Ethical decision making is crucial for all businesses, but those in the not-for-profit sector often find ourselves held to a higher standard than other companies by both the public and our leadership. This is not a negative, but something you should be aware of, if in a leadership position within an association from either the staff or elected leadership. How we approach setting this ethical standard expectation and how we train and also empower our teams to adhere to this standard for ethics is crucial for long-term success as a misstep here can have deep and lasting implications for the organization.
One of the first steps is to outline what constitutes an ethical dilemma and identify if the issue at hand is rooted in ethics. There are four generally-agreed-upon ethical dilemmas which can be briefly summed up as follows:
- When you must choose between honesty or keeping a promise/allegiances
- When you must put the needs of the present against the needs of the future
- When the needs of one contrasts with the needs of the larger group
- When you must choose between fairness or equality vs. showing compassion or mercy
Once you have determined your issue is an ethical dilemma, the next step is to determine which approach towards resolution best fits the situation at hand. Do you base your decision on the end result of the decision, the rules in place, or the “golden rule” standard? There is no always-right answer to determine how you approach resolving your ethical dilemma as each situation – or organization – may call for a different approach based on the circumstances at play.
With no always-correct approach, how do you set ethical standards and train your team to navigate these decisions? Start by having these conversations regularly – talking through hypothetical (or actual) circumstances that they could face. Identify at what point these situations need to be escalated or stopped and support them when they follow these expectations. Include conversations on how similar situations have been handled in the past. There is a balance at play when determining which approach to take when resolving issues and making your team aware of that balance is important. For example, if you always approach a certain dilemma with a rules-based decision, changing your approach to a care – or mercy- based approach can cause friction in the future.
For leaders, one crucial step in ensuring ethical behavior and decisions is to have code of conduct/ethics, conflict-of-interest, and whistleblower policies in place and to ensure your leadership signs off on these policies each year or term. Be sure to revisit these policies in all orientations to ensure all leaders are aware of and confident in these policies. By keeping the expectations clear, and the lines of communication open, you remove the roadblocks to ethical decision making and help ensure your association is set up for success.