No funny stuff
Author:
John Eager
Motivated by personal development, John Eager recently attended an international conference on ethics and leadership at the Milltown Institute in Dublin. Over two days, the conference provided an opportunity to reflect on the context in which difficult business choices and decisions are made.
I am a Chartered Accountant, qualified for 10 years, and a 'member in business'.
I work in a commercial organisation that is serious about business and the ethic of work. It thinks business and works hard.
We concentrate on our customers and we target profitable performance. We don't get involved in funny stuff.
There's no doubt that ethics in business is a big issue. The October issue of Accountancy Ireland contained a briefing on the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC's) new Code of Ethics, a whistleblowing article, an account of one auditor's tenacity in getting his job done, and an update from the ICAI President on Institute plans to satisfy public interest concerns.
But in my experience, ‘ethics’ are not always about the large decisions. Often, the ethical dimension to our smaller decisions will only hit us when we look back and reflect: “I would have / could have / should have done that differently.”
When I saw the brochure for this Ethics conference I decided I would attend. My motivation was personal development. Indeed, I can better explain my decision to attend after having been there.
The conference programme drew together Irish and international academics and business people over two days to look under the hood of Ethics and Leadership in Business. I was surprised at the quality of the participants and impressed to be in the company of many of our business leaders, including senior ICAI representatives.
Ethics are not taught. They are developed over time through society, family and religious beliefs. As one speaker, Ronald Duska (Charles Lamont Post Chair of Ethics and the Professions at The American College, Philadelphia) put it - you learn at your mother's knee. The conference did not set out to provide answers - just context.
Some speakers pointed to religious traditions:
- Christianity
In everything therefore, treat people the same way as you want them to treat you. (Matthew 7:12)
- Judaism
What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow human (Talmud,
Shabat 31b)
- Islam
No one of you is a believer until they love for their neighbour what they love for themselves (The traditions of Mohammed)
Dr Seamus Murphy of the Milltown Institute talked about the Right and the Good. What is right, he maintained, forms the basis of much of the Business Ethics subject matter. It determines how business people should behave and relies on law and virtue (good character). Virtue is what law cannot dictate but requires. Interestingly, in the context of our profession, Dr Murphy maintained that over-regulation may weaken what is ‘Right’.
Readers who support the current principles over rules trend might well share his view.
What is Good, Dr Murphy explained, deals with the wider issue of what is it all about - the ‘Good’ of participating in the business, of the person and of the common or public good.
Give me profits, not prophets
While the objective of business is to make profit, the pursuit of profit gives rise to an ethical challenge. While organisations have their Corporate Social Responsibility objectives, their Values and Mission Statements, at aspirational level - lower down, on the operational level, greed and fear can undo lofty ideals. How executives and staff are remunerated and the basis for their (short-term) on-target performance rewards may be at odds with the longer-term objectives of the organisation.
Leaders influence the behaviour of those around them. There is no doubt that how the board, the CEO and senior management conduct their business will set the tone for the rest of the organisation - the so-called ‘tone at the top’. Equally there is no doubt that accountants have an important role to play. If we don't account, what use are we? And another important question is, of course, to whom do we account?
And what about group dynamics? Individually, I might not act in a certain way, but within the group - whether as a result of peer pressure, fear or something else - I may feel pressure to conform to the culture. It takes courage and forbearance to stand up alone against your peers.
Reflecting on my own personal development I thought about the emphasis on ethics in my route to qualification as a Chartered Accountant (through the school-leaver commencement course). The subjects covered then were technical. Missing from the syllabus was any wider, more philosophical study, steering the mind to consider the larger issues.
As I progress in my career, the issues of ethics, leadership and moral fortitude become more relevant. It is when we become senior members of the management team that we are faced with the difficult decisions.
Post qualification education should develop these wider topics offering us a forum to consider the issues at a time in our career when it is relevant.
I welcome having had the opportunity to take time out and reflect.I met with people who shared the great thinking in this area and gained some insights into the practical application of that thinking in today's world. Like all good accountancy matters, I gained by learning from First Principles.
John Eager is Head of Information Technology at Adare Group.