11.3 Becoming an Ethical Professional

“‘Professionalism’ is the conduct, aims or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or professional person. It implies there is a quality of workmanship or service. But in reality, it’s more about ethical behavior in the workplace. Every organization knows that a professional and ethical reputation is the difference between success and failure, and they seek to keep those staff who are the most professional.”²⁰

Ethical professionals work for companies whose values align with their own. How do you evaluate a company to see whether it is a good occupational fit and one that will allow you to live your ethical values every day?

A third reason more companies are considering what truly makes employees happy is that even more than loyalty, employees appear to value the freedom and responsibility to act as moral agents in their own lives. A moral agent is someone capable of distinguishing right from wrong and willing to be held accountable for his or her choices.

The exercise of moral agency includes making a judgment about the alignment of personal and corporate conscience. Rather than jumping at the first job offer, moral agents assess whether the values expressed by the organization conform with their own, while recognizing that there is no perfect job. Even the most ethical organizations make mistakes, and even the most corrupt have managers and workers of integrity (Figure 11.6). This is why the “right fit” is more likely to be a job in which you can grow or that itself will change in a way that allows you to find greater meaning in it.

It’s Not About the Money—Is It?

You may follow a professional vocation that offers low pay or low status but yields nontangible rewards, such as nonprofit work, nursing, or teaching. Or you may find a position that pays a great deal and offers job security but leaves you feeling unhappy or unfulfilled. For some professionals, these might include law, accounting, dentistry, or anything else. The point is that occupations with high compensation and a certain stature do not always infuse their holders with the greatest psychological and emotional rewards, and it is different for each of us. In the best of all worlds, you might embark on a well-paying career that helps others or contributes a much-needed good or service to society. Finding such work is easier said than done, of course, because the aim of most jobs is not to help people find meaning or happiness. Where these do occur, they are often ancillary effects of work, whose real purpose is the profitability without which there would not be any jobs at all.

Also consider the gap between the purpose of the business and the purpose of the individuals in it. Except in a few startups, these purposes are not identical. Even artists, musicians, and independent practitioners who derive great meaning from their work are not immune to the frustrations over money or career that affect everyone else.

It has been estimated, however, that the amount of money needed to be happy is not actually that much, at least by Western standards, although it is well above the poverty line.²⁵ Most people find themselves somewhere in the middle in terms of satisfaction and pay. Finding the proper balance between the two for you is taking a step on the way to your growth as a professional. You will make that assessment not once but throughout your career as you move in and out of jobs. Even if it turns out to be the best decision of your life, the choice to work for a company because of its mission, leadership, or cultural values should be intentional and based on sufficient knowledge of the company and yourself. To be appreciated for your contributions in the workplace, to work with congenial colleagues, or to provide a product or service of which you are proud might rival money as your most intrinsic motivator at work. Studies attest to this and, as professionals of integrity, we must each decide for ourselves how strong a benefit salary alone is in the jobs we select.

The Role of Ethical Top Leadership

As you consider your future path, perhaps leading toward a leadership role, keep in mind that perhaps the most effective way ethical behavior is learned in a company is through the modeling of that behavior by senior executives and others in leadership positions. This modeling sets what is known as “tone at the top.” Employees may already have a personal moral code when they join an organization, but when they see key figures in the workplace actually living out the ethical values of the company, they are more likely to follow suit and take ethics seriously. Leaders’ ethical behavior is especially important in emerging fields like artificial intelligence, where questions of safety, bias, misuse of technology, and privacy are raised daily.²⁶ It is not enough to offer codes of conduct, training, reporting, and review programs, no matter how thorough or sophisticated, if management does not adhere to or promote them. These are tools rather than solutions. The solutions come from leaders using the tools and showing others how to do the same. This takes practice, reinforcement, and collaboration at all levels of an organization. The result will be a culture of ethics that permeates the company from top to bottom.

Even leaders can falter, as the following box demonstrates. Also read the stories of ten ethical leaders in the appendix Profiles in Business Ethics: Contemporary Thought Leaders.

Ethics matter not merely because acting unethically will end in a compliance problem or public relations nightmare but because ethics is a way of life, not a hurdle to overcome. Moreover, the benefit of ethical behavior can grow over time so that a company begins to attract other ethical professionals and develops a reputation for honesty, integrity, and dependability. In a globally competitive world, these are not inconsequential factors. In an ethical workplace, employee satisfaction creates more loyalty to the company and morale improves because employees and managers feel they are part of an effort they can be proud of. Business performance picks up in ways ranging from higher earnings per share to increased customer retention to more satisfied employees.

Consider the net income of two corporations that, as of 2018, have appeared on eleven consecutive annual lists of the world’s most ethical companies as determined by the Ethisphere Institute (https://ethisphere.com). The first is United Parcel Service (UPS), founded in 1907, which earned net income of $4.91 billion in 2017.³² The second is Xerox, founded in 1906, which earned net income of $195 million in 2017.³³ Notice the staying power of these two companies, as well. Each is more than a century old and has a global presence. To test the consumer confidence these corporations evoke, consider your own opinion of how reputable they are. Ask your friends and family, too.

Again, employee loyalty, a positive work environment, and strong financial performance are not accidents; they are the result of intentional efforts on the part of leadership and board members who provide ethical vision and a plan for execution to all stakeholders. Ethical business need not be a zero-sum game with winners and losers; it can create situations in which everyone wins. Is there a more attractive environment for those just starting out in their careers? To be part of something profitable, responsible, and individually uplifting justifies all the work required to get there.