“ Culture binds the organization together and, at the same time, greatly influences the behavior of individuals,” explains Johnson (2016). Ethical culture and cultural change entail members being dedicated to personal ethical development in the manner that they relate with others. Cultures can determine what people wear, the way they do their tasks and activities, the way they organize their time, and people that they link up with, as these are all components of a shared culture. Ethicists take much interest in how cultural elements, both at a formal and informal level, encourage or discourage moral action. Cultural change happens when there is a makeover of the cultural perception of a people when their perspectives, desires, goals, values, attitudes, and feelings of self-worth affect aspects such as how an organization functions and communicates (Dhir, 2019; Johnson, 2016). A process of cultural change takes time and considers persistent energies to realize the full attainment of organizations and enhance the way things are done over time. The components of ethical culture (both formal and informal) and cultural change efforts are significant to realize the objectives and goals of an organization smoothly.
Thoughts on Creating Ethical Cultures in Business
Johnson depicts how organizational culture comprises of numerous values and beliefs on how individuals should manage themselves within an entity. It is essential to instill these corporate values and beliefs in the mission and vision statements, core values, and code of ethics. Within an organization framework, ethical culture is what guides ethical behavior that is embraced by the employees and the other stakeholders. Cultural change is what is witnessed when the employees have adapted to a new idea, tasks, program, or adjust expectations based on a change that leadership has initiated (Johnson, 2016). The employees could also respond to a new initiative that amounts to a cultural change.
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Many benefits abound when the formal elements are implemented to ensure culture change in an organization. Core values, for instance, are critical as guiding principles for the organizations. If taken seriously, the employees can live up to the company's values that would enable them distinct from the rest of other organizations. The employers of an organization should set enduring values that they also commit to publicizing and reinforcing through training, brochures, meetings, and any other platform (Johnson, 2016). Cultural change is required to encourage the onward progression of an entity in cases where the organization is not conforming to their core values.
I have learned through my own life experiences that irrespective of the size, an organization can be falling and not even be aware of it. Once the stakeholders have recognized a need for things to be done differently, cultural change can be instituted to counter the situation. Cultural change causes the organization to get out of the slump by addressing the issues facing them. An active cultural change would ensure a significant shift in the way things are done and strengthening the same with continuous actions (Deterline, 2012). When a cultural change is effected, the factors enhance value to the ethics of the organization. There will always be a rising spring towards achievements than before. The employees will get the opportunity to learn new experiences and constant information while trending in a constructive and more productive light.
I have heard an experience with Nike Company, where I engaged for an internship for a year. I realized that Nike is not just about getting individuals to 'just do it'. It is their excellent organizational culture too, including high energies displayed by the employees. The high energy stirred everyone to be on the move to innovate and do his or her best. The culture is characterized by creativity and innovation to offer products that are distinct from the competitors. The people I worked with at Nike made the job worthwhile since they were passionate about the work and standing out. This confirms the idea of Johnson (2016) that there is always a consistent rising spring towards achievements with an elaborate cultural change.
Parallels from Johnson's and Deterline's Perspectives
After watching and listening to Brooke Deterline’s talk on "Creating ethical cultures in an organization," it was evident that the notion “everyone is human” is true. Deterline (2012) indicated, “The most ethical and compassionate among us can easily betray our values in the face of a challenging situation .” Such a statement can even be related to life experiences in organizations where corrupt practices are reported. Probably, an employee was under pressure to uphold the company’s values at the expense of his needs, and he gives in at the last minute. Deterline’s line of thought parallels the discussion of Johnson (2016). For instance, both Deterline and Johnson show how quickly individuals can compromise their values, ideas, and beliefs when they encounter conflict. The fraction of individuals that stick to their values despite of the intensity of their circumstances is minimal. In comparison, Johnson (2016) assigns much burden of the organization in the fact that the managers are the people having the mandate to found the mission and vision statements as well as the core values. The leaders of the organization are responsible for ensuring that mission and purpose statements are followed since these are the factors that cause changes in adapting or refocusing them. According to Mierke and Williamson (2017), t he people working within the organization do not drive the change that is realized in the organization, but the mission statement and core values instituted. This is what Johnson attempted to portray in his description of implementation guidelines for the spreading of these messages.
