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Many managers think of ethics as a question of personal scruples, a confidential matter between individuals and their consciences. These executives are quick to describe any wrongdoing as an isolated incident, the work of a rogue employee. The thought that the company could bear any responsibility for an individual’s misdeeds never enters their minds. Ethics, after all, has nothing to do with management. A version of this article appeared in the March–April 1994 issue of Harvard Business Review.
Do your customers trust and believe in your company? Do you trust and believe your employees? Do your employees trust and believe in you? Trust and transparency in conduct is ever more important in our information-heavy age, and ethics need to be clearly stated, flowing down from the highest executives. All employees and clients get their cues from the highly-visible executives and owners, and if they are seen to push the limits of ethical behavior, they will as well. That’s why a clear and comprehensive ethics policy should be in place. A corporate ethics policy is a cornerstone to providing employees and clients with concrete guidelines about what is and is not accepted in the workplace without the need for constant oversight from management. It can also provide transparency in action and goodwill with customers who strive to find companies that they can trust. A good policy does more than just outline concepts of good behavior, it also communicates expectations and requirements, has buy-in from all levels of business (from the board of directors down), and develops measurements to determine if ethics are being maintained and yielding the desired results. Creating an ethics policy can be daunting, as evidenced by how popular the Ethics topic is on KnowledgeLeader. The Code of Business Conduct sample document, the Guide to Developing an Effective Code of Conduct and the Ethics Program Review Audit Work Program are all very popular for a reason. If you need guidance on creating a good ethics program, we can help there as well. The Ethics Program Guide provides a fifteen point plan to developing or strengthening a company’s ethics program. Here are a few sample points: Identify and Renew Company Values Companies without a clear set of values may find themselves at a disadvantage when developing ethics programs. Ethics programs are most effective when perceived by employees to be “values-driven,” rather than simply compliance-driven and values-based programs are most effective in reducing unethical behavior, strengthening employee commitment and making employees more willing to deliver bad news to managers. Many companies conduct regular companywide initiatives that involve employees at all levels of responsibility when renewing company values and updating them when appropriate. Secure Visible Commitment From Senior Managers Most ethics professionals agree that it is crucial to enlist senior management support for an ethics program to be successful. Senior managers should participate in training sessions, make ethics a regular element in speeches and presentations, and align their own behavior with company standards. If employees view an ethics program as merely an effort to protect the reputation of top management, the program may prove more harmful than no program at all. Engage the Board of Directors Engage directors in the ethics process by instituting a board ethics committee or by placing ethics on the board agenda as a regular item for discussion. Consider special training to enable directors to carry out their ethical responsibilities confidently. Many U.S. companies have instituted board ethics committees and training in recent years, a move motivated in part by the many regulations establishing that directors may be held liable for corporate ethical transgressions. Develop an Ethics Code or Code of Business Conduct Comprehensive codes are aligned with company values and all applicable laws. This addresses the full range of ethical dilemmas employees are likely to face and are updated regularly as new challenges emerge. It is important to be clear and specific about what is required of employees, where leeway is allowed in decision making and which ethical issues are nonnegotiable. Unclear rules and unclear expectations of employees are the single most prominent obstacle to ethical behavior. Build Ethics Into Mission and Vision Statements Many companies build ethical values and goals into their mission and/or vision statements. This helps senior managers and employees understand that values and ethical standards are integral to all company operations and planning and not simply an “add-on” to be considered after important decisions have been made. Integrate Ethics Into all Aspects of Company Communications Leverage existing company infrastructure to demonstrate to employees that ethics is an integral part of all operations and decision making. Integrate ethics and compliance training materials into multiple delivery sources, including new employee orientations, management courses, sales training, business meetings, business plans and other aspects of day-to-day activities There is an old proverb that says, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” If you haven’t implemented a solid ethics policy, then now is the best time. If you already have an ethics policy, then now might be a good time to review it. Learn more about ethics programs by exploring these related tools on KnowledgeLeader: Ethics Program Review Audit Work ProgramBusiness Ethics Questionnaire Assessing Effectiveness of a Process or Program Guide
