Yesterday I posted about the lack of a moral compass on Wall Street of leaders who paid billions in bonuses, even though they knew their companies were in deep financial trouble. How about the moral compass of those that accepted the billions in bonuses; if they knew their companies were in trouble, and you’d think they would have to know or they have larger leadership issues than a sense of right or wrong?
It is far more difficult to turn down money when your leader is trying to reward you. That takes the ultimate form of courage. I reported yesterday a strong enough moral compass to stop taking a salary when my business wasn’t performing profitably, but to not accept a bonus when it is being offered by the leader of the organization – that takes a great deal more courage than most of us possess. I’m not sure I could have resisted bonus money from the leader, but in the face of staggering losses I hope I would have asked, “Hey, how are we able to do this?”
It demonstrates how the leader is primarily responsible for setting the tone in an organization. When I saw the pictures coming out of Abu Ghraib, regardless of your personal feelings about torture, I knew immediately, as a student of leadership, that Bush and Cheney approved of prisoner torture, which is now common knowledge.
Of course the leaders set the moral tone, which is why the troops in the trenches tortured the prisoners. Those in the trenches behave exactly like the moral leadership that is set by those at the top of the organization. If the President had been proclaiming, “America does not torture, ever,” the chances of an Abu Ghraib occurring would have been nearly non-existent.
Our kids and our employees watch us for moral leadership and acceptable forms of behavior. If the leader sets an impeccable standard, I assure you those following will make similar choices. Something to think about the next time you are tempted to exaggerate a product or service claim or choose between right and wrong. The eyes of the organization are upon you and they will follow your model beyond your wildest dreams.
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