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Avoiding an Ethical Crisis
Why it’s sometimes difficult to do the right thing
Kevin C. Duggan | West Coast Regional Director, ICMA
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Introduction:
• “Gauging the Audience”
• My Background
• Why This Topic Resonates for Me
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Goals for the Presentation:
• Decrease the Odds that You or Your Organization Will Suffer an Ethical Crises
• Help You Take the Topic of Ethics and Integrity Out of the Realm of Cliché—Dig Deeper in Regard to What These Concepts Actually Mean and What They Actually Require
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How Big a Problem?
• “Unethical”:• 13,500,000
• “Corruption”:• 185,000,000
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Ethics:
“In Accordance With the Accepted
Principles of Right and Wrong
Governing a Group’s Conduct”
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“Accepted Principles”:
• Laws• Regulations• Policies• Codes of Conduct/Ethics• Accepted Practices• Expectations:
• Organizational• Public
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Law vs. Ethics:
• Law: What You Are Required To Do
• Ethics: What You Should Do
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Adjectives to Describe Ethical Conduct:
• Honest
• Transparent
• Fair/Equitable
• Forthright
• Trustworthy
• Consistent
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Why Are Ethical Lapses So Common:
• Ego?
• Power?
• Greed?
• Avoidance of Pain?
• Fear?
• Compulsion?
• Embarrassment?
• Basic Lack of A Moral Compass?
• “The End Justifies the Means”?
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Your Greatest Risk—Personally and
Organizationally:
COMPLACENCY
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A Higher Standard?:
• Are You Held to a Higher Standard as a Public Official/Employee?
• If So, Why?
• Is It Fair?
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Case Study:
I Don’t Have a Conflict of Interest!
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Top 10 Suggestions to
Avoid an Ethical Crisis:
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#1: Prevention First
• Never Take Ethics and Integrity for Granted• Talk About It• Train • Don’t Assume It Will Just Happen• Make It Part of the Organization’s Culture
and Value System• Hiring for Ethics
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#2: “Just Because it is Legal Doesn’t
Mean it is Ethical”:
• Don’t Confuse “Legal” With “Ethical”
• Not Breaking the Law Will Keep You Out of Jail, But…..
• Our Obligation is to Maintain the Public’s Confidence
• Use the Probationary Period as Intended
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#3: The Greatest Challenge to Ethical
Conduct: The “R” Word• RATIONALIZATION
• Ability to Rationalize That Inappropriate Conduct is “OK”
• “I Deserve……”
• “In This Case…..”
• Being Seduced By The Ability to Come Up With a “Plausible Rationale”
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#4: Beware of the “No One Will Find
Out” Rationalization
• “A Secret if a Five Second Head Start”
• There is Always Someone Who Will (or Could) Find Out
• No One Finding Out is Not An Appropriate Criteria
• Regardless, YOU Will Know
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#5: “The Google Rule”
• Previously Known as the “Newspaper Rule”
• One of the Best Defenses to the “ Seduction of Rationalization”
• Helps You Understand That You Are Not the Only Audience Who Will Judge Your Conduct
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#6: “The Taxpayer Rule”
• What Would the Average Taxpayer Think?
• Public Resources Belong to the Public
• We Must Use Resources Consistent With the Public’s Expectations
• Public Resources Include:• Money• Equipment• Time• Facilities• People
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#7: You Are Only Tested When the
Choices are Tough
• When You Have Something to Lose or Gain
• When You Can Suffer Personally or Professionally for Taking a Stand
• When it is Difficult and Uncomfortable
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#8: A Leader’s Three Levels of Ethical
Responsibility
• What YOU Did: YOUR Decisions and Actions
• What OTHERS Did—That You Knew About (How Did You Respond?)
• What Others Did That You Didn’t Know About:
• Should You Have Known?• Are You Open to Bad News?• Can You Demonstrate “Due Diligence”
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#9: Responding to an Ethical Lapse
• Critical to the Final Outcome
• Avoiding the “C” Word at All Costs
• Early and Full Disclosure
• Taking Corrective Actions
• A Delayed Response Can Be Deadly
• “Not Deciding” Can Be a Critical Error
• Don’t Turn an Honest Mistake Into an Ethical Crisis
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#10: The 3 Questions You Must Be
Prepared to Answer
• What Did You Know?
• When Did You Know About It?
• What Did You Do About It?
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Key Points:
• Understand the Risk of COMPLACENCY
• Manage RATIONALIZATION
• Effective Leadership Requires Ethical Conduct
• The “Google Rule”
• The “Taxpayer Rule”
• Your 3 Levels of Ethical Responsibility
• The 3 Questions You Must Be Prepared to
Answer
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Integrity: Stephen Carter
• Discerning Right vs. Wrong and Taking Consistent
Action
• 3 Required Steps of Integrity:
• Discerning What is Right and What is Wrong
• Acting on What You Believe, Even at Personal Cost
• Saying Openly That You Are Acting on Your Understanding
of Right vs. Wrong
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Blind Spots: Max Bazerman & Ann Tunbrunsel
• The Struggle Between What You Want to Do and What
You Should Do
• Many Ethical Challenges Are Not Identified Early
Enough
• You Can Fool Yourself When Facing an Ethical
Challenge
• Informal Values Often Overwhelm Formal Values
• Most People Think They Are More Ethical Than Most
Other People!
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The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty:Dan Ariely
• “They Cheat, You Cheat and I Cheat (From Time to
Time)”
• We Want the Benefits of Cheating While Also Wanting
to Retain Our Self Perception as Reasonably Honest
People
• When Our Ability to Rationalize Our Actions Is
Reduced, Our “Fudge Factor” Shrinks
• Impulse vs. Reason—More At Risk If Tired or
Overwhelmed (or “Medicated”??)
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Warren Buffett:
“It Takes 20 Years to Build a
Reputation and Five Minutes
to Ruin It”
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A Final Thought:
“All That is Necessary For the Triumph of Evil is That Good Women and Men Do Nothing”
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Resources:
International City/County Management Association (ICMA):
www.icma.org
Institute for Local Government (ILG):
www.ca-ilg.org
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