Speaking of Business: Code of conduct could be secret to success

The mission should be a short, powerful, and easily understood statement of the company’s purpose, which clearly communicates the company’s fundamental reason for existence. Do you have a mission statement? If so, what is it, and do you and your management team agree with it? If you do not have one, it is time to create one. If you have one, but do not have full agreement with it, it is time to change it.

Integration is the process by which the separate elements or parts of your business come together for the good of the whole. Some steps needed for integration include: finding common ground among managers, mastering conflict resolution and implementing good communications.

Creating common ground is the primary purpose of communication within your company. There are many factors that surround the company and its staff, which need to be taken into consideration. Such factors include: global, national and regional market; type of company and its stakeholders; department/functional, teams, personnel; and past and present work environment.

Next, consider if you have an appreciation of your current context in which you are doing business. Consider who the employes are, what their situations are and what their needs are. Each part (function) of the company must clearly understand its role in the delivery of the mission, and how it relates (integrates) with the others. Clear communications are essential to effective integration, both within the mission itself (contextualized to marketplace and environmental considerations) and inter- and intra-departmental.

You will also need to set some new ground rules. The rules you choose will eventually become known as your code of conduct, hereafter “the code.” The code will describe underlying principles and values so that employees can better understand and meet the expectations and requirements of the organization, even in cases not articulated in any document.

The code should create a common vocabulary and a sense of the ethical requirements for being an employee. Furthermore, the code will facilitate dialogue about ethical issues and it will go a long way towards ensuring that well-intentioned people will not mistakenly choose the wrong path when confronting situations not adequately addressed in policy, procedure, law, regulation or by-laws.

It is also an ethical statement defining what an organization means when it holds its staff to the highest ethical standards — it details the fundamental maxim “do the right thing” by defining right and wrong in some detail.

It has legal standing in that the standards articulated become concrete evidence of the organization’s expectations and intentions, with respect to the behavior of its employees. It should be pragmatic in its examples and the efficiencies resulting from an agreed-upon description of both organizational values and the behaviors that those values prescribe. Finally, it will serve the organization in times of change and uncertainty, where the law and policy may be vague, or an issue is so new that law has not yet spoken.

A code of conduct is the primary vehicle for articulating how the core values and principles of the organization will function at all levels. Keep in mind there is no perfect set of values. Typically, codes list no more than seven to 10 core values (i.e., accountability, courage, excellence, fairness, honesty, honor, independence, integrity, leadership, quality, responsibility, respect, social responsibility, community responsibility, sustainable development and trust.)

Please note that several of these values might be characterized as “ethical values” such as honesty and fairness, while others are more aptly describe as “organizational values” such as excellence and sustainable development. Values can be further broken down into three distinct areas: personal/people (respect, trust, honesty, etc.), business (market leadership, profitability, urgency, etc.) and task (efficiency, accuracy, timeliness, etc.).

In conclusion, creating your code of conduct should not be taken lightly. Take your time and do it right. It’s a process that begins by carefully considering your company’s mission, integration, communications and desired ground rules. By doing so, you will achieve your desired result, which is creation of a solid and functional code of conduct.

Greeley resident Russell Disberger is a founding member of Aspen Business Group, a Northern Colorado-based specialty consulting and venture-capital firm assisting businesses in obtaining strategic growth. He can be reached at (970) 396-7009 or by e-mail at russell@aspenbusinessgroup.com.

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