Ethical training programs are essential to implement so that your employees can identify and solve ethical problems based on their morals. It is important that you and your team go through this ethical employee training so your company’s reputation doesn’t get tarnished, and workplace morale remains high because of a safe, ethical working environment. To help you with your search for the best training material, we’ve put together 10 ethical training programs to choose from. 1. Ethics and Code of Conduct (EdApp)Ethics and the code of conduct are the backbone of the best working environment that will produce hard-working, dedicated employees. The Ethics and Code of Conduct course from EdApp will allow you to efficiently make your employees aware of the company’s values, the way you expect them to treat each other, the principles the company operates by, and other ethical conduct that they are expected to perform. Code of conduct and code of ethics is a bit different and this course which also focuses on diversity and inclusion training will go through both so employees can understand the differences and importance of each. Pros: This ethical training program is free for you to incorporate in your company’s training, It is delivered through microlearning lessons and can be done by your employees at any time and anywhere. One of the major pros of the course is that it’s editable, so feel free to tailor it to your organization’s specific needs. Why learn with it: This is a program that has a wide range of topics that will cover pretty much everything your team needs to undergo to become fully up to code. Topics covered include diversity and inclusion, integrity, objectivity, confidentiality, professional behavior, and many more. 2. Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Policy (EdApp)Bribery and corruption are two words, as a manager or leader, you never want anyone in your company to be accused of. Have your team members and yourself go through the Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Policy course from EdApp that will educate you on how to ensure your team is always operating legitimately. The anti-bribery and anti-corruption policy course defines bribery and corruption so your team will know what behavior is unacceptable, especially since there are so many different types of corruption such as collusion, extortion, embezzlement, insider trading, and more. The course does well to inform us that our anti-bribery and anti-corruption policies should start at the door. Assessing the risk of bribery and corruption before even making a hire is key in minimizing the risk of these types of things happening in the future. Pros: Taboo topics are sometimes best done when the entire team can participate in group discussion boards and if delivered through unique ways that help to break the ice and awkwardness when talking about these topics. EdApp also has gamification examples to drive engagement and participation. Why learn with it: Enroll your team in this course and have them understand what bribery and Corruption are, how to assess the risk of bribery and Corruption while also learning the tools that they can use to prevent these things from happening altogether, regardless of their location. 3. Ethics Training for the Workplace (Skillpath)If you’re on the market for a course that goes through the importance of having a code of ethics in the workplace, and a code of conduct that is required of all employees, this is one that you can consider. The Ethics Training for the Workplace course by Skillpath takes a unique spin on ethical behavior by challenging employees to evaluate their own ethical beliefs and discuss how they can improve on them to make their working environment more ethical. This is one of the more detailed courses in ethical training for the workplace. It is a four-module course with each module focusing on vital topics that range from education to compliance. Pros: Very detailed and result-oriented course Cons: The course is quite lengthy and is not free Why learn with it: Enroll your team in a course that defines ethics and ethical behavior, maintaining and supporting good ethics, understanding and following a code of conduct, and in the end ensuring that they comply with these policies. 4. Evaluating Ethics & Compliance Training (Ethics & Compliance Initiative)Are you a leader looking for a course that will help you to evaluate your ethics and compliance training at work, this is one that you can review. The Evaluating Ethics & Compliance Training course by ECI is a training and certification course geared towards providing you with the knowledge to lead, sustain and evaluate a high-quality ethics and compliance program. The course prepares you for the LPEC certification examination. Upon passing this examination, if you are not already in the role, you can use these microcredentials to upgrade your resume to make you an ideal candidate for it. The course is available in three formats, on-demand, live, and a custom face-to-face training workshop. Pros: This course has several advantages such as multiple formats, a workshop, and asynchronous learning. Cons: Unfortunately the course is quite lengthy and may be too time-consuming for the on-the-go professional. It is also not a free course. Why learn with it: This course is delivered in a lively engaging manner, and all the sessions are done by ethics and compliance professionals. 5. Global Anti-Bribery & Corruption Training (EVERFI)Global courses aren’t too easy to come by these days, so this one is a breath of fresh air. The Global Anti-Bribery & Corruption Training course from EVERFI will train your employees how to identify breaches of anti-corruption laws by putting them through real-life scenarios, providing job-specific compliance tips, going through case studies, and afterward doing comprehension checks to make sure that they know how to comply with anti-corruption and anti-bribery laws. The course covers laws such as the UK Bribery Act, OECD, and FCPA. This anti-corruption and anti-bribery course will help employees to understand is the rules that protect your company from corruption and bribery by exploring different corruption scenarios and working on improving your employee’s response times when facing corruption amongst other useful topics. Pros: The course uses evidence-based materials to provide compliance training, is mobile-friendly, provides a fresh approach to topics, and has self-service options. Cons: A bit pricey Why learn with it: Your learners will work on topics such as anti-corruption laws, anti-bribery laws, books records and controls, risks and red flags, FCPA, and others. 