"Can someone who uses toxic leadership still be an ethical leader?"The answer to this important question is "yes and no."
Category: Ethical Thinking
5 Leadership Development Priorities
By Linda Fisher Thornton The recent post "It's Not About Us" was the most popular post of all time on the Leading in Context Blog. It described how our understanding of leadership has moved beyond a focus on the leader to a focus on creating shared value for others.
It’s Not About Us
By Linda Fisher Thornton You may have noticed that people's expectations of us as leaders have increased exponentially. Consumers are choosing companies that care about their well-being. Employees are choosing companies that do meaningful work and give back to the community. To survive in this new land where ethics is key to success, we must confront the situation with a clear realization that it is not all about us. As leaders, we are not the center of the universe.
Making Decisions Like Global Citizens
By Linda Fisher Thornton Character is important, but leading ethically in the fullest sense requires much more than just demonstrate good character. In this 2 minute video, I describe 7 different perspectives that you may be hearing around the table as you discuss ethical dilemmas in your organization. Instead of being competing perspectives, each one is an important element of the full picture of what it means to lead ethically in a global society.
How Do We Achieve Corporate Integrity?
By Linda Fisher Thornton In the quest for corporate integrity, we must do a number of things well. We need to have clear expectations for what ethical leadership looks like in our organization; we need a congruent system for managing ethics that sends a consistent message; and we need a clear message about what taking responsibility for ethics really means to us. There is an ethics trend away from a "push" mentality when it comes to learning about ethics (making people do it) to a "pull" mentality (making it positive so that people will want to do it). Taking on that "pull mentality" involves creating a positive ethical environment:
How Current is My Message About Ethics?
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical expectations are continually increasing, and it is not always easy for leaders to keep up with the changes. This week, I'm sharing an assessment to help you answer the question "How current is my message about ethics?"
What is the Ultimate Goal of Leadership?
By Linda Fisher Thornton What is the ultimate goal of leadership? This is an interesting question that seems simple enough at first, and then begins to get tricky as we think more about it. The tricky part is that we can't answer it in one simple statement. Is it to provide direction and show the way? Is it to respect and serve? Is it to support others and remove obstacles? Is it to teach and mentor? Is it to help bring out the best in those we lead as we work toward a common purpose? Of course, leadership is about all of those things and more. So what is its purpose? Here are four very different ways of thinking about the purpose of leadership.
Leading Ethically in 2014 (The Mindset and Action Steps)
These timely articles published in Fox Business, The CEO Magazine, the Management Excellence Blog and the LeadBig Blog, detail the mindset for ethical leadership success and the specific action steps that leaders can take to be intentional and proactive about ethical leadership. As you read, think about how taking these positive actions can transform your organization in the New Year.
10 Ethical Leadership Questions For the New Year
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leadership is evolving, and expectations are increasing. Will we be ready? As we go into the New Year, here are some questions we should be considering:
16 Trends Shaping the Future of Ethical Leadership
By Linda Fisher Thornton Today, I want to share with you the picture of the future that I see, based on a powerful movement toward positive, proactive ethical leadership. As a global community, we are increasingly aware of the impact of our choices on others. We are more aware of our human connection and our responsibilities to one another. There is a trend toward considering our responsibilities broadly, beyond making profits to also making a difference. As we head into the New Year, let's help our leaders be ready for this positive, proactive "ethical leadership future."
Ethics is About What’s Right (Not Who’s Right)
By Linda Fisher Thornton If you've read the news lately, you've noticed that there is a lot of discussion about who is right. Each person has an individual perspective that seems to be right from where they sit. Each group has values and norms that seem right. How can we make sense out of it all? When we need to make a critical decision, and everyone around us is arguing passionately for a different approach, how will we know which one is most right?
The 7 Lenses Story – A Closer Look Radio Interview
By Linda Fisher Thornton ThorntonI am honored to have had the opportunity to do a radio interview with Pam Atherton of A Closer Look Radio. She invited me to talk with her about my new book 7 Lenses: Learning the Principles and Practices of Ethical Leadership. In the interview she asked questions that some of you may have about ethical leadership, and I walked listeners through the book's framework for leading ethically in a complex world (click below to listen).
What Ethical Leaders Believe
By Linda Fisher Thornton ChangeThis.com is an 800ceoread project for "spreading good ideas and changing business thinking for the better." I am honored that today they published my Manifesto about ethical thinking. This Manifesto begins with an Aristotle quote "We are what we repeatedly do" and then asks us to think hard about what we repeatedly do. "Is our thinking on autopilot?" "Is that autopilot programmed to make ethical decisions?"
What is Ethical Leadership?
By Linda Fisher Thornton This collection from reader favorites on the Leading in Context Blog will help you explore the scope and dimensions of today's ethical leadership. As you will see, ethical leadership requires much more than following laws and regulations. We have to take on a global mindset and an openness to learning, and much more.
10 Questions On “Leading With Ethics”
By Linda Fisher Thornton I was very fortunate to have had the opportunity to co-host the live #leadfromwithin Tweetchat with @LollyDaskal on October 8th. The topic was Leading With Ethics, and the participation was robust, with thousands of Tweets per hour! In spite of the fast pace, this was an open and heartfelt discussion about what ethical leadership means, and what it looks like in day to day practice. Here are some highlights from the conversation, which I found to be powerful and inspiring.
Leading in Context 