EVERY COMPANY NEEDS A CONSCIENCE

Disney's Jiminy Cricket got it right: “Always let your conscience be your guide.”
Unfortunately, that's pretty hard to do if you haven't got one.

My last posting talked about the need for setting decision parameters within your company. Building a “corporate conscience” is the first, most critical step in this process.

It can be an uncomfortable thing to talk about in today's way-too-over-sensitive, “never-offend-anyone-about-anything” world. To some, mentioning conscience, behavior standards or “right and wrong” is one of the worst sins you can commit.

Too bad. Every company needs a conscience.

And if you're too afraid of offending someone to develop one before you need it, you'll be way too scared of popular opinion to do the right thing when the time comes.

Every company needs a conscience. Every corporation needs to build “doing the right thing” into their day to day operating, acting and deciding habits. Every organization should be striving to make “following our conscience” second nature for all people at all levels of the orga0nization. This is especially true in a culture where diversity of thought, belief and behavior is the norm.

Someone needs to set a standard.

Someone needs to develop a corporate philosophy; build a corporate culture, and establish corporate “ways of working” that apply to and guide everyone in the organization to the “right” decision no matter what the problem, no matter what circumstances; and no matter whether it's today or two hundred years from now. You want an organization where people make the “right” choice in every decision, in every circumstance and in every time.

Sounds difficult, right?

Not really. Conceptually, it's not all that tough an idea to grasp. It's something most of our parents tried to instill in us when we were kids.

The secret is to ask the right questions...and to make sure you answer these questions fully, completely and, most importantly, honestly. Below are 10 questions that can put you on the road to building solidly “right” conscience.

1.“Who are we?”
2.“Why do we exist?”
3.“What do we believe?” (Or “What do we stand for?” or “How do we see the world?”)
4.“What do / will we do?” (and maybe just as more important, “What don't / won't we do?”)
5.“How (and why) do we do what we do?”
6.“How will we treat our customers and how do we want to be treated by them?”
7.“How will we treat our employees and how do we want to be treated by them?”
8.“How will we treat our contractors and vendors and how do we want to be treated by them?”
9.“How will we treat our competitors and how do we want to be treated by them?”
10.“How will we treat the environment?”

I know these seem a pretty esoteric, “touchy-feely” list of questions addressing some things that couldn't possibly be of any help in making business decisions. Surprisingly, though, it's these esoteric, philosophic questions that, if decided, established and ingrained into your organization before a crisis arises, will provide the surest guide to doing the “right” things and making the “right” decisions when the crisis hits.

Practically speaking, of course, building a company that lives up to its own best ideals is not a once in a while effort. It takes disciplined practice, patience, commitment and consistent application at every level to make “doing the right thing” the hallmark of the organization.

And don't be surprised if, while working through the questions above, you uncover issues you didn't know you had; start conflicts you didn't expect; and identify moral / ethical weaknesses that make you uncomfortable (and, hopefully, strengths that make you proud). That''s a good thing. It means you're doing it right. Every organization has issues; conflicts and weaknesses. It's only the good ones that acknowledge them early and honestly and work to resolve them before they become problems.

To build an organization where people are expected to ask “Is this right?”; “Is this consistent with who we are as a company?”; and “Is this decision consistent with who I am as a person?”, you'll need to raise and resolve issues. Your organization, your executives and your managers should be supporting and rewarding those who consistently step up and ask “is this right?” they should be praising the people who persist until the company “does the right thing”.

Executives, managers and supervisors should be setting this example themselves in their daily dealings with employees, customers, shareholders and the world in general. It's only when this type of behavior becomes the norm, the expected, that companies can look at themselves and know they've met the challenge.

Don't be afraid to start. This approach works for large multi-nationals and small, one-person consultancies. It works in manufacturing and service organizations; government and commercial organizations; and profit and charitable organizations. process will work for on-person companies. It's the first, and most critical step in developing a solid strategic plan, too.

Get started today....and let me know how it goes.

Tom



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If you need help getting your discussion going, post your questions here or send them to my e-mail: TomFawls@CouncilforSmallBusiness.com.