6. Ethics Training Program – Supervisor Edition (Compliance Training Group)Being a part of the management team comes with multiple responsibilities and being ethical is one of the most important. This Ethics Training Program-Supervisor Edition course by Compliance Training Group is designed for managers and supervisors and covers the key elements of ethical training in the workplace. A major aim of the course is to help supervisors develop the ability to promote ethical choices and identify unethical actions and behaviors from their workers. Some of the behaviors that will course covers include time theft, abusive conduct, denial, and others. The compliance training group created the course to help your company educate employees at all levels on what’s expected of them while they are representing the company. Pros: The program will cover topics that will benefit supervisors such as how to maintain quality and productivity, how to ensure that resources afforded by the company are used effectively, protect sensitive information, create a professional working environment, and more. Cons: Unfortunately the course is only available in one language and it is not a free course. Why learn with it: Some of the objectives that are covered in this course include how to define ethics in the workplace, evaluate workplace ethics codes of conduct, help your employees get a deeper understanding by comparing examples of ethical and unethical actions, teach employees to prevent these actions by evaluating the causes of the ethical dilemmas in the first place and more. 7. Ethics Training and Certification (Ethics & Compliance Initiative)Ethics Training and Certification is another program that will educate you and other members of your team on how to effectively construct an ethical guidelines program in your company that works. With ECI’s course, you will learn how to evaluate ethics and compliance by understanding the principles that lead to an ethical and compliant workforce. If you were trying to get into the field or trying to improve your skills and certifications this is a course that will pair you with expert instructors. ECI also structured the course in a way that will prepare and qualify you to take the Leadership Professional in Ethics Compliance examination to receive the LPEC certification. Pros: One advantage that this course boasts over others is that you can do your training online in a 100% digital environment, or you can have in-house training done by welcoming an expert in your company, or doing a workshop, or enrolling members of your board in a board ethics training. Cons: Not available in a microlearning format and is very expensive. Why learn with it: This is a course that would help you to develop a proper ethics training program in your company that would be for the betterment of everyone involved. 8. Online Conflicts of Interest Training (EVERFI)Conflicts of interest in the workplace are often the main source of ethical discrepancy is. One of the reasons why these conflicts of interest occur is ignorance. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, ignorance is not an excuse. If you want your workforce to avoid ethical mishaps, the best way to do this is to educate them on what constitutes a conflict of interest ethical compliance issue. This is Online Conflicts of Interest Training course from EVERFI created to be interactive and employee-focused to effectively convey the ways that they can recognize and avoid conflicts of interest in the office. Conflicts of interest come in many forms such as personal, family-related, or financial, and can result in employee morale being affected, production being affected and the overall profitability of your organization being adversely affected. Pros: Covers a topic that isn’t always in the spotlight but very important. Cons: Might be tricky to deploy as it’s not on an LCM platform. Why learn with it: This ethical training for employees covers topics that can help to identify possible situations that could lead to conflicts of interest. The course is also available online and is customizable. 9. Banking Ethics (Lorman)We don’t have a lot of courses that are specifically geared towards ethics in the financial sector, but this Banking Ethics course by Lorman makes for great training material in the field. Financial industry professionals have numerous opportunities to interact with the law based on the nature of their jobs, so if this is your industry, you should be thinking about a course that will help you and your team understand the importance of maintaining proper ethics and compliance programs that will teach you how to handle internal and external investigations while educating you on the ethical requirements that are to be met when representing the clients of your institution. This is a course that does all of this and more. Pros: The course is also accompanied by related training materials, such as a banking ethics on-demand course and an online audio version of the course. Cons: Unfortunately, this course is quite niche, so depending on the scope of your organization’s activities you may need to get other courses on your to-do list as well. Why learn with it: Equip your team members with the tools to properly navigate the ethical waters that lie between the financial industry and the law. 10. Online Discrimination Training, Harassment Training and Sensitivity Training (Traliant)Discrimination and harassment are two aspects of ethical training and compliance that all employees must know everything about, and fully comply with if you are going to have a safe and productive workforce. The Online Discrimination Training, Harassment Training and Sensitivity Training course from Traliant will help you to create a culture of respect, inclusion, and civility by training your employees and managers on what’s acceptable behavior and what should be done to prevent discrimination, retaliation, and harassment. Trailiant believes that by raising awareness and encouraging positive behaviors and actions within the workplace, they can create a long-term strategy that will leave your workplace free of these unwanted breaches. Pros: The course is quite flexible as it is available for a lot of industries such as retail, industrial and manufacturing, healthcare, construction, hotels, and restaurants. Cons: The length of the course may discourage employees from paying attention to the entire thing, especially for those with short attention spans, and some may not get the entire message being delivered. Why learn with it: The course covers the definition of discrimination, harassment, and sexual harassment and will help your HR team to avoid discrimination while hiring. Retaliation, bystander intervention, unconscious biases are also covered in the course. |