Leading in Context

DECEMBER 6, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Discouraging Unethical Leadership One of the most important responsibilities of the senior leadership team is to discourage unethical behavior and build an ethical culture.

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Leading in Context

DECEMBER 13, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton The components of an ethical leadership performance management system are mutually reinforcing and must be closely aligned. If just one element shown on this graphic is missing, then the rest of the components will not work effectively.

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Leading in Context

MARCH 6, 2024

By Linda Fisher Thornton I spoke with Human Resource leaders attending a Richmond SHRM Strategic Leadership Conference about The Future of Ethics and Business Leadership. The lens I used to frame the discussion was leadership development – how we can prepare leaders to lead ethically in a highly complex, connected future.

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Leading in Context

JUNE 28, 2023

This complexity and uncertainty combine to create a "murky uncertainty" that may keep people from giving us their best, most ethical performance. Leaders may intend to create an ethical culture, but may still have difficulty getting past the murky uncertainty about what ethics means.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 27, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Hallmarks of Ethical Leadership (Part 1) I shared 3 special qualities or behaviors that define ethical leadership. These three additional leadership behaviors even more directly impact others in a positive way.

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Leading in Context

OCTOBER 11, 2023

In Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 I explored 9 different traits that help you recognize ethical leaders. One of the hallmarks of ethical leadership is that it is a fear-free zone. By Linda Fisher Thornton This post is Part 4 in a series. In Part 4 I will address the importance of leading in ways that eliminate fear. Fear is insidious.

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Leading in Context

OCTOBER 18, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 5 of this series on attributes of ethical leadership, I explore the importance of really hearing all stakeholders, including those who are not in the room. Here are Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 in case you missed them.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton How do you recognize an Ethical Leader? Today I’ll share 3 special approaches to the leadership role that are central to ethical leadership. These are ways that ethical leaders understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to others and world.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1 of this series on Recognizing Ethical Issues, I addressed the gaps in our thinking that require us to develop an ethical alert system. In Part 3, I dug into the importance of ethical awareness as the basis for ethical decision making.

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Leading in Context

OCTOBER 4, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Hallmarks of Ethical Leadership Part 1and Part 2, I shared 6 special qualities, behaviors and outcomes that define ethical leadership. These are intentional actions ethical leaders take to stay competent as things change around them. This week I’ll share three more.

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Leading in Context

OCTOBER 25, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 I shared defining characteristics of ethical leadership. In Part 4 I addressed the importance of fear-free leadership. In Part 5 I explored the importance of listening to all stakeholders, including those who are not in the room. In Part 6 let's take a look at the importance of Trust.

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Leading in Context

MAY 17, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leadership is about much more than making good decisions and abiding by laws and regulations. One of the elements of ethical leadership that may be overlooked when we view ethics using a “legal lens” is supporting and developing the potential of the people we lead.

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Leading in Context

NOVEMBER 8, 2023

Respecting these (sometimes clear, sometimes hazy) boundaries is an important part of today’s ethical leadership. The 5 phrases below signal that the speaker is ignoring an important ethical boundary: By Linda Fisher Thornton Boundaries can be simply described as lines that we don’t cross when doing business.

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Leading in Context

APRIL 21, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Most people think about ethics, at least some of the time. Ethics comes to mind during ethics training, ethics conversations, when people are thrown into ethically complex situations, and when trying to understand current events. It is proactive, intentional and consistently applied.

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Leading in Context

JULY 5, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton While some people think of rights, responsibilities and freedom separately, in a compartmentalized way, I believe they cannot be separated, and according to John Courtney Murray, freedom was always intended to be grounded in ethical values.

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Leading in Context

APRIL 28, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Developing an "ethical self" is important for good citizenship and good leadership. There's more to developing and maintaining an ethical self than trying to make good choices. Making ethical choices isn't easy, and while we're struggling, our brains are actually working against us.

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Leading in Context

MAY 31, 2023

If leaders don’t seem to care, that numbs the organization’s culture, disabling the natural systems that would prevent and identify ethical risks. In addition to caring about what happens in our own careers, we must CARE about people, about their success, and about creating a positive work environment.

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Leading in Context

JULY 19, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Preparing leaders for ethical leadership is a long-term process. For example, what message are we sending when we separate ethics training from other leadership training? It requires careful thought about the messages we are sending.

