Making it to the top can challenge a person’s ethics. As we develop through our cognitive and ethical self it is easier at younger ages with fewer responsibilities to maintain an ethical balance. As we get older our experience builds and we have to adjust our normative ethics in our family life and work life. This also brings challenges to those seeking and obtaining leadership roles.
Situations that were once easy to handle can now hold more of an ethical dilemma. Leaders need to take extra time to assess their values and morals before making choices in their position. This can be helped through team building, coaching and maintaining a feedback involved climate in the workplace.
Ethics Challenged
So what happens to people’s ethical compass as they rise higher on the leadership scale? First of all we have to realize that leadership itself is “a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal” (Northouse, 2015, p. 6). Northouse defines ethics “as concerned with the kinds of values and morals an individual or society finds desirable or appropriate” (2015, p. 330) and they lay the foundation of our self’s values and morals. So as we move the ladder of success why can it be harder to keep our grip on our ethics in the workplace?
It is suggested by Velsor and Ascalon that some reasons for this dip in ethical actions may be due to complacency, the access to privileged information, inappropriate delegation to others, and lack of focus in strategy for the future and lack of feedback (2008). This could mean the rising to top into leadership roles can bring potential risks to one’s ethics. This access to more power and information and possible lack of focus in the future can cause possible ethical dilemmas.
At times it might be the working conditions that cause a derailment where a leader stops working with the people and becomes a solitary players instead of a team builder (Velsor & Ascalon, 2008). This inflexibility can cause ethical issues at the top specifically with interaction with followers. Not maintaining a team and being adaptable to changes can hamper one’s ethics even if unintentional. This ultimately can lead ethical egoism where the one’s self interest is high and they lose concern for their followers. As Northouse explains this type of leadership often leads to more transactional (2016). It is also possible the slide in ethics comes from the demand being away from family and peer more that they lose sight of what is important in other areas in life focusing too much on the leadership at work.
Prevention of Slipping Ethics
There are ways to combat this ethical slide when rising to the top. By creating leadership development for leaders to help them stay focused. Feedback seems to be one that leaders get less of as they take on leadership roles. There is no one accessing them giving them assistance on where they are and where they want to go. When there is a lack of feedback this can lead to the dark side of leadership which in turn can affect their followers and the organization. Northouse mentions that destructive leadership comes when there is a lack of feedback or “check and balances” (2016). An organization should also reward and promote honestly on all levels. The Dalla Costa mentions “it is imperative that organizations recognize and acknowledge the necessity of honesty” and I believe creating this environment will help leaders stay focus when making ethical decision in the roles (Northouse, 2016, p. 346).
It is interesting to see how moving up the ladder of success can bring such hard choices in doing the right ethical thing. Those ethics can change and be persuaded into the dark side if one is not careful to let the power and success alienate them from their followers. It is up not only to the leaders but the organizations to nurture healthy ethical atmospheres in the workplace.
Penn State University. (n.d). PSY 533 Lesson 4. Retrieved from Pennsylvania State University Campus Website: https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1778551/pages/l04-cognition-and-emotion?module_item_id=20918293</a>
Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7 ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Van Velsor, E., & Ascalon, E. (2008). The role and impact of leadership development in supporting ethical action in organisations. Journal of Management Development, 27(2), 187-195. doi:10.1108/02621710810849326.
Here is the original post published at Penn State:
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