Traaen and Associates, LLC

The Role of HR in Navigating An Organization Through the Impact of Unprincipled Leadership

The insidious nature of ethics based leadership is that the call ‘to do the right thing’ is like the strong gust of an Arizona monsoon wind at your back. Reassuring, comforting and at the same time nagging with intensity – urging you along to step into the game and exercise your abilities to influence and lead. The true measure of leadership is the action that we take when circumstances within the environment, the support or absence of allies and the future look the bleakest. The circumstances can and often do bring us to our knees without as much as a pause in the traffic noise of life. It is then that we are called to truly lead. Without concern for oneself. But with intense focus and priority on those for whose welfare we are responsible.

This book examines among other things the journey of righteous leadership. Righteous is the descriptive adjective intentionally before the concept of leadership because the method, the approach and the outcomes would – by scrutiny of any yardstick engraved with the nomenclature of right and wrong – be identified as appropriate. But the ethical leader can be right, he/she can be righteous in his/her professionalism and he/she can still be sacrificed when the political and financial realities of the organization have a need for this type of outcome. Hence, this book examines the navigational method of how an ethics based leader moves through the journey of leadership and continues to thrive even when leadership assignments change direction, shift priorities, are manipulated inconclusively by the media and just simply go the wrong direction.

Global leaders today are surrounded by the shifting sands of behavior that are too often based upon personal agendas and therefore personal survival. The costs are significant and more often than not, life changing…..for everyone impacted by the false leader who hides behind manipulative techniques. This text helps sort out the real from the imagined, the authentic from the delusional, transparency in leadership from the shell game of who can survive the longest in a house of cards. Such a journey requires moral courage. Courage must be embraced. This is the quality of mind and spirit that enables one to face up to ethical dilemmas and moral wrongdoings firmly and confidently, without flinching or retreating. (Moral Courage – A White Paper. By Rushworth M. Kidder and Martha Bracy. Institute for Global Ethics. 2001.)

The field of human resources management has a long and tedious background charting its formal professional path to the present day professional aspirations of the industry to become a true strategic partner. The goal for all human resource professionals to have a chair at the board table and to be recognized includes the capability of influencing and shaping the long term success of their organization. To engage in the technical expertise of the human resources field is to engage in work that forms the heart and soul of an organization. Shaping and influencing every aspect of an organization’s work environment, including the climate and culture of the organization is not for the faint of heart. It is arduous, it is challenging and it is as high risk as any work can possibly be.

The moral courage involved in this effort is specific to those serving in the human resources field because the nature of the technical work completed often requires “…facing mental challenges, that could harm one’s reputation, emotional well-being, self-esteem or other characteristics.” (Moral Courage – White Paper. 2001. p. 4.) The most subtle aspect of the work in this area is reflected in the writings of Kidder & Bracy (2001) in which they further delineate that moral courage means the positive courage to be ethical. Furthermore, Kidder and Bracy refine the practical application of this effort to mean the courage to take action around core values such as honesty, fairness, respect, responsibility and compassion.

The application of morale courage requires that all levels of technical preparation be mastered to the most complex levels. It requires that the ‘voice’ of the human resources shop or staff be unified in all matters. It requires that all matters of controversy be handled in alignment with the preferences and political realities for all stakeholders. It requires that the ‘role’ of the Chief HR Officer be well defined, both within the organization and for the citizen constituency that may not agree with the needs and desires of the decision points being made by those serving in a variety of HR roles.

It requires at a very minimum ---- that the ethical choices of an organization are fully transparent in all matters. In matters of controversy, the HR Department and its professionals will lead the charge concerning all matters supporting the resolution of all levels of controversy. And in matters of wrongdoing, the HR function will be the first location of potential derision, targeting these professionals as the reason for the catastrophe or ill doing that is finally uncovered. Those of us dedicating our careers to this industry willingly and routinely place a ‘target’ on our clothing – real or imaginary, in order to both protect and serve the internal and external customers of our organizations to the best of our human capabilities.

The moral courage necessary to practice in the industry of human resources management must be addressed in all programs of professional preparation throughout this country and beyond our U.S. borders. International and domestic organizations dedicated to furthering the human resources industry have both an individual and collective responsibility to further the mentoring and developing of newer professionals whose responsibility it will be to lead their organizations through extremely sophisticated matters of unprincipled leadership. This impacts all levels of an organization’s general workforce - even inside the best organizations.

This book is dedicated to all human resource practitioners who - historically, today and tomorrow are leading from their unique positions to navigate their organizations through matters of unprincipled leadership. May you have safe passage in your journey.

