A prime reason for the 2008 financial crisis was lack of executive responsibility and values. Mary Gentile, a guest speaker for Ivey School of Business’ Transcendent Leadership course, speaks of the idea of good values leading to a good bottom line.
Ms. Gentile talks about a bell curve of opportunists and idealists at each end, with a middle ground of people who prefer to act ethics as long as they don’t put them at a disadvantage. Ms. Gentile says that these pragmatists have to be better “at voicing and acting on their values.” Instead of giving up money and paying for values, corporations have to make their values pay for themselves.
I agree with the importance of having good values in business. People often face choices when trying to get to the end result. On the one hand, people can walk a normal road and fulfill their goals with a sense of ethics. On the other hand, people can stray off this path because of convenience or possible high return at the price of moral decline. However, having good values extends beyond the self. For example, values can improve employee morale through a sense of righteousness and honour.
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