Unit 3 Meeting the Ethical Challenge of Leadership

Overview

In this unit, we will begin the process of examining leadership character. Ethical leaders must set a moral example, maintaining high personal ethical standards; At the same time, they are responsible for the behavior of others. This, ultimately, means that they must encourage followers to behave in a moral manner.

To keep from projecting our internal enemies and selfishness on one another, we need to go on the offensive - replacing or managing our unhealthy motivations through the development of positive leadership traits or qualities called virtues.

The premise for this unit is:

Good people (those of high moral character) make good, moral choices.

Northouse (2019) explains that servant leaders develop others and put the needs of others above their own interests. Kraemer (2015), in his work, will describe the actions of leaders who honestly think of themselves as servants to their country, organization, companies, and colleagues. For example, he says they affirm the value of each person and communicate that everyone is of equal value.

Thinking as a servant requires a “subordination of ego” (Kraemer, 2015), or in other words, putting others first and personal ego last. Servant leaders are characterized by being attentive to the concerns of others, empathizing with them, and helping them develop to their full potential (Northouse, 2019). Transformational leaders create connections with people to engage and transform them (Monograph, 2018).

We will explore some strategies that will help us develop an awareness so that our actions are rooted in moral guidance in an effort to promote a positive, ethical culture.

Learning Outcomes

When you have completed this unit, you should be able to:

  • Explain why responsible leadership is all about building and sustaining trustful relationships to all relevant stakeholders by being a servant, caring for followers, contributing to the development of others and to the common good.
  • Understand that responsible leadership entails the ability of leaders to sustain fundamental notions of morality such as care and respect for persons, justice, and honesty, in changing organizational, social and global contexts.
  • Explain how to promote character development through direct interventions or indirectly by finding role models, establishing effective habits, and examining our values.
  • Describe the relationship between spirituality and leadership, highlighting how spiritual practices can equip us to deal with evil and foster ethical productive workplaces

Topics

This unit is divided into the following topics:

  1. The Leader’s Character
  2. Virtues and Virtue Ethics
  3. Forming a Moral Identity
  4. Identifying Values

Activity Checklist

Here is a checklist of learning activities you will benefit from in completing this unit. You may find it useful for planning your work.

Learning Activity

  • Read & Reflect: Read Chapter 3 & 4 from your Meeting the Ethical Challenge of Leadership text.
  • Read & Reflect: This article is from the Journal of Management and helps you to better conceptualize “character.”
  • Read & Reflect: In this article from the Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, we look at some important ideas that relate to the moral literacy of leaders.
  • Read & Reflect: Read Chapter 3 from your Responsible Leadership text.
  • Read & Reflect: This is another article from the Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies that looks at the importance of a strong moral identity in leaders.
  • Watch & Reflect: This short video features Simon Sinek who discusses the importance of developing intentional habits over time.
  • Learning Lab: The Learning Lab for this Unit will focus on a self-assessment of the balance in your own life. Next, we will shift our focus to a Case Study featuring the tech industry. Be prepared to share your thoughts!

Assessment

  • Discussion Forum Post: Formal assessment will consist of reading part of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People book and posting your thoughts into a reflective discussion forum.

Resources

Here are the resources you will need to complete this unit:

  • Johnson, C. E. (2021). Meeting the Ethical Challenge of Leadership: Casting Light or Shadow. 7th Ed, Sage Publication Inc. - ISBN: 9781544351643 (alk. paper)
  • Maak, T.& Pless, N. M. (2006). Responsible Leadership. Routledge. - ISBN: 978-0-415-35581-0
  • Other online resources will be provided in the unit.

3.1 The Leaders Character

In this section, we will be examining the characteristics of a leader and the role these traits will play in setting a moral standard for an organization. One of the challenges leaders face, however, is that they are not just responsible for their own behaviours, but also for the behaviors of their followers - how then, can a leader cultivate moral behavior?

The video below introduces us to these ideas and begins to explore the role we play, as leaders, in promoting positive, ethical conditions where moral decisions and behaviour are championed by all.

