Does your organization’s Values, Principles or Ethics Matter? Your peoples’ mental health does.

Unless you live on a remote island with no communications, most Canadians are aware of the recent spate of articles and news stories regarding the “hard sell” tactics employed by some of Canada’s biggest banks and telcos.

Whether it is the banking or telecom industries, the story is basically the same; sales agents are pressured to get existing and new clients to sign up to services they don’t need, often don’t understand, can’t necessarily afford, and in all too many cases, also can’t get out of for one or more years once they agree to the contract.

As if that is not bad enough for the people who get duped into what they don’t need at a price they can’t necessarily afford (seniors seem to be a favourite target), we are finding out that the sales people are suffering from stress and guilt from knowing what they are doing is against their own values and principles and those of the organization they work for.

Some also report instances of shaming, bullying, and panic attacks as a result of the high pressure tactics used against them to meet ever increasing sales quotas.

Against this backdrop, many of these same companies have fantastic PR campaigns around mental health and raise millions for mental health each and every year. They are to be commended for that part, I suppose, though one has to wonder if the recipient mental health organizations ought not to ask these companies to take a look in the mirror. Their employees should not be having to get services from the mental health organizations for whom they are raising money because of how they are being treated at work!

As the recent news stories seem to attest, that is not happening.

And that is a fundamental failure in the leadership of every single one of these organizations that operate under this duality; the ones that raise the money and the ones who receive it.

Some of the transgressor companies also use third parties as part of their phone and door-to-door sales teams. When confronted by news organizations, they quickly respond with the fact that it was a third party who did not abide by their values and principles, and of course they “strongly” state they don’t agree with that. They typically then announce the termination of their relationship with the offending party.

Of course, there may be other third parties with whom they also subcontract who use the same sales tactics, and likely will continue to use unless that subcontractor ends up in the news as well. And the same statement is then reissued as a response. And everyone then moves on.

This is not OK.

The sales people, whether employed directly or through third parties, are often in the low pay categories, and whose earnings is based on how much they sell. This puts them in a financial and an ethical dilemma; do they follow the sales tactics they are taught and pressured to use in order to obtain better pay and keep their job, or, do they stand on their morals and refuse and then get bullied and shamed until they either acquiesce, are fired, or quit, or worse?

Not exactly a compelling set of choices, is it? Nor easy ones to make when you need the job, and hence belong to a group that are the most likely to being recipients of this type of treatment.

What point is there in having corporate values, principles or codes of ethics if they are not applied by everyone and to everyone? What point are they when they are routinely ignored to take advantage of a vulnerable employee group, who in turn, are expected to take advantage of some of society’s other vulnerable populations?

One of the recently reported transgressors has the following statements in its code of business conduct:

• foster a work environment based on mutual trust and respect and that encourages open communication
• maintain a safe, healthy and secure workplace
• support a culture in which ethical conduct is recognized, valued and exemplified
• promptly report issues relating to the Code and potential violations, non-compliance with applicable laws, regulations or company policies or procedures and any other emergencies

How does the leadership in that organization reconcile these statements to the behaviours they force on their staff and/or their subcontractors and their staff?

It would seem their Values, Principles or Ethics seem not to matter. Yet, this same company raises millions annually for mental health — as do many of the others.

The role of modern leaders is to be a model of the behaviour that is exemplary of their organization’s values and principles. To do so requires them to be ethical leaders.

Ethical leaders understand it is their duty to address the issue of those who fall short of these same values, principles or ethics in their own organization. They do not tolerate repeated transgressions, as they know to do otherwise, is saying they are nothing more than meaningless platitudes.

So what of the third party firms they employ?

An ethical leader’s duty remains the same. They recognize that you cannot outsource your values and principles or ethics. They either matter, as demonstrated and expected in the form of collective behaviour, or they do not. They ensure they partner with firms that will uphold similar values, principles, or ethics as theirs.

Ethical business and consumer behaviour are getting linked in numerous industries such as clothing and of course the movie and TV industries.

As a leader this is one of the most important choices you have to make on a daily basis. The long term health of your people and your organization depend on it. Choose wisely.

Principle’s 5 and 6 of Guiding Principles for an Adaptive Organization provide a starting point for any organization in any sector, regardless of size on this important topic:

Principle # 5: Recognize shared values and principles as necessary ingredients for people to create and sustain aligned personal and organizational purpose

Principle # 6: Hire and promote the creative and productive power of people, regardless of their gender, cultural background, disability, ethnicity, neurology, sexual orientation, or age to create inclusive teams at all levels

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this important conversation.