Archive for Business ethics

Beware: The Shadow of the Leader Can Become the Shadow of the Gang

I once had a boss who used to tell our national sales force, “The speed of the leader is the speed of the gang.” In my work as an executive consultant, coach, and “detangler,” I have met some incredibly brilliant and talented leaders. All of them were exceptional in some way, and all had areas [...]

Return the AIG Bonuses–No Pay for Non-Performance

photo credit: Ryan Forsythe
This past Sunday, I was so upset about the AIGbonuses that I wrote a letter to the editors of the San Francisco  Chronicle and New York Times. I received a call from the Chronicle’s editorial section on Monday, saying that they planned to run my letter. I am happy to [...]

How Taking Accountability Eases Tangles: The Case of a Local Police Sergeant versus Bernard Madoff

Earlier this week, I received a call from a sergeant in our local police department. He didn’t leave a specific message, although he said he was from the narcotics division and asked me to call him back. Last August 2008, I had parked my car in front of our home in a nice neighborhood in [...]

What Hard Choices are Sabotaging Your Business Ethics?

Most professionals — doctors, lawyers, dentists, and psychologists – are regulated by a written code of ethics. These standards dictate minimum, not optimal standards for purely ethical behavior. For example, even though an attorney can represent both a husband and wife in drafting a marital settlement agreement, a highly ethical attorney would not consider [...]


Marcia Ruben, Ph.D., CMC

Get updates in your inbox:

Delivered by FeedBurner