Ethics

Brevity is the soul of wit (hence that 280-character limit), and one needs little more than a Twitter account and a sharp-tongued wit to call our culture’s kings and princes to task. Sandy Erez considers the weight of the highly visible justice campaigns that play out on social media. To Tweet or Not to Tweet, That is the Question The...

AI is often credited with making work easier and more efficient, but few organizations have a framework in place for its ethical use within risk management and compliance programs. Deloitte’s Irfan Saif and Maureen Mohlenkamp explore how to rectify that issue. Think of artificial intelligence (AI) ethics as the organizational constructs that delineate right and wrong, such as corporate values,...

AI systems based on machine learning can be used to audit financial data efficiently and look for financial fraud, but ethical risks exist if the data is biased. Dr. Steven Mintz explores the principles governing the ethical use of AI. Ethics are important, whether in our personal or professional lives. Most people believe that ethical behavior encompasses standards such as...

As the news of the day should make clear, whistlblowing is never an ideal proposition. Even with legal protections in place, whistleblowers face a host of risks. Marcy Maslov shares her personal story as a whistleblower. Whistleblowing is hard in the best of circumstances. Having made the choice to report unethical and illegal activities and almost getting myself killed for...

NAVEX Global CCO Carrie Penman discusses how the derogatory meaning we’ve assigned the label “whistleblower” actually discourages the reporting we train and expect employees to do when they witness wrongdoing. For many years, I’ve been concerned that the term whistleblower — which admittedly has become ingrained in both the public and private sectors — will have a discouraging and detrimental...

Michael Volkov posits a reasonable definition of business ethics – and outlines what it’s NOT – and offers a framework for going beyond determining whether a decision is “legal” and instead determining whether it is “right.” Forgive me for the title of this posting. I am trying to make a point; a rather obvious one. I confess: I did not take...

Is it possible for a company to get a true read on its own culture? Jay Rosen discusses what to consider and when engaging an independent third party might be the best option. How can a company assess its own culture? First, we should consider whether the company is able to perform a self-assessment of its own culture or whether...

Who bears the responsibility for culture? Jay Rosen explores to what extent the Chief Compliance Officer should be involved in shaping a culture of ethics and driving ethical behavior. Let’s consider that there are multiple levels and roles for those within and outside of the corporate compliance function within an organization; they include the CCO, a compliance practitioner and the...

Jay Rosen considers what can influence an organization’s ethical culture, starting with senior leadership. Do your senior leaders practice what they preach? Employees can spot a disconnect from a mile away. A company does not have an ethical culture unless top management commits to it. Employees not only listen to what senior leadership says but they watch how they act....

Culture exists in the space between what an organization professes and what it does. Jay Rosen explains why it’s important to pay attention to culture: disconnects can be quite costly. Over the past few months, senior leaders at both the Department of Justice (DOJ), and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), have given speeches discussing the need for appropriate corporate culture...

Reputation risk expert Michael Toebe explores two recent high-profile cases of ethical oversights that have produced very real consequences in terms of social backlash, eroded public trust and harm to the companies’ internal reputations. Ethics are not intended to be fluid, yet it’s transparent that for some leaders and organizations that end up in the news, situational ethics are more...

Ingrained cultures of denials and threats – together with shifts in federal prosecution of organizations rather than individuals – continue to protect a highly entrenched culture of impunity at the top. Join Sandra Erez on a journey all along the watchtower accompanied by the pied pipers who puff and blow to bring the guilty down. His watchmen are blind, they...