Both ideas supported by Deterline and Johnson confirm that all employees should be involved in the process of changing organizational culture but leaders play the most significant role. Leaders have the mandate to make or break the culture. The decisions that they make have a ripple effect on employee engagement and performance that would reflect on the production of the organization. The behavior of the leader is essential in terms of setting the tone of what should be accepted or rejected within the organization. Besides instilling values at every opportunity that the leaders find, they should also reinforce the organizational change using rewards to the employees (Johnson, 2016). An example includes when another leader of a particular company indicated that they valued teamwork, but the action that followed spoke otherwise. The leader awarded bonuses for individual performance instead of encouraging the team spirit that he intended. A leader that treats the team members with respect and support innovation in their company can do well in the process. Their reinforcing actions ought to back up their culture they are attempting to promote. In this case, they would provide an easy process for employees to begin and implement something new to encourage innovation, not otherwise. Johnson emphasizes these implementation procedures beautifully in ensuring that an organizational change succeeds.
The Effect of the Factors or Elements to the Ethics of an Organization
The creation of ethical cultures in an organization is a vital step towards achieving success at every stage of the organization. If one is concerned about the success of any organization, a comprehensive and robust foundation of ethical factors or elements, when implemented, are imperative to achieving additional value to the ethics of a business or organization. Robust foundations in any environment entail hard work, commitment, research, and consistent practice. Integrity is what motivates hard work towards the objectives of the organization, as well as determines how frequent and thorough one practices the expected organizational culture (Dhir, 2019). Acting honestly and being committed to values, even in the absence of leaders, is the basic definition of what integrity entails. Leaders of an organization would appreciate when employees act responsibly and with integrity even without supervision at all stages to be guaranteed of success. No supervisor can always be at the workplace all the time (Deterline, 2012). Also, employees appreciate space and not being micromanaged in the workplace. Therefore, the employers should strike a balance between supervision and ensuring that they instill proper values on the employees so that they act all the time responsibly. The balance is founded on trust. Trust is essential for a healthy ethical culture to be successful and efficient in its application, and there is the value of these elements are evident.
Besides trust, other elements of ethical culture are effective when implemented within an organization to ensure success. Such elements include timekeeping, diligence, productivity, reliability, professionalism, availability, and shared respect. Punctuality is critical in any environment since it agrees with diligence and acting with professionalism. Employees that are careless with time may express laziness at the same time that may auger negatively as regarding productivity (Johnson, 2016). Moreover, diligent workers can be reliable and be depended upon by the employees. Once trust is established, the employees can be assigned sensitive dockets without fear of compromising ethical values. Punctuality and readiness to handle tasks encourage an ethical culture that is productive and accommodative, amounting to reliable and well-timed outcomes at each level (Dhir, 2019). These elements promote value to the ethics of an organization since no leader in an organization would appreciate lateness in coming to work and delivering tasks, indiscipline, laziness, unproductiveness, unreliability, unprofessionalism, and all those negative tendencies.
In conclusion, ethical culture and cultural change are intertwined and can be implemented to ensure organizational improvement. Positive change is the outcome of implementing cultural change if the existing ethical culture is not working efficiently and effectively. Employees in a positive ethical climate will always display and stir up one another to ethical actions despite of the risks involved in considering a change. Both Deterline and Johnson have expounded on the need to inculcate a positive ethical climate if things are not working well in an organization. Leaders that create a positive ethical tone within the contexts of their organization from the start will easily influence followers and middle managers to adhere to and encourage their leads. Leaders that keep on shifting their ideals within the organizations will experience failure until they allow a cultural change to rectify the course of their entities.
References
Deterline, B. (2012). Creating Ethical Culture in Business. TEDx Talks, TEDXPresidio. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzicXbnmllc&authuser=0
Dhir, S. (2019). The changing nature of work, leadership, and organizational culture in future ready organizations. Corporate culture, Management, Leadership, Job redesign, Organizational Behavior, Innovation, Change Management, Human Resources, VUCA.
Johnson, C. E. (2016). Organizational ethics: A practical approach . Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
Mierke, J., & Williamson, V. (2017). A framework for achieving organizational culture change.