Learning Activity - Read and Reflect

We begin with our first reading from our Meeting the Ethical Challenge of Leadership: Casting Light or Shadow text. Read Chapter 3 & 4 and think about how it connects to some of the concepts and examples discussed in the video above.

Learning Activity - Read and Reflect

Next, we have an article from the Journal of Management that attempts to conceptualize the idea of character. As you read the article, carefully reflect on the close relationship “character” has with virtue and values. This will also tie in well with our next section in Topic 2. Click on the link below:

3.2 Virtues and Virtue Ethics

As the title for this section implies, we will be studying the role of virtues as a foundation for developing our ethical leadership skills.

By developing positive leadership qualities, called virtues, we can be proactive in the management of our “unhealthy” motivations. In the video below, we will take a closer look at how we can define virtues - as we will begin to discover, however, these attributes are not developed easily and will require a persistent focus.

Once we have taken a moment to identify what virtues are, we then shift our attention to exploring the elements of character that we will need to embrace on our journey to becoming strong, moral leaders.

Learning Activity - Read and Reflect

Take a moment to read through Chapter 3 in your Responsible Leadership text. Again, as you read through this chapter, try to think of experiences in your own life and how this content relates to our study in Unit 3.

Learning Activity - Read and reflect

This article, from the Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, highlights the importance of moral literacy in leaders. As you read the article, think about some positive leaders who have served as a mentor for you - if you have not had positive experiences, think about some of the negative experiences you have had and what those leaders could/should have done different to promote a better culture. Click on the following link:

3.3 Forming a Moral Identity

Next, we look at how the virtues we learned about in Topic 2, need to be rooted into our own behaviour so that we can create a moral identity. In this section, we will see that the process of creating a moral identity is a continuation of the virtue character building that we studied in the last section.

Throughout the video below, we will investigate the process involved in developing our moral identities. While much of this might seem like common sense, it is important that we reflect on the role these experiences play. It is also critical, to look at this process through the context of a leadership role and the modelling we must provide for our “followers.”

Learning Activity - Read and Reflect

In this section we looked at moral identity and the importance of continuing our development as virtuous leaders. This following article from The Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies not only highlights the importance of a strong moral identity in leaders, but also the important role these traits play in supporting the moral development of their “followers.” Read more below:

3.4 Identifying Values

In the final section for Unit 3, we introduce the idea of values and explore the role they play as a moral compass. Leaders are faced with many complex and difficult situations where there is not, necessarily, a clear way forward. For this reason, it is imperative that leaders develop a frame of reference to help establish priorities that will serve as a guide in challenging situations: leaders rely on a strong set of values to guide them!

The video for this section sets out to help us identify our own values and the role they will play in our own capacity as a leader. As you watch this video, carefully reflect on your own values and evaluate areas of strength, and areas where, perhaps, you could invest more attention.

Learning Activity - Watch and Reflect

In previous units you were introduced to Simon Sinek. Here, we watch another video that helps to tie the content of this unit together. The ideas and concepts introduced in this unit are not instant transformations. Rather, the developments of these attributes occur through intentional habits over a period time. This video below captures the importance of persistence and patience as we develop into the leaders we want to be!

Watch: BEWARE This TALK Will Make You RETHINK YOUR ENTIRE LIFE AND WORK (life changer)

Learning Lab

The Learning Lab for Unit 3 consists of several activities that focus on expanding our awareness with respect to the content we learned in this unit. During our Learning Lab, we will focus on working through each activity.

Learning Activity - Personality Assessment

A central focus of Unit 3 was on building an awareness of who “we” are as leaders. Much of this is tied to recognizing our strengths, and recognizing the areas that would benefit from additional development. Ultimately, it is this recognition that helps to prevent us from exercising the unhealthy traits we looked at this unit. The link below will take you to a personality test. As you review your results, think about ways you can continue to grow and develop into an ethical leader:

Learning Activity - Assessing Your Life Balance

To build upon the first learning activity in this unit and the content we learned in Unit 3, one of the main themes was understanding that values and virtues we practice and promote, need to be extensions of who we are as individuals - we do not just “use” them to be a leader…they are part of who we are!

