Ethics, privacy and discipline.(Hurst on Employee Management In A Small Business)

Like so many of the other issues discussed each month in this column, business ethics at the employee level is best served by solid recruiting and interviewing practices. A predisposition toward ethical behavior--as a character trait--is highly desirable among employees. With good people who want to do the "right thing," business ethics becomes a matter of establishing boundaries and clearly communicating them. Most companies assume they have ethical people in place and operate accordingly, unless or until circumstances prove that assumption wrong. And, in all cases, ethical breaches are dealt with swiftly. The key is to be clear in policy statements and make certain that your employees know that the company is 100% committed to ethical operation. It's tough to demand ethical behavior from employees if the company is unethical--or "gray" in any way--regarding integrity in its overall operation.

Your ethics standard should be clearly written and thoroughly communicated, including a definition of the risks of unethical behavior and identification of training requirements. It should help employees define issues involving ethics using real-life examples in training. Provide them with the tools to handle these issues. When faced with an ethical dilemma, the employee should consider:

* Is this action legal?

* Does it comply with our standard of conduct)

* If you think it is wrong, don't do it!

* How would it look in the newspaper or on "60 Minutes"?

* If you are not sure, ask!