ILMA Compoundings - October 2018 - 46

BUSINESS HUB

The Human Side of Ethics
Why good people make bad choices
By Chuck Gallagher

F

ar too often, the process of
making bad (unethical) choices
begins with a simple, almost
thoughtless, decision. How do I know?
Well, I am living proof that good people can make some really bad choices,
and the consequences - well, let's just
say profound doesn't come close to
describing the experience.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I
see this coming. When I first started
'borrowing' from my client, I intended
to pay back what I took. Heck, I did
pay some of it back ... at least at the
beginning!" Those were the words I
shared as I openly confessed that the
life I was living was, for the most part,
an illusion. The truth is that for all my
legitimate successes, I had over time
become no more than a liar and a
thief. My choices created consequences
that I never dreamed were possible.
If bad choices lead to tough consequences, what can we do to identify
bad behavior before it starts? What
can we do, as managers or leaders, to
prevent unethical choices from being
made in the first place? Those are
two very profound questions, both
of which are at the heart of why it is
critical to talk about the "human side
of ethics" in your organization.
THE THREE COMPONENTS OF
BAD BEHAVIOR
Research has shown that three behaviors
are at the core of what would cause or
allow an otherwise ethical person to make
unethical and potentially illegal choices:
Need. Described as perceived pressure that a person is experiencing, it's
the first and very critical component
of what motives a person to stray from
ethical to unethical. Need may come
in a variety of forms. Financial strain,

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OCTOBER 2018

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health issues or relationship issues are
often points that cause the emotional
need trigger to be activated.
Opportunity. It makes no difference what your need may be; if you
don't have the opportunity to satisfy
it, then the unethical and potentially illegal choice fails. Without
opportunity, there is no fuel for the
potential unethical fire. I was a trusted
employee, and with that trust came
opportunity. "Alice" was trusted, and
had been for so many years that no
one could comprehend she was capable of any unethical activity. Financier
Bernie Madoff took opportunity
founded in trust to a new level.
Rationalization. Need combined
with opportunity provides a firm
foundation, but the glue that holds
unethical activity together is the ability
to rationalize that what is wrong is
actually right. If you ask most people
found guilty of unethical/illegal
behavior, they will tell you they felt
their actions were legitimate. "Mark,"
for example, rationalized that he was
not "stealing" money as long as his
intent was to pay it back. Further, he
solidified this mental game by paying
some of the money back. "Surely, I
wasn't guilty of stealing money as long
as I was paying it back," he stated.
The mind can be tricky, and when
you combine need with opportunity
and can rationalize bad behavior as
good, you have the perfect storm to
move from ethical to unethical, and
potentially illegal, behavior.
WHAT CAN BE DONE TO PREVENT
UNETHICAL ACTIVITIES?
As business managers, there are clear
actions we can take that helps to keep
folks between the ethical lines.

Look for need! While we can't
control what needs our employees
have, we can be aware of any changes
or activities that would suggest an
increase in need and the stress that
need brings.
When subconscious need is brought
to light or becomes conscious, often
the outcome is reduced inclination
toward unethical behavior. So, signs to
look for indicating increased need are:
1) calls from creditors or personal calls
intensifying at work; 2) abnormal purchases without apparent new sources
of funding; 3) lifestyle changes; and/
or 4) marital issues or challenges with
aging parents.
Need is the fuel that supports the
possibility of unethical behavior.
The challenge most managers face
with thinking about "need" is to be
open-minded enough to consider the
potential sources of "need" so that
what might fuel unethical behavior
can be suppressed.
Minimize opportunities. The most
effective course of action to keep our
employees and associates between
ethical lines is to remove opportunities
to conduct unethical activities.
A practical question is how do
we reduce opportunity? Some of
the answers are obvious. Minimize
opportunities by: 1) requiring multiple
signatures on checks; 2) requiring
people to rotate job responsibilities
from time to time; 3) strongly encouraging employees to take vacations or
time off; and/or 4) asking employees
from different positions within the
company to identify how people can
or do act unethically. When a person
is aware that his or her actions are
being watched or are subject to being
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