The Institute of Business Ethics, a British advocacy group, recently found that companies who displayed what they call a “clear commitment to ethical conduct” routinely outperform those companies that do not. This is great news; it is deep news; it is, to me at least, not surprising news. I always have faith that the good guys will finish first.
What’s often unclear is how a company makes that clear commitment. Myself and others have pointed to the absolute necessity that the signals come from the top - it’s got to start at the helm.
So what’s the clearest way for a corporate leader to make that commitment? Robert Moment, the author of “Invisible Profits: The Power of Exceptional Customer Service” riffs on the IBE news with a simple word: Integrity. It’s a word that’s thrown about a lot, that everyone claims to have, but Moment sat down and drew up a guideline on how to actually get to that position of business integrity. He calls it his “Seven Principles of Business Integrity.” I call it a good start.
