Ethics and Social Responsibility

This morning, I was reading Jane Fritz’s blog, ‘Robby Robin’s Journey,‘ and I learned that today is International Human Solidarity Day. On the United Nations website, I found that the day is1:

  • A day to celebrate our unity in diversity.
  • A day to remind governments to respect their commitments to international agreements.
  • A day to raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity.
  • A day to encourage debate on the ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, including poverty eradication.
  • A day of action to encourage new initiatives for poverty eradication.

Reading about the promotion of peace, human rights, and social and economic development to advance collective security on the UN website reminded me of a leadership class that I took while working on my Master’s degree.

One of the areas that we studied was leadership ethics and social responsibility, and we discussed the Five Ethical Leadership Behaviors that leaders at all levels should have. (Note: Five ethical behaviors and quotations are taken from the book “Leadership” by Durbin. Original sources within the text are highlighted separately.)2

  1. Be honest and Trustworthy and Have Integrity in Dealing with Others. “An ethical 

leader is honest and trustworthy and therefore has integrity. “Integrity refers to loyalty to rational 

principles; it means practicing what one preaches regardless of emotional or social pressure.”3 

For example, a leader with integrity would believe that employees should be treated fairly, and 

the pressure to cut cost would not prompt him or her to renege on a commitment to reimburse 

an employee for relocation expenses. As another example, a leader who preaches cultural 

diversity would assemble a diverse team.” 

2. Pay Attention to All Stakeholders. “An ethical and moral leader strives to treat fairly all 

interested parties affected by his or her decision. A team of management scholars observes, 

“We used to recognize corporations as both economic and social institutions – as organizations 

that were designed to serve a balanced set of stakeholders, not just the narrow interests of the 

shareholders.”4 A leader interested in maximizing shareholders wealth might attempt to cut costs 

and increase profits in such ways as (1) laying off valuable employees to reduce payroll costs, 

(2) overstating profits to impress investors, (3) overcharging customers, and (4) reducing health 

benefits for retirees. Although these practices may be standard, they all violate the rights of 

stakeholders. Authentic leader is the new term for managers who perceive their role to include 

having an ethical responsibility to all of their stakeholders. The welfare of others takes 

precedence over their own personal welfare (as in servant leadership). “Authentic leaders have a 

deep commitment to their personal growth as well as to the growth of other stakeholders.”5” 

3. Build Community. “A corollary of taking into account the needs of all stakeholders is that the 

leader helps people achieve a common goal. When many people work toward the same 

constructive goal, they build a community. A business leader who works with many people to 

help poor schoolchildren is an idea example of someone who builds community.” 

4. Respect the Individual. “Respecting individuals is a principle of ethical and moral leadership 

that incorporates other aspects of morality. If you tell the truth, you respect others well enough 

to be honest. If you keep promises, you also show respect. And if you treat others fairly, you 

show respect.6 Showing respect for the individual also means that you recognize that everybody 

has some inner worth and should be treated with courtesy and kindness.” 

5. Accomplish Silent Victories. “According to Joseph L. Badaracco, Jr., modesty and restraint 

are largely responsible for the achievements of the most effective moral leaders in business. 

The ethical and moral leader works silently, and somewhat behind the scenes, to accomplish 

moral victories regularly. Instead of being perceived as a hero or heroine, the moral leader 

quietly works on an ethical agenda. Quite often he or she will work out a compromise to ensure 

that a decision in process will have an ethical outcome.” 

Ethical, moral, and socially responsible leaders are what we need to advance humanity and reach collective security. Please have a happy International Human Solidarity Day.

  1. https://www.un.org/en/observances/human-solidarity-day ↩︎
  2. Dubrin, Andrew J. Leadership – Research Findings, Practice, and Skills. (pp. 172-173). Massachusetts: Houghton Mifflin Company ↩︎
  3. Thomas E. Becker, “Integrity in Organizations: Beyond Honesty and Conscientiousness,” Academy of Management review, january 1998, p. 154-161 ↩︎
  4. Robert Simons, Henry Mintzberg, and Kunal Basu, “Memo to Ceos, Re Five Half-Truths of Business,” Fast Company, June 2002, p.118 ↩︎
  5. Douglas R. May, Adrian Y. L. Chan, Timothy D. Hodges, and Bruce J. Avolio, “Developing the Moral Component of Authentic Leadership,” Organizational Dynamics, no. 3, 2003, p. 248 ↩︎
  6. Clawson, Level Three Leadership, p.57 ↩︎

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