adminenvironment, and the last item they have tended to consider in their yearly budgets is staff training.
The argument has been that firms cannot afford staff training because resources are overstretched. But business realities show that the cost of not having training is worse than the cost of training.
Apparently, staff training plays a critical role in equipping management and employees with new skills and competencies to meet set company goals and objectives, and deal with the ever changing business environment.
Training plays a key strategic role, representing a competitive advantage that enhances company performance and increase profitability. Companies can only ignore training at their own peril.
Business ethics has in recent times become a cutting edge the world over, and the need for business ethics training in the economy is acknowledged given the levels of unethical behaviours characterising our workplaces today, and the need to improve the competitiveness of Zimbabwe’s firms both locally and globally.
One of the most commonly held views about business ethics is that it is merely learnt through socialisation in institutions such as the family, schools and churches, without any specialised training.
The view sees the exhibition of poor ethics in the workplace as a result of a poor socialisation process, or of people having been raised without proper value systems.
Training in business ethics has become a global trend, and its contribution to the bottom line can now be validated by the existence of both quantitative and qualitative evidence. For example, studies carried out by the Institute of Business Ethics in the UK in 2003 and 2007 proved that a positive relationship between sound business ethics practices and company financial performance.
The study used financial performance measurement instruments such the earning ratio and return on capital employed to come to this conclusion.
Appreciating the intricacies of ethical conduct in a work environment is a complex matter that demands proper training in business ethics.
It goes beyond being a staffer of good character who was prepared by a lifetime process of grooming by parents and religious institutions, and whom people assume can easily resolve workplace ethical issues without any special training.
Complex ethical issues inherent in the workplace require the development of specific skills in ethics management which are imparted by an ethics skills development programme offered by specialists in the field.
Business ethics is the new frontier for competitive advantage. Training in business ethics provides strategic mileage, equipping staff with ethical decision-making skills, knowledge to anticipate ethical challenges, and ability to recognise ethical dilemmas. Companies have a responsibility to train staff in business ethics so that they understand ethics risks and be able to deal with them as they arise.
With ethics training, companies have a template with which they can provide an immediate solution to containing corporate reputational damages caused by unethical business conduct. On top of that, ethics training curtail corporate misconduct, and boosts staff morale and job satisfaction. Ethics training improves employee productivity and company financial performance.
It brings about positive economic benefits to the general society.
Ethics training enables employees to understand how business ethics relates to strategic issues in the firm.
It allows employees to use good judgment in addressing issues of responsible business conduct. Ethics training provides considerable feedback to managers on the way in which the company’s ethical culture is impacting on employee performance.
Business ethics training should take place at all levels in the firm, and should be built around company core values, objectives and mission statement.
It should involve directors, managerial staff and employees, and it should match their different levels of responsibility.
Business ethics training reinforces an enterprise’s wide sense of responsibility with issues such as customer care, quality management, fair dealing with suppliers and service providers, and proper relationships with all stakeholders becoming an integral element of the training programme.
Designing a business ethics training programme requires the same attention to objectives and outcomes as does any training programme in corporations.
An effective business ethics training programme considers the prevailing situation, identifies skills gaps, identifies target audience, engages training specialists, and carries out after-training evaluation.
A company should equally be able to project the expected behavioural changes through the training programme, and the programme should be regularly and constantly reviewed to ensure that the delivery methods being used are effective.
Management’s commitment to training in business ethics should be demonstrable and unquestionable to ensure employees value it. The training programme must convey management’s sincere desire to know whether company standards and procedures are being followed, and that ethical considerations guide employees’ decision-making processes.
Research shows that training in business ethics becomes effective when employees perceive that management fully supports it.
- Bradwell Mhonderwa is the Managing Consultant of Business Ethics Centre, a Corporate Governance and Business Ethics Management firm. For feedback, phone 04-293 2948, 0772 913 875, or email [email protected]
Online Reporter