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Leading in Context

MAY 26, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leaders create fear-free work environments, which are foundational in building and maintaining ethical culture and protecting reputation and ethical brand value.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 14, 2022

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1 of this series on Recognizing Ethical Issues, I addressed the gaps in our thinking that require us to develop an ethical alert system. In Part 3, I dug into the importance of ethical awareness as the basis for ethical decision making.

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Leading in Context

NOVEMBER 24, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Employers using stretch goals to motivate employees to higher levels of performance need to take note of the ethical risk. If the push for higher performance doesn't come with an emphasis on ethical behavior, it may be encouraging cheating.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 7, 2022

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1 of this series on Recognizing Ethical Issues, I addressed the gaps in our thinking that require us to develop an ethical alert system. In Part 3, I'll dig into the importance of ethical awareness as the basis for ethical decision making.

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Lead from Within

APRIL 26, 2024

As an executive leadership coach, I advise my clients on various aspects of leadership, and one topic that has been gaining increasing importance in today’s rapidly evolving business is the role of ethics in artificial intelligence (AI). In today’s AI-driven world, ethical considerations are paramount.

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Leading in Context

JULY 21, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical leadership isn't something we can ever say we've fully accomplished. It's not about arriving at any particular place, or about achieving a certain level of knowledge.

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Leading in Context

JUNE 9, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton Developing ethical leaders and building ethical cultures have become critical business priorities. As if that weren't already challenging enough, managing ethics well also requires systems thinking and a broad understanding of ethical responsibilities.

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Leading in Context

OCTOBER 28, 2020

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethics is fundamentally about acting beyond our own self-interests. Can we be ethical without considering others and acting in ways that benefit them?

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Leading in Context

AUGUST 2, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Welcome to Part 1 in the series “Ethical Thinking and Decision Making for Leaders.” Welcome to Part 1 in the series “Ethical Thinking and Decision Making for Leaders.” Ethical decision-making is not simply a task.

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Leading in Context

MAY 24, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Using an ethics of care changes how we think and act as leaders. It helps us remember that each person is important and that treating each other with care is part of our shared human experience.

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Leading in Context

AUGUST 16, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethical Thinking and Decision Making require staying grounded in ethical values, but there is much more to do than knowing our values and living them every day through our choices. In Part 3, let’s take a look at Complexity.

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Leading in Context

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton How well is your organization navigating the ethical pitfalls of the working world? Why is it so hard to navigate ethical minefields now? If you're finding it to be a major challenge right now, you're not alone. There is currently a "toxic soup" of factors at play.

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Leading in Context

MARCH 23, 2022

By Linda Fisher Thornton n How Do You Recognize an Ethical Leader Part 1 and Part 2, I shared 6 special qualities, behaviors and outcomes that define ethical leadership. These are intentional actions ethical leaders take to stay competent as things change around them. This week I'll share three more.

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Leading in Context

MARCH 8, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethics has a compounding effect on culture, and our leadership choices determine whether that effect will be positive or negative. Being diligent about ethics in every decision brings the culture ethics dividends. Being careless about ethics brings ethics penalties.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 6, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton This series has explored 5 important leadership spheres of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making. This week I’m summing it up in a checklist that will help you apply all 5 to your daily choices.

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Leading in Context

MARCH 22, 2023

By Linda Fisher Thornton Leaders are in a unique position to make ethics a priority through their everyday actions, but simply modeling ethics isn’t nearly enough.

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Leading in Context

AUGUST 25, 2021

By Linda Fisher Thornton After I published "Prevention or Cure: Your Choice" about reducing ethical risk and creating a positive culture a reader asked for more information about the business case for prevention.

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Leading in Context

SEPTEMBER 21, 2022

By Linda Fisher Thornton In Part 1 of this series on Recognizing Ethical Issues, I addressed the gaps in our thinking that require us to develop an ethical alert system. In Part 3, I dug into the importance of ethical awareness as the basis for ethical decision making.

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Leading in Context

AUGUST 24, 2022

When people make decisions in their daily rounds, though, there is no external alert or audible alarm to signal that they are stepping into an ethical issue or an ethical gray area and need to carefully consider ethical issues.

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