My 37-year gig in corporate America hit the wall earlier this summer when I was laid off from a large dysfunctional company we'll call "DysCo". For background, check out Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.
Today in the 5th installment of "Corporate Life in the Rearview Mirror", we consider the erosion of ethics, and its effects on employees, customers, shareholders, and the future of the enterprise.
In the Age of Meaningless Platitudes, corporations have killed entire forests producing mission statements, values statements, training programs, certification forms, corporate communications, and other hollow pronouncements that convey their commitment to ethics, integrity, teamwork, customer service, quality, innovation, and just about any other positive sounding value you can think of.
From what I've seen, there's an inverse relationship between the degree to which these concepts are expressed and the degree to which they're embodied by a corporation's leadership. This was certainly the case at DysCo. There was also a massive "disconnect" between corporate happy talk about their many "achievements" that exemplified their core values and what actually transpired on a day-to-day basis.
Most of us have an innate sense of ethics. We recognize "right" from "wrong", and generally choose "right" unless there are some extremely odd and compelling reasons to do otherwise. We generally do the right thing even when nobody's watching us. Our ethical tendencies are established long before we join the workforce.
Companies like DysCo pride themselves on hiring good people. Smart. Hardworking. Honest. Dedicated. So why is it that, once hired, these good people are subjected to countless requests to "certify" that they've read and will comply with the latest corporate pronouncement on ethics and integrity? The absurdity of it is that an unethical person would likely sign these certifications without a moment's hesitation. At the end of the day, all this extra paperwork and "process" doesn't achieve a thing.
Do corporate executives really think that the rank-and-file employees represent the greatest ethical threat to the corporation? Do they think we'd all run amok, jeopardizing the entire company with our malfeasance without these constant reminders?
Follow along below the abyss of distrust for another possible explanation...
At DysCo, appearances were everything. They loved being able to boast about outside awards and recognitions, as if to say, "Look! We told you guys we were among the most ethical companies in the world, and here's the proof! Look at this shiny crystal award!"
Cynics among us quickly realized that many of these award were sought after; they weren't spontaneously awarded by some highly trusted organization. The true cynics among us immediately asked "how much did they pay for that award?" If we had found out that the award was given as a result in exchange for cash, not a single person would have been surprised.
Image and reality diverged, like two roads in a mosquito-infested wood. With every passing day, more and more examples of unethical behavior within DysCo were revealed. Coercing employees to bill more time to a project than they actually spent (or to "bill ahead" to make this month's numbers). Questionable dealings with vendors and suppliers. Reneging on verbal and written employment agreements. Curiously-timed insider stock transactions. Breaches of contracts with important clients. Hiring of utterly unqualified "friends and relatives" of executives while capable staff were being laid off.
To keep up appearances, they appointed a "Chief Ethics Officer". No, this wasn't someone's full-time job; it was just another title given to someone with other full-time responsibilities. The person they chose was - I thought- a pretty decent and well respected guy.
I went to him several years ago with an ethical concern. Now, I'm not the sort of person to jump the chain of command unless there's a clear and present danger of not doing so. However, since my supervisor was a big part of the ethical problem, I realize that I had justification to bring my concern to the Chief Ethics Officer. He heard me out, asked me some questions, and promised to look into the matter. Three weeks later, I lost my job.
Lesson learned? Ethical issues are off limits. Shut up and get back to work, or you're outta here.
It's been said that we despise in others the traits that we despise in ourselves. In DysCo's case, the ethical rot began at the top. Rather than take action against those responsible for ethical lapses, the laser beam of vengeance was turned on the employees. Employee morale, already perilously low, took a further nosedive.
Few things upset me as much as being distrusted. I pride myself on being a person of integrity, and doing the right thing even when it results in personal adversity. Many of DysCo's employees were just like that: good people doing the right thing. Many of us answer to higher authorities than our employer. I'm not referring to anything theological here, although for many people, that's probably a key consideration.
Like many of my peers, I hold professional licenses that were granted through a rigorous process of examination, personal and professional references, continuing education, and an unwavering commitment to protect the public. Many of us take pride in our commitment to our profession, to our colleagues, to our clients, and to our families and communities.
When ethical people find themselves in unethical surroundings as was the case at DysCo, their anguish is palpable. The mental energy we expend everyday trying to reconcile this incongruity drains us, and shortchanges our clients, who have every reason to expect the best from us.
DysCo's executives, their greedy hands clasping their ethics awards, probably reason that this is how all big companies operate. I'm sure that's what they've been told by those Bain & Company MBA whiz kids whose advice costs them millions of dollars every year. Just get those pesky employees to fall in line and sign their certifications, and you're good for another year.
Except for one thing: for all their excursions into the unethical dark side, DysCo's executives have still failed to "make the numbers". They've sold their soul to the devil, but the devil's still holding back on his side of the bargain. Quick, somebody call the Chief Ethics Officer.