior that the management anticipates.
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- Strictly Enforce Policies
To build an ethical business culture, the management should enforce its policies without prejudice. Meaning, if someone commits ethical misconduct, even if it is a member of the top management, there should be no bias. Anyone involved in an ethical breach needs to suffer the consequences. The same rules should apply to all employees to avoid bias.
- Hire the Right People
Building an ethical organization starts in hiring the right people. It is important to have a thorough screening process to accept only the employees who are unlikely to conduct ethical breaches once they become a part of the organization. Consider their background and references. An integrity test may also be necessary.
- Provide Incentives
To design an ethical organization, it also helps if the management provides incentives. Align rewards with ethical outcomes. It is not just all about the money. The management should look for other ways to reward ethical behavior. Recognition and praise are non-monetary incentives that can encourage employees to be ethical.
- Establish an Ethics Committee
An organizational ethics committee might also help. The ethics committee is the one responsible for overseeing compliance. It prevents sexual harassment, discrimination, and any other unethical behavior. The committee is also responsible for conflict resolution and implementing disciplinary action to employees who are at fault. Plus, the committee is the one that drafts ethics policies that will govern the behavior of the people within the organization.
- Practice Corporate Social Responsibility
Building an ethical organization is also about corporate social responsibility. The business needs to be socially accountable not just for itself but for its stakeholders and the public. It needs to pay attention to social and environmental concerns, making sure that its actions create positive impacts on society.
- Make Leaders the Role Models
Strong leadership is one of the crucial components of an ethical organization. Aside from their knowledge and skills, leaders need to show ethical behavior. They need to be role models. Their actions should show off good examples for the employees to follow.
Take note of our suggestions above to build an ethical organization. From training the employees to making leaders into role models, consider these tips to make ethics a priority in the business.
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