Accountability, values and responsibilities
Are you undermining the very business that pays your salary?
The profitability and success of any business determines whether you have a secure job, along with the hope of annual increases, perks and bonuses.
The responsible behaviour of all staff contribute to the continued growth and success of a company by ensuring the best service possible for all the company’s clients. A happy client comes back and brings new customers for the business. A business that takes time and care to meet the needs of customers with excellence, will thrive. The staff servicing those customers will in turn also thrive.
Positive behaviour helps to build a harmonious work environment. You need be accountable for your responsibilities so that your work is processed efficiently. Be honest, organised and proactive. Work with the highest integrity. Strive for service and quality. Build high morale and be a dedicated member of a strong team in order to achieve personal and company success.
Just as positive and ethical behaviour from staff can build up a company and contribute to a better bottom line, negative behaviour can harm the business, threatening the success of the company and all livelihoods that depend on it for survival.
What constitutes negative, unethical or criminal behaviour?
- Absenteeism – false sick leave.
- Tardiness – not keeping company hours.
- Bullying co-workers.
- Creating petty arguments and strife in the work environment can effect workplace efficiency.
- Purposeful sabotage of machinery or equipment used for production.
- Leaving your responsibility to someone else, or simply not doing your work at all.
- Leaving tasks unfinished.
- Unhelpful to customers – lack of respect or rudeness to them (grumpy behaviour).
- Undermining superiors or other workers.
- Substance abuse – drugs or alcohol will negatively affect your productivity and reasoning skills.
- Sexual or other harassment of co-worker – productivity of all involved will be reduced.
- Lack of maintenance and responsible/proper care of company property.
- Claiming to be competent in a position you are not capable in.
- Fraudulent use of company funds.
- Disrespect for company policies.
- Abuse of staff under your command.
- Unclear communication.
- Engaging in hurtful gossip – this may lead to expensive staff turnover.
- Any form of theft – blatant theft of money, goods, time, resources or ideas.
An employee is paid for work accomplished toward a specific goal, which contributes to the income of that company. Your hours of honest effort all contribute to bringing funds to your company however significant or insignificant your job may seem. Any deception about actual work done and time dishonestly stolen via false sick leave or distraction from the task at hand is a form of theft – money is paid to you in good faith for work and hours you are not actually putting in.
Theft happens in many ways
Blatant theft
- Company assets are taken for personal use (any stationery, stock, cash, materials, toilet paper or final product, or even items meant for staff refreshments).
- Using company equipment for personal use (copy machine, printing etc.) – especially if this is against company policy.
- Fuel used for personal trips and not for legitimate business reasons.
- Manipulation of records to hide monies stolen, or misappropriate uses of company funds.
- Company responsibility in a payroll or finance position abused to make false payment to fictitious people or suppliers.
- Information thievery for sale to rival companies for personal gain.
- Intentional incorrect stock count mistakes and corrections so that stock can be spread amongst staff and friends.
- Products sold via the back door for personal gain.
- Theft of a customer’s credit card details.
Stealing time or resources
- Falsifying timesheets.
- Falsifying overtime for personal gain.
- Charging customers additional hours.
- Time spent on personal activities rather than focussing on job activities.
- Hours of cyber time wasted or spent on social media.
- The use of telephones for personal conversations, wasting company time and running up high accounts.
- Slow response time, delays for no valid reason, thereby losing potential business.
- Using a company credit card (and budget) for personal reasons.
Other forms of theft
- Not providing the service you are paid for – to your company or customers.
- Theft of the ideas of another worker and taking credit for them.
- Withholding information about any misconduct/misdeeds within the company.
Theft will mean that the company will come up short at a time it has to deliver and this can damage the assurance of continued good business. Not only is a person’s integrity at stake when detrimental behaviour takes place, but the company’s reputation also suffers. No company, even companies perceived to be large and powerful, can survive the continual expense of irresponsible, reckless employees of poor integrity levels.
Ethical and appropriate behaviour – what can you do to ensure that your behaviour is above reproach?
- Always choose a path of honesty – even if it means you will not be popular or you need to take responsibility for your own actions.
- Don’t be sucked in to unethical behaviours to be part of the ‘in crowd’. If a co-worker tries to rope you in, step away immediately and report the incident to your HR department.
- Be productive in your workday.
- Be punctual.
- Consider your own values, principals and morals and emulate this in your career.
- Follow rules and regulations set out in the company policy. Don’t be selective in what you choose to follow or not abide by. Show integrity in everything you do.
- If you lead a team, lead by example.
- If you learn of unethical behaviour, corruption or theft, speak out. Don’t turn a blind eye or be afraid to be a whistle blower.
- Show respect for colleagues, subordinates and your superiors.
- Don’t spread gossip or malicious rumours.
Resources
- Wikipedia, www.wikipedia.org.
- Study dot comwww.study.com.
- Global Ethics Organisation, www.globalethics.org.