This is a response to Charlie Mable’s blog https://create.twu.ca/charliemable/2018/06/14/ethics-and-morals-act-1/
Question: If leadership truly is a process of influencing others, it is important that leaders enact the moral and ethical responsibility entrusted to them. Do you agree?
Yes, I agree with you. Moreover, I think leadership can be observed and exerted in other kinds of situation or context rather than merely organization and political domain, such as leadership at home, leadership within the school setting, and so on. Considering the influential process of the leadership, I believe the moral and ethical responsibility should be addressed more in other kinds of context. For example, it is far more profound for a father to nurture his children to grow up and become ethical and righteous individuals. In turn, if the children are raised to be the potential transformational leaders or ethical leaders, they would influence more people who are around them or working for them. Similarly, the authentic and moral impact that the leadership has on within school settings or friends can be significant. Coming back to the organizational context, I really like the example you made in promoting effective financial management. This example can also be a perfect one to demonstrate the conduct of leading by examples. When the leader is acting moderately and morally, the followers will be at least influenced to act the same way in terms of short-term effect. Sequently, the moral behaviours will be institutionalized as the moral traits for the followers. In turn, the moral culture within the organization is formed. This process just echoes your words in the beginning: It has a ripple effect. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
This is a response to Kwantlen Brenda’s blog https://create.twu.ca/kwantlenbrenda/2018/06/11/unit-7-activity-1-indigenous-economic-development-ethical-leadership/
Question: What are some other ethical and moral beliefs that the public holds with its indigenous organizations? Do you think it is fair that indigenous organizations are held to this standard given the history of inter-generational trauma?
Thank you sharing your valuable thoughts of indigenous organization which I barely considered before. I live in China, therefore I could only synthesize the situation of the indigenous organizations here to my answer. Hope you find them useful.
China is governed by the Communist Party, and the culture in China particularly emphasizes the morality of serving for the mutual good for the society. This moral principle serves as the implicit standard for all kinds of organization, especially the indigenous ones. Actually, I do not like the invisible pressure that the public has put on the indigenous companies. Actually, I am working in an indigenous company. To be honest, the public and the government are using a magnifying glass to look at the all aspects of the indigenous company. For example, the public thinks that it is abnormal for the staff of an indigenous company to have the salary above the average level of the citizens in that city. And the government, who is willingly to incline to the thoughts of the public on this issue, has been extremely strict with the companies. Ironically, the government does rely on the indigenous companies to gain a beautiful financial report each year, and the public admires and desire to work in the foreign companies or partly foreign-owned companies. Therefore, I totally agree with your words that there is only one chance to do things right for the indigenous companies because it is already hard and impossible for the indigenous companies to satisfy the public and the government anyhow. The pressure and the unfair treatment are potentially undermining the intrinsic will of serving others of the indigenous companies. This is the real potential threat to the country, I think, and this threat is stemmed from within.