• Create a formal ethics code. Organizations should set down their ethical standards and policies in a formal ethical code. The code should be widely distributed to all employees.

• Set an ethical culture. Visibly reward employees who set a high ethical standard and visibly punish those who engage in unethical practices.

• Ensure managers are role models. Employees look to their immediate superior and upper management for cues as to what is or is not acceptable behavior. Managers need to be positive ethical role models.

• Offer ethics workshops. Employees should participate in regular ethics training to reinforce the importance of high ethical standards, to interpret the organization’s ethical code, and to allow employees to clarify what they may see as “gray areas.”

• Appoint an ethics “advisor.” A senior executive should be available for employees to meet and confer with to confidentially discuss ethical concerns.

• Protect employees who report unethical practices. Mechanisms need to be put in place that protect employees from retributions or other negative consequences should they reveal unethical practices that are a threat to others.

We’re taking a little different approach with this chapter’s skill practice. Form into teams of four or five people. Using a copy of your college’s code of conduct, answer the following questions: How many of the team members were aware of the code? How many had read it? Evaluate the code’s provisions and policies. Are you uncomfortable with any of the code’s provisions? Why? How effective do you think they have been in shaping student and faculty behavior? If they haven’t been effective, what could be done to improve them?

Be prepared to present your team’s findings to the class.

Experiential Exercise

We very much appreciate you, our employees, and we believe that we have a responsibility to you. Not just to provide a paycheck (although that’s pretty important), but also to provide and sustain a safe, healthy, and functional workplace. We would like to see ourselves on the forefront of sustainable workplace and workforce practices.48 To achieve sustainability, we’re going to have to identify and put in place practical and efficient work processes that (1) help us reduce each employee’s carbon footprint (to be more “green,”) and (2) provide you with occupational wellness programs and stress-reducing strategies. By doing this, we can achieve a sustainable work environment and a sustainable and productive work force. . .YOU. However, we don’t want to dictate what this is going to look like! We want you to be involved in creating this. Therefore, we’re going to assign each of you to a team that will brainstorm and come up with some creative ways that we can proceed to have a healthy and sustainable environment both inside and outside our organization. Use the following template to guide your group’s discussion.49 We’ve given you one idea! Now, it’s your turn! Provide at least 2 ideas for each workplace dimension. Show us what you got!! We know you can come up with some great ideas!

Workplace Dimension	Initial Steps	Where We Want to Be
FOOD	Provide indoor/outdoor dining options	Have an on-site kitchen facility for employee use
OFFICE DESIGN
EMPLOYEE FITNESS
FACILITY MAINTENANCE