Navigating Ethical Dilemmas - Steps To Ease The Difficulties

The London Borough of Southwark has some significant history of publishing in their Southwark Council Staff Handbook two pieces of great advice on the topic of ethics. First, the formula is stated as follows: Ethics = Advice + Caution. While this formula may seem very basic by its very nature, it is the application of this formula that becomes more than complex in daily life for members working within the human resources profession. Let’s look more closely at what the Southwark Handbook was really intending in terms of detail.

Ethics = Advice + Caution

…to advise employees of circumstances where experience has shown that employees may face difficulties; the advice is offered so that employees may proceed with caution.

…to caution employees about circumstances of conduct which are neither right nor wrong in themselves but where the exercise of individual judgment is necessary in order to maintain a public confidence and the confidence of the employer.

It is the intersection of a ‘difficult dilemma’ and the ability for individual judgment to be exercised that serve as the cause for answers to not be easily discernable as right or wrong. This in turn often results in the most difficult areas of challenge for the human resource professional. Therefore, let’s examine twelve questions that can easily help frame how an ethics based decision may be made, especially in a time of uncertainty or extreme challenge. The questions are listed below:

1. Have you defined the problem (the decision to be made) accurately? truthfully?
2. How would you define the problem (decision/dilemma) if you stood on the other side of the fence?
3. How did this situation (dilemma) occur in the first place?
4. To whom and to what do you give your loyalty as a person and as a member of the human resources profession?
5. What is your intention in making this decision?
6. How does this intention compare with the probable results?
7. Who, what, when and how often could your decision or action injure one or more people?
8. Can you discuss the problem with the affected parties before you make your decision? If not, what is preventing this from happening?
9. Are you confident that your position/solution/decision will be as valid (critical to the organization) over a long period of time as it seems now?
10. Could you disclose without a qualm your decision or action (on any issue of an ethical dimension) to your boss (CEO, Board), your family and society as a whole?
11. Is there a symbolic potential to your action if it is clearly understood? Misunderstood?
12. Under what conditions would you endorse exceptions to your stand?

This is a rigorous list of guided questions designed to delve deeply into not only the surface levels of necessary inquiry when ethical dilemmas arise, but they bring pressure to bear on choices that are made by all levels of employees and managers under the most difficult of circumstances.

What do you expect of employees in your organization in terms of the basis for their behavioral choices? How is this expectation communicated? How are employees held accountable for their behavior? What are the consequences if the public/customer base reacts to the choices that have been made by various employees, especially those that citizen stakeholders do not agree with? The single greatest investment that can be made regarding your organization’s workforce is the time to develop the decision making skills of every employee. Your employees directly affect your organization’s bottom line – whether that bottom line is reflected in profitability or quality service. A successful bottom line is guaranteed through consistent and measurable results that can be replicated, even in the most difficult of circumstances.

An Ethics Perspective

"In the final consideration of things, when my efforts and the expenditure of my time and energy is reviewed - will I look back and ask, 'what if' I had been more ethical - more tolerant - more decisive - more confrontational - more collaborative. My goal is to never review my personal history and see it framed with regret - especially when it came to the chance to step to the plate on behalf of ethics and ethical treatment of my fellow human beings. The chance to make this day count is a profound gift." A Matter of Ethics - Facing The Fear Of doing The Right Thing, JAI Press. 2000.

In the face of contemporary strife, the American marketplace is reeling from repeated examples of ethics violations. These violations cross all industries, from securities and investment firms, to public school districts, to local municipal governments, as well as the U.S. federal government. Why the abdication of right or good conduct, especially at this point in time? Is there a commonality within the U.S. culture, or perhaps the world, that serves to underscore why we are collectively struggling with such a serious desertion of conformity to previously accepted principles of right and wrong?

Consider these guided questions when beginning to perform an ethics audit of your division/department or organization:

1. Describe in twenty words or less what you believe to be the ethics of your chief executive officer or agency head.
2. How are his/her ethics disseminated in the work environment?
3. Describe in twenty words or less what you believe to be the ethics of your immediate supervisor? (If this is a person different that the employee identified in Question #1).
4. How are your supervisor's ethics disseminated in your work environment?
5. Do these sets of ethics differ? If yes, list the primary ways in which these differences impact you and your job.
6. What ethical standards prevail?
7. What percentage of the time (and with what types of issues) do these standards prevail?
8. When there is a conflict of ethics, how is the dissension or disagreement resolved?
9. What impact, if any, do you personally feel from this conflict?
10. Do the ethical standards that you are expected to abide by in your department or division vary from issue to issue? If yes, give an example of how one set of ethical standards might prevail?
11. If this happens, 'how' do you know what form of ethical behavior to use as your guide for decision making?
12. Do the ethical standards within your department or division differ markedly from other areas in your organization? If yes, in what ways are they different?

In what type of staff meeting, professional development situation or team retreat might these questions be the most beneficial? If you are concerned about discussing these topics in your organization what is the basis for your concern? How can this concern be remedied?