The responsibility for making corporate ethics training programs work lies with the ability and willingness of the company to invest the time, energy, and resources for success. An employee training program should be able to convince employees that good ethics is critical to the success of the company as well as their own personal and professional lives.
It is important to note that corporate compliance training and business ethics training are fundamentally the same things. A good business ethics training program should demonstrate your company's basic ethical operating values – “this is how we do things around here. Additionally, ethics training in the workplace should also include mechanisms to resolve ethical disputes quickly and fairly. A company can have all kinds of ethical codes, procedures, and value statements, but transferring those concepts from abstract to reality requires a serious commitment to employee ethics training.
Managers play a very important role in making business ethics training work. They are the frontline role models who hold within themselves the power to build solid ethics training programs or leave them to wither away. The job can be difficult at times, but can be accomplished if the manager possesses the knowledge and attitude to do it right. A good manager must understand that it is his or hers responsibility for managing ethics programs and grass roots. He or she is the point-person and the buck stops there. Although your “corporate values” may have originated from elsewhere in the company, employees should be able to buy-in to it with their own values and feel connected.
Lets take a look at the process of ethics training. Deliverables might include codes of conduct, policies, rules, values statement, procedures, manuals, web pages, or newsletters. The company should recognize that managing ethics is a process and that changing values and behaviors require ongoing personal reflection. It doesn't happen overnight. It takes time to see the results. A company should approach ethics training as a process without requiring immediate deliverables or quantitative measurements. The process shouldn't be dominated by lecture but should allow reflection, dialog, and problem solving.
Ethics training requires time and priority just as other kinds of employee training programs do. Consider these tips:
- Be real: Ethical principles should not be taught in the abstract, but use real situations and plain language. Frame it Positively: Training should be “sold” as a positive and worthwhile experience.
- Make Connections: Ethical procedures should relate directly to the company's codes of conduct or value statements.
- Include Everyone: All employees, from the executive to the new hires, must participate in the training.
- Just do it! Don't wait until the time is right - just get started right away.
Here is where CTI and Global Ethics University can help. We have the easy business ethics training program you need to get started right away. They are easy to use and affordable. Let us come along side you and provide you the necessary tools to get your business ethics training started right. |
