Do You Believe That Ethical Leaders Are More Successfull in Organisation?What Is the Connection Between Leadership and Ethics?
"Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it." (Eisenhower as cited in Wiki Quote, 2005).Studies has shown through trying to identify or evaluate the difference among great leaders, mediocre leaders, and poor leaders. Today the eminent truth remains that now more than ever global success depends on skilled leader. (Friedman 2005) is quoted as saying, “Leadership can be thought of as a capacity to define oneself to others in a way that clarifies and expands a vision of the future.” In recent times there has been a concerted effort to define leadership and develop models of leadership to help organizations identify appropriate leaders, and to help individuals learn leadership where possible.
Finding an acceptable method of determining right and wrong, and then acting upon that determination is the basis for a practical definition of ethics. Lord Moulton describes ethics as being different than the law; he further stated that ethics was the “obedience to the unenforceable.” (Moulton as cited in Silber, 1995) He felt that if individuals merely followed the law of the land, then they would not necessarily act civilly or ethically in those areas that were not enforceable. An action is unethical if it places the organization or its employees in opposition to the law. An organization is deemed unethical if its employees engage in illegal activities, or if the organization fosters a situation or environment that takes advantage of a cycle of trust that exists between the organization and areas such employees, customers, and suppliers.
Ethical leadership, as defined by ( Brown, T. and Harrison 2005 : 120), ‘‘ is the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct to followers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision making’’ Ethical leaders are more successful in organizations than those that operate on
Finding an acceptable method of determining right and wrong, and then acting upon that determination is the basis for a practical definition of ethics. Lord Moulton describes ethics as being different than the law; he further stated that ethics was the “obedience to the unenforceable.” (Moulton as cited in Silber, 1995) He felt that if individuals merely followed the law of the land, then they would not necessarily act civilly or ethically in those areas that were not enforceable. An action is unethical if it places the organization or its employees in opposition to the law. An organization is deemed unethical if its employees engage in illegal activities, or if the organization fosters a situation or environment that takes advantage of a cycle of trust that exists between the organization and areas such employees, customers, and suppliers.
Ethical leadership, as defined by ( Brown, T. and Harrison 2005 : 120), ‘‘ is the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct to followers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision making’’ Ethical leaders are more successful in organizations than those that operate on
References: Bass, B. M. (1990). Bass and Stogdill’s Handbook of Leadership: Theory, research and managerial applications Brown, M. E., Klebe-Trevino, L. (2002). Conceptualizing and measuring ethical leadership: Development of an Instrument: Academy of management Wright, P. (1996) Managerial Leadership. London: Routledge Friedman, E