ICQ Log - Ethics:  

IN THE WORLD OF “ETHICS”, DOING THE RIGHT THING – WHATEVER THAT MEANS

Last Updated: December 2020

Ed McDonald, FCOI, MA in Ethics and Corporate Responsibility, MBS and member of the ACOI Ethics Committee, discusses ethics in the workplace; reasons people may not express their ethical views at work, why some workers make choices they consider to be unethical and how you can improve ethical standards in your organisation. 

My previous articles have indicated that Ethics is essential in our daily lives in varying ways. But it can also be very complex, especially if we think that everyone is entitled to their own individual standards; hence we look for some degree of agreement among people. Those “Ethics” are based on perspectives, attitudes, beliefs, values, standards and ultimately choice of behaviours.

In considering the ethical aspects of any issue, our starting point has to be Values and standards, the basis of what we consider to be important. And from those standards or values, we can go on to assess the merits or demerits, the rights or wrongs, in a given issue.

So what steps do we have to go through in assessing what is “the right thing to do”? The three main Ethics theories that I previously outlined show different emphasis, seeing issues from different angles, and potentially presenting different assessments. We all make decisions or choices every day – and presumably we have a basis for them, that we can reasonably stand over if we are challenged about them.

Most of our decisions or choices have a degree of being automatic, without deep thinking or reflection and inner self-argument. But when we are faced by big decisions on big issues, we need to have a framework to help us work out what is the right thing to do or best thing to do (sometimes there is no one single obvious right answer). There are probably many frameworks you could use, but here are three four possible frameworks you could consider using, and they follow broadly similar lines. Remember, you are trying to work out what is the best thing to do, and why it is so. And this is always the hard part – but you have to do it.

The ETHIC Framework Developed by R. O’Shea, Dublin.

1. 1. Establish the facts: What is the ethical issue? Who is involved? What is the evidence (pros and cons, options)? How reliable is it? Are there clear rules at issue? So what are the merits/ demerits, the alternatives, the choices?
   2. Think about stakeholders: Who are they – employees, customers, suppliers, the community, wider society, shareholders (and there may be many categories), regulators. How are each of these affected, for good or bad, by the issue?
   3. Harness your thoughts: Is it legal? Is it fair? Does it breach any trust? Does it do any harm to anyone and if so how do you justify it? At a fundamental level, is it ethical? What makes it ethical? According to what standard or value? Do I need to seek advice or contrarian views? Have I covered all angles, all options? Or have I leaned to one side? Who do I have obligations to?
   4. Initiate your plan: Evaluate alternative solutions. Decide which you are going to choose and why. Document your decision and your justification for it. Consider how you should communicate it and to whom. Consult with others to cross-check.
   5. Check your decision: Is the decision consistent with my core values and with the company’s values? How satisfied am I with the choice I am making? Have I the courage to make what I will argue is the right choice? Can I stand over it and I am happy to be held accountable? How will those affected by my decision feel about it? Will my decision be understood correctly? What will be the consequences of my decision? How and what do I learn from this?

The Rational Decision-Making Process

Developed by Carl Oliver, teacher of Ethics at California Lutheran University, USA.

Introduction: Good business ethics aim to prevent bad decisions. So, business ethics training usually teaches people to use the rational decision-making process.

1. 1. Get all the facts: How can you make a right decision if you don’t have/don’t look for all the facts? You may not know when or whether you’ve got all the facts. Getting the facts is a strength. Too often people have already decided on their choice before getting all the facts. They “just know” what to do, they’ve done it before.
   2. Situational awareness: People make real-world decisions in various ways other than the rational decision-making process. They rely on precedent, what was done before. “Satisficing” will do, “doing this is good enough”. They dismiss an aspect because they just don’t like it. Many situations are not simply “either/or” or “Black or White”. Invariably, there are aspects, nuances, insights, or related matters that need to be considered.
   3. Identify the issue: Be clear on what it is that you have to consider and the basis for it. Imagine how somebody else may view the issue. Imagine what it might look like later if something went wrong after your decision. And there may be more than one issue.
   4. Choose norms: You should have these as your starting point. If you’re going to make a choice, make a judgement, make a decision, you must have a good basis for it. What standards or values are using to help you make the RIGHT decision? You have to have clear values against which to assess what you are thinking of doing
   5. Make the decision: You may have to defend your decision, your choice, to someone else. If you are part of a group or team which will make the decision or choice, challenge the different viewpoints proposed, get the arguments that justify them or defeat them – weigh them up. If you’re making the decision or choice on your own, make sure you’ve got all the information you need.

