Oscar Wilde saying: “I can resist anything, except temptation”, or the unlikely phrase “Great Depression”, or even “Act Naturally” are all what wordsmiths call oxymorons. For many people “Business and ethics” is almost certainly an Oxymoron—an incompatible mix. For them, ethics inhibits or prevent the profit-making drive, through for example, […]
Tag: responsible business
Ocean-going lessons for ethical business leadership
“Will it make the boat go faster?” This focused query helped 27-year old skipper Brendan Hall win the the 2009/10 around-the- world clipper race with an entirely amateur crew. [1] The equivalent question for ethical leaders is perhaps: “Will it make us a more responsible business?” Basing his leadership approach […]
“Show don’t tell”, the musical message for all leaders
Don’t talk of stars burning above If you’re in love show me Tell me no dreams filled with desire If you’re on fire show me.” Eliza Doolittle’s heartfelt cry in the musical My Fair Lady targets all business leaders. When the exasperated girl tells her lover “Words, words, words, I’m […]
The high cost of leaders who lose their moral compass
Little sympathy can be spared for bosses with a record of ethical failures. Often though, their resulting downfall proves the start of an incredibly costly and seemingly endless saga of damage repair as successors try to pick up the pieces. Almost simultaneously, both CEOs of global security companies Serco and […]