Booked

Faced with the seemingly impossible task of being “ethical”, many business leaders stick to meeting legal requirements. Yet avoiding what is strictly illegal does not mean that what you are doing is right. Running an ethical or responsible business is about developing your own moral compass and ensuring that your company has a reliable one too, says Leigh in this practical guide.

If Marks & Spencer decides its moral compass includes a policy of sustainability, that does not affect Next or Carphone Warehouse directly.

He suggests ways in which leaders and managers can improve and manage the ethical culture in their organisations and how they can shine a light on the role of both culture and ethics in organisations by making the issues more transparent, accessible and above all, connected.

He notes the rewards an ethical culture can bring to an organisation including increased customer satisfaction and employee retention.

The book is rich on case studies and action plans and Leigh focuses on the fact that ethical culture is manifest in the actual behaviour and attitudes of all staff, rather than in policy documents.