In order to develop and promote these traits, however, it is critical that we develop a sense of balance in our own life - if we are not living a balanced life, it is difficult to promote, cultivate, and model healthy values for our followers.

This activity provides and opportunity to do a self-assessment of the “balance” we have in our own life. As you identify areas that could use some attention, think about ways you could shift your priorities to improve your life balance.

To begin…

Take a look at the image below - familiarize yourself with each dimension and consider how well these dimensions interconnect in your own life:

Next, download and complete the following self-assessment - the instructions can be found on the document:

Learning Activity - Case Study

Our final activity for this unit’s Learning Lab is a Case Study. Prior to arriving for this week’s Learning Lab, you are expected to read the following case-study:

During the Learning Lab, your Facilitator will be leading a discussion that investigates that following questions:

  1. Do you agree that large tech companies need a humble style of leadership now that they have grown so large and powerful?
  2. What does “boring” leadership mean to you? What are the advantages and disadvantages of being a boring leader?
  3. Can a leader be humble but not boring?
  4. Is there still a place for brash, arrogant leaders in technology? Will Elon Musk and other dominant leaders have to change?
  5. Why are the public, governments, and the press more sceptical about technology than in the past? Are you more sceptical?
  6. Do tech companies have too much power? What restrictions, if any, should be placed on them and their leaders?

Be sure to arrive ready to discuss the above!

Assessment

Discussion Forum

Formal assessment of the content discussed this unit will take place in the form of a Discussion Forum. For this assignment, you will be asked to draw upon your understanding of the content from Unit 3, as well as any insights you gained during our Learning Lab for this unit.

Your Discussion Forum response will address the following:

Our Discussion Response for this Unit focuses on the work of Stephen Covey and his book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” In his book, Covey outlines a process that can be embraced by leaders to ensure they operate with fairness and integrity as they adapt to change and challenge. Although we will not be reading the whole book, the section that pertains to this unit’s Discussion Response can be downloaded below:

After reading the article, your Discussion Response should include the following:

  1. Identify each of the 7 Habits and provide an example of how you practice at it. If there is a “habit” that you are not currently practicing (or it could use some additional focus), provide a plan for improvement in your response.

Your response should include direct references and connections to the readings, notes, videos, discussions provided throughout the unit. The rubric below provides more information.

Grading Rubric - Click to expand
Exceeds expectations Meets Expectations Minimally Meets Expectations Does Not Meet Expectations
Addresses the questions or problems that are posed in an insightful manner Addresses the questions or problems that are posed Addresses some the questions or problems that are posed Does not address the questions or problems that are posed
Clear, precise and well-reasoned responses Mostly clear, precise and well-reasoned responses Some clear, precise and well-reasoned responses Responses lack clarity, logic and/or precision
Demonstrates independent thought, insight, and creativity (applies course concepts, raises questions, recognises competing perspectives, and evaluates implications) Demonstrates some independent thought, insight, and creativity Demonstrates a minimal amount of independent thought, insight, and creativity. Response lacks independent thought, insight, and creativity
Spelling and grammar are accurate. Minor and/or few spelling or grammatical errors. Several spelling or grammatical errors.

To submit your response, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click on the “Unit 3 - Discussion Forum” dropbox.

Checking for Learning

Before moving on to the next unit, be sure you are able to:

  • Explain why responsible leadership is all about building and sustaining trustful relationships to all relevant stakeholders by being a servant, caring for followers, contributing to the development of others and to the common good.
  • Understand that responsible leadership entails the ability of leaders to sustain fundamental notions of morality such as care and respect for persons, justice, and honesty, in changing organizational, social and global contexts.
  • Explain how to promote character development through direct interventions or indirectly by finding role models, establishing effective habits, and examining our values.
  • Describe the relationship between spirituality and leadership, highlighting how spiritual practices can equip us to deal with evil and foster ethical productive workplaces.