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Organizational culture affects how employees respond to ethical dilemmas. Studying an organization’s culture can reveal unwritten ethical standards that guide decision-making. Companies can avoid risky ethical behavior by changing their organizational culture.
There is a direct relationship between organizational culture and ethics. Organizational culture affects how employees respond and react when placed in ethical dilemmas. Studying an organization’s culture can reveal the unwritten ethical standards that guide employees in their decision making. Using this information, companies can avoid risky ethical behavior by changing their organizational culture.
Organizational culture is the study of attitudes, beliefs and psychology within an organization. It includes not only how employees interact with each other, but also how they communicate with others outside the organization. Ethical standards are the code of conduct required by the organization for employees to follow. The relationship between organizational culture and ethics is that organizational culture guides employees when faced with ethical dilemmas. If the organizational culture opposes doing ethically, employees can put the organization at risk by not acting ethically.
When an employee is faced with a decision that others within the organization deem appropriate, though unethical, the employee can follow what is acceptable according to the culture. For example, if the organization rewards employees for getting the most contracts at any cost, an employee may begin bribing potential customers in order to get more business. If the company culture is to get most contracts but through normal techniques, an employee may not be so easily persuaded to do something unethical. It is this relationship that can lead businesses to significant long-term trouble. An organizational culture that supports risky decisions and unethical behavior will need to change its culture.
Changing a company’s organizational culture is difficult but often necessary when a company has problems with employee ethical decisions. Organizational culture and ethics are both psychologically linked, so employees have to change their thinking to accept a new direction. This is often difficult to do when employees have worked extensively with the organization or are not equipped with acceptable methods of doing business ethically.
For example, if the company wants employees to stop bribing foreign officials in order to obtain contracts, it should provide employees with other effective methods that will work to achieve the same results. If there are no other ways to achieve the same results, the company must ensure that it does not punish employees for not being able to sustain the same old results. Since organizational culture and ethics are linked, the company must change its culture to see results in the ethical decision making of its employees.
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