Gratitude-Based Workplace Ethics
Most of us believe that a big part of ethics can be wrapped up into simply doing the right thing, every time you have a choice. 2500 years ago, Plato maintained a virtue-based concept of ethics. In fact, in Plato's Republic, the four cardinal virtues are wisdom, temperance, courage, and justice. These reflect the nature of the “soul”, and the foundation of ethics. Some 300 hundred years later, Cicero, the great Roman statesman and orator, added that “gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
These past months have given me great cause to be reflective on these concepts. As the CEO of an ethics-based business, I constantly strive to not only lead a business that delivers innovative, high value products and services for our clients, but also relevant solutions that bend the arc of ethics towards these same concepts – wisdom, temperance, courage, justice, and gratitude. Now, more than ever, we believe wholeheartedly that these concepts are pivotal for any business, any life, to thrive. We stand in support of the movement towards greater equality, and true equanimity, for each of us.
Wisdom. At the core of all of our solutions comes the notion of providing accurate and complete information in proper context to our clients. We properly inform them of the situation, and grant perspective to allow them to make wise decisions that affect their employees, their customers, and their shareholders.
Temperance. We believe that our products should offer a clear and consistent path to ensure a thorough and unbiased review of all issues, leading to a fair and just conclusion. This process tempers emotions and reactions of the moment, and support a reflective and values-based review of concerns, as well as a fair and measured response.
Courage. For many users of ETHIX360 solutions, courage is a taking that first big step to report an injustice, whether done to yourself or one you witnessed being done to another. We strive to support and reward the courage of the reporter in working to remove as much stress and as many roadblocks as possible, to allow them to safely report their concerns.
Justice. A fair and unbiased review of concerns is a critical part of a sustainable ethics program. Justice must be blind for your employees to have faith and confidence in the program, but it doesn’t stop there. A periodic review of resolutions filtered by demographic data allows our clients to identify trends that can be damaging to the integrity of their program.
Gratitude. As critical as Plato’s 4 tenets are to any successful, sustainable ethics program, gratitude in the workplace is as well. It requires reinforcing your company’s ethics and how grateful you are for an employee stepping forward, how seriously you take their grievance, and reflecting an attitude of gratitude. It is true that employees must trust the system is fair and unbiased for them to step forward courageously and share their concern. Equally important is the company’s acknowledgement and thanks for them doing so. Often they put their career, reputation, and friendships on the line, and even risk retaliation to raise their concern. It is important that they feel their company takes them seriously and respects them for their effort in coming forward.
When we think through our solutions, we stop and make sure that they display your company’s wisdom and temperance, respect the courage the employee demonstrates stepping forward, and result in a just resolution that comes from a place of compassion and gratitude. We hope that your code of ethics reflects these timeless cornerstones of ethics as well.
The ETHIX360 blog brings you weekly updates on all things human resources and compliance.
MEET THE AUTHOR
J Rollins is the co-founder and CEO of ETHIX360. J is a well known leader and innovator who has served on senior leadership teams ranging in responsibility from Chief Revenue Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, SVP of Product Strategy and Chief Operating Officer.
ABOUT ETHIX360
At ETHIX360, our goal is simple: to provide an affordable, flexible, and comprehensive answer to employee communication, policy management, corporate training and case management on issues related to corporate ethics, code of conduct, fraud, bribery, and workplace violence.
