Is There Hope for Leaders?
August 15th, 2010 | 
Author: Yet another Fortune CEO has fallen due to ethics violations. Hewlett-Packard, a company that started out as an example of moral leadership with “The HP Way” in 1939, has proven itself vulnerable to an unscrupulous CEO when Mark Hurd recently resigned.
There are 5.5 million employers, 1.5 million nonprofit organizations, and more than 87,000 governmental units in the United States. That’s a lot of businesses with lot of leaders who have the potential to be unethical.
This weekend, a Wall Street Journal essay by Jonah Lehrer called “The Power Trip” highlights research that supports the view that when in power, a leader may have a greater tendency to act unethically or immorally. According to the author, surveys show that bad behavior occurs most often in the offices of those with the most authority. Lehrer backs his findings with psychological studies that suggest unethical behaviors that seem to slink into a clueless leader’s character without their knowing it.
Is there hope for ethical, moral power to prevail? Certainly. I talk to leaders every day who want to continue to take the high road. If you are a leader who is concerned about falling prey to bad behavior, there may be some things you can do to prevent it.
Know yourself first. You must find ways of holding up a mirror to your actions. The good, bad and the ugly need to be reflected upon. Know your strengths, and be vigilant about your weaknesses. Use of self assessments and 360’s are a good way to start.
Have trusted advisors surrounding you. These are the people who will give you their unbiased opinion. They are not dependent on you for a paycheck (i.e., they don’t directly report to you; you cannot count on your staff to be completely open). Mentors, peers, and an executive coach may work. Consider belonging to an “advisory group” of external, non competing peers (such as a Mastermind group).
Ask for feedback. Ask those you trust to give honest, open feedback. Ask specific questions, and you have a much better chance of getting specific answers. “Am I acting ethically in this situation?” “What is my moral responsibility in this circumstance?” “Am I staying true to our company’s values when I do this?”.
Keep your ears open. Listen deeply and openly to what others say about your behavior. Ask questions about what you hear and reflect on it. Discuss or create an action plan for change based on what you hear.
Treat others as they want to be treated. You’ll have a much better chance of getting feedback if you stay open to others. Be kind and respectful. Open your heart as well as your ears.
Assuring that your leadership is moral and ethical can be easier when you have good relationships with those around you. There is hope.
P.S. Wally Bock suggests some resources for ethics in a recent post, Business Ethics Pointers and Comment.
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7 Responses to “Is There Hope for Leaders?”
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Mary Jo, this is a thought provoking post indeed. Staying ethical when you are in power ie any kind of power – you dont necessarily have to be the top dog, even a manager or leader of a small team – would need to keep his ethic in check every now and then.
A simple example – when I was in engineering college, in the final year, my dad bought me a car after much begging and pleading. I had the car for 20 days before I hit a truck head on and totaled it. I escaped with minor scrapes and stitches, miraculously. But those 20 days, I was the most arrogant I have ever been. I was showing off, I was an unsafe driver, I thought I can now do anything and get any girl because I was the cool kid with the car. That is also the abuse of power, dont you think?
After the accident, I came back down to earth and my life would have been entirely different, I would have been a different person – if I had not hit that truck. No regrets at all.
Thanks for listening.
Raj
http://www.13apples.com
Mary Jo,
These are great rules to help leaders stay on track. In many ways they are isolated at the top of the business and often get flawed advice and misleading information from those around them. In my experience, most actually ask for feedback, but they have surrounded themselves with people who won’t tell them the truth. You are so right about not being able to expect the staff to give them the feedback they need.
It’s also helpful if they can find an outside activity or organization that helps them stay grounded. Its so easy for those in power to begin to believe that the rules are for the other people. Remaining connected to those “other people” can help remind the powerful that they don’t have special powers, or deserve special treatment.
Randy
Congratulations! This post was selected as one of the five best independent business blog posts of the week in my Three Star Leadership Midweek Review of the Business Blogs.
http://blog.threestarleadership.com/2010/08/18/81810-midweek-look-at-the-independent-business-blogs.aspx
Wally Bock
Hi Randy,
I tell my clients that they will ALWAYS get flawed advice and half-truths from those around them. It isn’t that their team are bad people, it is simply that the relationship with their manager prevents anything but. When possible, one of the best things a leader can do is to stay balanced and grounded by volunteering for a nonprofit in their community, particularly one that serves the underserved. Thanks for stopping by and offering your comments!
Wow Raj,
What a great story. Those kinds of stories, though sometimes almost tragic, but certainly traumatic, shape us. What a wake up call for you. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Mary Jo,
These key points seem easy and clear, but why there are still a lot of leaders who have bad behavior? I feel that when leaders start to feel they are on the top of everyone, leaders start to feel superiority and arrogant. Everyone have the ability to become a good leader by following your key points. I always believe that a good leader will lead the whole company to a better place.
I have a example from my friend, who works for one investment company in San Diego: The boss sometimes yells at them when he is struggling with the customer. The only thing they can do is be quiet and pretend they do not hear a thing. My friend is not happy, and their net worth start to go down.
I think a good leader needs to control his/her emotion. “Treat others as they want to be treated!” I think a bad leader influences all the atmosphere in the company, and employees will show to customers unknowingly. Soon or later, the company will see bad effects.
Thank you for giving me these good tips that I will always keep in mind.
Jenny Tsai
Jenny, you make some very good points, and it is true that a leader’s emotions are infectious; there have been studies that show this. However, a questions for you: Is it true that there are a lot of bad leaders who have bad behavior, or are those the ones that stand out and get press? Is it possible that there are a lot of very good (and perhaps very quiet) leaders out there?