Behaving Badly: Leader Accountability and Ethics Failure

¶ … behaving badly: Leader accountability and ethics failure by J.G. Bruhn. Specifically it will critique the article and its view on leadership and ethics. The author's main point is that when ethics fail at a company, it is often the corporate culture and the leadership that lead to the failure. He also believes that this failure can lead to breakdowns in numerous departments throughout the organization. He believes that certain, ethics-specific questions should be used to evaluate potential CEOs before they are hired, and that these questions can lead to better ethical results for the organization.

Everyone knows that people and companies are in business to make a profit. However, the problem comes when companies overlook ethics in their quest for the bottom line. The author notes, "Problems result when CEOs pursue the bottom line without a credo of values" (Bruhn, 2005, p 191). The author discusses accountability, image, power and control, the social consequences of ethics failure in an organization, and offers solutions. The article is extremely relevant for leaders and organizations, because it openly addresses problems that many companies are facing today. They engage in questionable practices, (like giving bonuses to employees paid with taxpayer's money), enrage the people, and then discover they have ethical problems and a bad reputation. If more organizations followed Bruhn's rules for finding ethical leaders, so many companies might not have so many ethical concerns in the country today. That is why the article is so valuable, it mirrors conditions today, and gives concrete ideas on how to avoid these issues with careful planning and hiring practices.

The research methods and methodology seems to be substantial in this article. The author cites twenty-two sources in the reference section of his article, and he has written extensively on the subject, as the references indicate. He has also included two tables of information in the article that he developed from his research and experiences, and one of them is a comprehensive list of questions to use when questioning a potential CEO. He clearly has experience in the field, has written numerous other scholarly articles, and offers sound advice on creating ethically sensible leadership in organizations. It would make sense for organizations to follow his advice, seek out more viable candidates, and become more ethically sound if they really want to build a successful corporate culture.

The potential to use this information in future leadership related situations is great. The author gives sound advice and makes the reader think about ethical situations and how to manage them. However, the list of questions to ask is certainly applicable to just about any organization. Surprisingly, the author notes, "2 of every 5 new CEOs fail in the first 18 months" (Bruhn, 2005, p. 196). That means that boards of directors and interviewers are not really doing a good job of choosing CEOs, and that can lead to many ethical concerns. This information alone is enough to make these hiring authorities think twice before they choose their CEOs, because high turnovers can lead to problems and morale issues throughout the organization.