Monday 18 June, 2007
Some decisions require care to find a balance between 'right' and 'fair'.
Emerging businesses constantly face hurdles as they carve out a place in
the market. There never seems to be enough cash, it is hard to find the
right employees, and there is tension between survival and growth.
If just making payroll was not enough to worry about, the entrepreneur also has the stress of balancing personal interests with those of staff, customers and suppliers, and of doing the right thing by the local community. In most cases, these interests are aligned.
But sometimes the "right" thing to do is not obvious and the final decision will result in one side being worse off.
Where an ethical person can clearly see right from wrong, there are grey areas where the actions of the entrepreneur are lawful but may not be seen as "right" or "fair".
Of course, what is fair might well be seen differently by the parties involved. There are often situations where the entrepreneur has to bite the bullet and make a decision, knowing that not everyone will be happy with the outcome.
The question will be: Can an entrepreneur justify a decision based on some ethical position that it was the "right" decision and then personally feel comfortable that it was the best decision that could be made in the circumstances?
Consider the following situation. In one area of a business, the level of activity has declined so the business now needs only one of the two staff employed there.
The older worker, who has been with the firm for four years, is less educated, has fewer options for future employment, is paid more and is not well-liked by his co-workers.
The younger worker has been there for only one year, is paid much less, is well-liked and has more potential in the firm and in the employment market.
One person needs to be made redundant, but which one? Whatever decision the entrepreneur makes, some of the staff are not going to be happy.
A lecturer in entrepreneurship at Queensland University of Technology, David Robinson, specialises in helping entrepreneurs understand how to deal with such situations.
He says: "An effective resolution to an ethical business dilemma requires the entrepreneur to consider the business implications and his or her personal values to try to generate alternative solutions that can satisfy both.
In the event that no option is satisfactory, the entrepreneur should look to the consequences of each option and choose the one that they can best justify to all stakeholders."
Robinson suggests that entrepreneurs should develop a vision for their business against which decisions can be tested.
Next, they should articulate a list of business values and use those to test each possible result.
Last, the vision and values should be widely communicated so that decisions taken in difficult ethical situations can be seen to be consistent with the vision and values of the business.
Instead of making decisions quickly, entrepreneurs should take some time to create as many options as possible. These can then be explored for viability and to see how they align with the business vision and values.
In the example of the old and young employees there are many possible courses of action. One person could be retrained and relocated in the firm.
The staff involved could be interviewed to see if they had other possibilities that the firm could assist with, such as early retirement, further education or providing help to find another job outside the firm.
"There may be more than one option," Robinson explains. "What we are looking for is the outcome that the entrepreneur can feel most comfortable with."
Can you always be sure you have made the right decision? Test your decision against some ethical criteria. For example, look at the different results from each point of view. Would each party affected feel that the decision was fair, even if not in their favour?
Another approach is to use the public exposure test. If you were suddenly faced with being interviewed by the local TV station, would you feel able to morally justify your decisions? Would you feel comfortable justifying your decision in public?
Being always right is nearly impossible; being fair to those affected and true to yourself is usually achievable.
Source:www.ceoonline.com
If just making payroll was not enough to worry about, the entrepreneur also has the stress of balancing personal interests with those of staff, customers and suppliers, and of doing the right thing by the local community. In most cases, these interests are aligned.
But sometimes the "right" thing to do is not obvious and the final decision will result in one side being worse off.
Where an ethical person can clearly see right from wrong, there are grey areas where the actions of the entrepreneur are lawful but may not be seen as "right" or "fair".
Of course, what is fair might well be seen differently by the parties involved. There are often situations where the entrepreneur has to bite the bullet and make a decision, knowing that not everyone will be happy with the outcome.
The question will be: Can an entrepreneur justify a decision based on some ethical position that it was the "right" decision and then personally feel comfortable that it was the best decision that could be made in the circumstances?
Consider the following situation. In one area of a business, the level of activity has declined so the business now needs only one of the two staff employed there.
The older worker, who has been with the firm for four years, is less educated, has fewer options for future employment, is paid more and is not well-liked by his co-workers.
The younger worker has been there for only one year, is paid much less, is well-liked and has more potential in the firm and in the employment market.
One person needs to be made redundant, but which one? Whatever decision the entrepreneur makes, some of the staff are not going to be happy.
A lecturer in entrepreneurship at Queensland University of Technology, David Robinson, specialises in helping entrepreneurs understand how to deal with such situations.
He says: "An effective resolution to an ethical business dilemma requires the entrepreneur to consider the business implications and his or her personal values to try to generate alternative solutions that can satisfy both.
In the event that no option is satisfactory, the entrepreneur should look to the consequences of each option and choose the one that they can best justify to all stakeholders."
Robinson suggests that entrepreneurs should develop a vision for their business against which decisions can be tested.
Next, they should articulate a list of business values and use those to test each possible result.
Last, the vision and values should be widely communicated so that decisions taken in difficult ethical situations can be seen to be consistent with the vision and values of the business.
Instead of making decisions quickly, entrepreneurs should take some time to create as many options as possible. These can then be explored for viability and to see how they align with the business vision and values.
In the example of the old and young employees there are many possible courses of action. One person could be retrained and relocated in the firm.
The staff involved could be interviewed to see if they had other possibilities that the firm could assist with, such as early retirement, further education or providing help to find another job outside the firm.
"There may be more than one option," Robinson explains. "What we are looking for is the outcome that the entrepreneur can feel most comfortable with."
Can you always be sure you have made the right decision? Test your decision against some ethical criteria. For example, look at the different results from each point of view. Would each party affected feel that the decision was fair, even if not in their favour?
Another approach is to use the public exposure test. If you were suddenly faced with being interviewed by the local TV station, would you feel able to morally justify your decisions? Would you feel comfortable justifying your decision in public?
Being always right is nearly impossible; being fair to those affected and true to yourself is usually achievable.
Source:www.ceoonline.com
No comments:
Post a Comment