Conclusion: “Every decision, made rationally or in other ways, needs to be tested for situational awareness. The tool for doing so is the selftest. It asks four questions:

• • First, about the decision, is the outcome the right thing to do?
  • Second, does the decision follow the law? Company policies? Company values?
  • Third, if my decision became known by others, would I feel good? This often is called the newspaper front-page test or the TV news test.
  • Fourth, does the decision go the extra mile? Can we add something that would make the decision even better?

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

Developed by the Markulla Centre for Ethics at Santa Clara University, USA.

Introduction: “Ethics provides a set of standards for behaviour that helps us decide how we ought to act in a situation. In a sense, we can say that ethics is all about making choices…..”

Recognise an ethical issue: Assess what exactly is the ethical issue. What are the implications of what’s proposed or being considered? For whom? What, in your judgement, would make it a right or wrong choice?

Consider the Parties involved : Who may be affected by your choice or decision? Which of them would be the most important and why? Who would be negatively affected or harmed? Who would benefit? How fair/unfair is it to each? On what basis do you decide what is fair or unfair, right or wrong?

Gather all the relevant information: Why wouldn’t you want all the information you can get, and that includes contrarian or alternative views? Surely having the fullest possible picture would be the sensible thing. You do that in Financial Risk Assessment, so why not in Ethical Risk Assessment?

Formulate Actions and Consider Alternatives : Evaluate your options. And remember that you may be faced with conflicting choices based on the three mentioned Ethics theories or others. So, can you clearly stand over your reasons for whichever you choose?

Make a Decision and Consider it : Which choice option that you examined presents the “best” option and don’t forget how you define what is “best”. After all that, how do you feel about your choice decision?

Act: Many choice situations are uncomfortable because we may not have been able to get all the information possible. But don’t leave out something simply because you don’t like it. At the end of it all, you have to choose, you have to select an action. And stand over it.

Reflect on the outcome: What are the outcomes that seem to be emerging? Are there unintended consequences (as well as intended)? Would you change anything after you have seen emerging consequences or outcomes? Are they as fair as you had planned?

The DECIDE Framework Developed by the Irish Banking Culture Board IBCB) and launched Oct 2020.

Following on from its establishment in 2019, and with the objective of improving trust in the financial services industry in Ireland, the IBCB set out to develop a Framework as a guide for how to go about making ethical decisions as an essential part of the trust relationship between the industry and consumers. It formulated the following Framework, based on the acronym DECIDE:

DISCOVER : The “D” - What is the Dilemma? What is the Issue? What is the Situation? What Information do we have to assess? What are the facts? All the facts…. Who is involved? What parties are affected? What are the knock-on effects for them, the implications for them?

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: The “EC” – What are the Ethical Consideration issues to be addressed? Don’t shy away from them. What Options or Alternatives are we faced with? What range of choices are there? Who are the affected parties? Who are the Stakeholders affected? In what way? What are the Implications for each of them? What are the Impacts or Consequences of each of them? How fair are they? How do I square them up?

  I – the “I” factor: Meaning I/me – My need for self-reflection. To really think about the outcomes and the knock-ons. The implications of whatever decision I lean towards. How well can I justify whatever action I propose or line I take? Can I do that publicly? And if not, why not?

DECIDE: And after all that I come to a point where I have to make a choice, a decision. The hard part. Can I stand over my decision? Can I argue the merits of it as opposed to any alternative?

EVALUATE: After the event. After the decision. Can I evaluate the emerging outcome and the ultimate outcome? What lessons can I take from it all? Was it fair? Could I have done better? There may be a myriad of questions still to be answered.

Author: Ed Mc Donald

FCOI, MA in Ethics and Corporate Responsibility, MBS and member of the  ACOI Ethics Committee 

REFERENCES:  

• Ref: O’Shea, Ros, 2016, Leading with Integrity – a Practical Guide to Business Ethics, pub. by The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.
• Ref: https://www.pacbiztimes. com/2018/01/05/every-decisionneedsto-pass-the-self-test/ adap ted from Carl Oliver, 5 January 2018, Pacific Coast Times, California).
• Ref: https://www.scu.edu/ethics/ethicsresources/ethical-decision-making/aframework-for-ethical-decision-making/
• Ref. www.irishbankingcultureboard. ie/videos/ibcb-decide Oct 2020

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ICQ Winter Edition 2020

This article was taken from the ACOI's ICQ Winter Edition 2020