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HR Party of One is brought to you by BerniePortal.

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As Stephen Covey wisely put it in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, "Decide what you stand

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for. And then stand for it all the time." While you may already know what your organization stands

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for, putting it in writing ensures that these values are upheld consistently across the board.

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In today’s episode, we’ll cover: What Is a Code of Ethics?

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What Is the Role of a Code of Ethics? and How to Write a Code of Ethics for

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Your Organization Let’s get started!

What Is a Code of Ethics?

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What Is a Code of Ethics? A Code of Ethics serves as a guide

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for making decisions within your organization. It includes your company’s mission, values,

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and principles that can be applied to everyday situations. Essentially, it’s a reflection of who

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your company is and what it stands for. A code of ethics is usually included in your organization’s

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Culture Guide or Employee Handbook, and should be covered during the onboarding process.

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We are only covering Codes of Ethics here, but for a deeper dive into HR Ethics as a whole,

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check out our BernieU HR Ethics Course. This free course also offers the opportunity

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to earn SHRM and HRCI continuing education credits. I’ll link it in the description.

What Is the Role of a Code of Ethics?

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What Is the Role of a Code of Ethics? A well-crafted Code of Ethics can prevent

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unethical behavior by eliminating justifications. Common justifications like “I was only following

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orders” or “Anyone else would’ve done the same” often stem from unclear ethical guidelines.

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Rather than feeling like a restriction, a Code of Ethics empowers employees

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to make decisions with confidence. It provides clarity in gray areas,

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ensuring that everyone knows the right course of action.

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Your code of ethics should be designed to accomplish the following:

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Raise ethical expectations. Ethics training should extend

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beyond onboarding to reinforce these expectations continually. The code of ethics outlines the rules

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that all employees (including managers and HR leaders) at your organization are expected to

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follow, and it also makes fairness the expectation. Matthew W. Burr from SHRM

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emphasizes the importance of not just talking about ethics, but embodying them. Having an ethics

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policy at your organization will signal to employees that you take ethics seriously.

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The code will also address accountability, penalties, and enforcement provisions.

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The code should ensure that employees are aware of the consequences of violating

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ethical standards. It will also outline penalties in a measurable, consistent,

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fair, and *ethical* way. A fair discipline process should include clear rules and

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regulations, a system of progressive penalties, and an appeals process.

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Next, it should encourage good judgment and ethical decision-making.

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How do employees handle ethical dilemmas? Employees should be able to read the code of

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ethics and know exactly what to do. Beyond that, it’s your job to ensure they feel comfortable

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reporting an ethical violation to you. It’s not enough to expect employees to speak up.

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Leaders should demonstrate their commitment to creating an open environment for dialogue by

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consistently encouraging employees to be open and voice their concerns or questions. And...

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Address communication steps for ethical issues. How do employees report ethical violations

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they may experience in the workplace? Do you have a step-by-step guide that’s

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easily accessible? Your standards are only as good as the policies you have in your Employee

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Handbook or Culture Guide. Consider including the steps to reporting an ethical violation in

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your Employee Handbook or Culture Guide. If employees were to encounter an ethical issue

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in the workplace, they should feel confident about what steps to take.

How to Write a Code of Ethics for Your Organization

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How to Write a Code of Ethics for Your Organization.

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Step 1: Assess your current decision-making processes.

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Start by evaluating how decisions are currently made within your

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organization. Ask yourself questions like: Do employees have a voice in decisions?

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Is respect and dignity afforded to all employees?

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Are decisions made consistently and free from personal bias?

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Are the rights of employees respected and upheld? Your answers will highlight any gaps in your

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current processes and inform the foundation of your Code of Ethics.

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Step 2: Check out what other organizations are doing

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Looking at examples of strong company codes of ethics can

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help you feel inspired to write your own. Let’s look at a couple together.

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Microsoft has a strong Ethics code of conduct, which they call a “Trust Code.” Their trust

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code includes trust with customers, trust with governments and communities,

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trust with each other, trust with investors and the public, and trust

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with their representatives. They highlight one key question: “When making decisions,

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ask yourself: does this build or harm trust with our customers?” The trust code is even

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offered in 27 different languages. On the same webpage, Microsoft has an option

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to report a concern or offer feedback that can help improve the Trust Code.

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L’Oreal also has an excellent Code of ethics based on the ethical principles of integrity, respect,

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courage and Transparency. They emphasize that the standards set out in the Code are not optional.

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Their code of ethics includes an extensive FAQ section that covers those industry specific “gray

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areas” we talked about earlier. It also includes a “Speak Up Policy” that enables stakeholders,

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including employees, to securely report any violations directly to the Chief Ethics Officer.

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Step 3: Draft Your Code with Clear, Specific Guidelines.

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Begin writing your Code of Ethics by outlining the company’s mission, core values,

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and guiding principles. Make sure these are clear and can be applied to daily operations.

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Ensure that the code is actionable and provides clear guidelines on

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expected behaviors and decision-making processes.

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Step 4: Incorporate Industry-Specific Ethical Standards.

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Tailor your Code of Ethics to your specific industry. Different industries face unique

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ethical challenges, so your code should address these.

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For instance, if you're in the food and beverage industry, your code should align

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with FDA regulations and include standards for ethical food handling. At this stage,

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you should also consider if your industry has pre-outlined industry specific ethical codes:

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For example, doctors recite the Hippocratic Oath at medical school

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graduations. This oath dates all the way back to 400 BC! The Hippocratic

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oath dictates a physician’s pledge to prescribe only beneficial treatments,

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to refrain from causing harm or hurt, and to live an exemplary personal and professional life.

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Similarly, the American Bar Association has set forth Model Rules of Professional

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Conduct for licensed attorneys that were put into place to influence what ethical

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behavior is expected when working in the legal profession. These can

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help you write a code of ethics that’s true to your industry and organization.

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Step 5: Establish Accountability and Enforcement Mechanisms.

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Define how your organization will enforce the Code of Ethics. Set up

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clear policies for handling ethical violations, including penalties and an appeals process.

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Ensure that the enforcement process is fair, consistent, and transparent.

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For example, L’Oreal’s Code of Ethics includes a “Speak Up Policy” that enables stakeholders,

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including employees, to securely report any violations directly to the Chief Ethics Officer.

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With BerniePortal’s Compliance feature, you can have employees sign off on your company’s

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code of ethics directly within the system and send notices to ensure everyone is up to date.

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Step 6: Put Your Code of Ethics to the Test. To put your code of ethics to the test,

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compare it to current practices at your organization. This can help

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you learn where your team or your code of ethics may be falling short. You can also

Final Thoughts

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send out anonymous surveys internally and externally to better understand employee,

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customer, and stakeholder perceptions of your organization’s ethical culture.

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Your ethics review should and will likely raise ethical expectations! If employees catch wind that

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you’re assessing the ethical culture of your workplace, they’ll expect to see some change!

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It can do more harm than good to publish an organizational code of ethics without the goal of

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doing things differently and doing things better. Remember—your role is as strategic as you make it!