Written by: Roderick Mason, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
The consequences of unethical corporate activities and higher cognitive processes have gained media attention during the last two decades. From 2004 to 2013, over $ 7.8 trillion was illicitly transferred from growing economies through unethical behavior and procedures in the United States (Global Financial Integrity, 2019). This figure excludes illegal acts such as importation and concealing, implying that the total is far greater. This figure also excludes prices associated with the loss of the employer's name and full and current prices due to lower production and productivity due to lower morale, engagement, and motivation among the workforce.
Furthermore, client boycotts, fines, litigation, and government scrutiny of structure practices will all be significant consequences of a broad culture of unethical activity. An organization's "culture" could be a complex concept. Company culture is unquestionably essential to every organization, but defining it isn't easy. It's more difficult to successfully and purposefully steer this culture in one direction or the other, especially during a crisis." Corporate culture refers to a set of behavioral and procedural standards found within a company, including its rules, procedures, ethics, values, employee behavior and attitudes, goals, and codes of conduct. It also defines the company's "personality" and the work environment (e.g., skilled, informal, fast-paced) (Nguyen, 2021).
Perceptions of Big Pharma, Pre, and Post the Pandemic
According to a Harris study released earlier this year, consumers' perceptions of large pharmaceutical businesses improved by four hundredths after the pandemic due to the collective efforts of pharmaceutical corporations to respond to COVID19. This, however, is not always the case. At least in the United States, pharmaceutical company name concerns are primarily due to inflation and the opioid crisis, both of which have contributed to poor public impressions in the United States. Any highly regulated and capital-intensive industry, such as the pharmaceutical industry, has the potential to become a hotbed of unethical behavior and corporate misconduct. There are tensions at the core of the pharmaceutical industry's business model because it is troubling.
For one thing, investors are constantly pressuring the company to increase revenue and share value. The high cost and high failure rate of modern drug research, which is often in the later stages of development, is, on the other hand, a current risk. The universality of "bad guy" explanations of unethical behavior and corporate misbehavior arises from the fact that most moral decision models presume that people make rational decisions and can evaluate those decisions from a moral standpoint (Swanepoel, 2020). Though it'll be acceptable to blame bad actors for some of the most egregious examples of unethical behavior in the pharmaceutical industry (one example is Martin Shkreli, who bought a former deworming drug production license and increased its worth by 5,000 percent), when we began to investigate company scandals more thoroughly, it was by no means the case.
Moral behavior is more critical now than ever because if the COVID19 situation represents a new opportunity for pharmaceutical businesses to improve their public reputations, it also represents an excellent opportunity if something goes wrong. It's no coincidence that the CEOs of nine companies working on COVID19 vaccines have publicly stated their commitment to "maintaining the integrity of the scientific process" during the development and testing of vaccinations. They understand the significance of trust in the overall business. As a result, once public expectations and the degree of governmental inspection are in sync, the pharmaceutical industry will play a critical role (Horná, 2020).
Organizational Culture and Ethics Pre-COVID
Of course, the most effective way to make the company's post-COVID culture as similar as possible to its pre-COVID culture is never to lose it in the first place. However, maintaining a corporate culture that supports regular face-to-face meetings and informal relationships and nonverbal communication, and informal and accidental dialogues allowed by person face-to-face, is extremely difficult.
Confronting the scene, Would you believe that a few extensive selections of civilized cultures, such as yank culture, would be trusted company culture? Imagine the fifty states are suddenly divided by physical boundaries. Once employees are in the workplace, they usually speak with one another and represent the entire "nation. “With time, this cohesive national culture may deteriorate, and regional culture may become increasingly important. The cultures of American states differ from those of Wyoming, New York, and California. The small size of the workspace shrank when the company moved to remote labor. These businesses are transitioning to permanent remote work or developing hybrid workplaces. Employees generally enter the workplace and work remotely, with increased flexibility once and wherever they do (Llopis, Gonzalez, & Gasco, 2007).
New Considerations for Post COVID Organizational Culture: Trust
Closures and housing limitations have resulted in vacating office buildings worldwide, which is particularly shocking for large firms. However, the influence of the current state of affairs on the structure culture has a surprise benefit for SMEs and start-ups. Several respondents mentioned forming a "spirit of war" within the community and the business community: resilience and a substitute feeling of commonality. Despite the physical distance created by the pandemic, personnel felt as though they were all together at the same time and developed a solid dedication to the organization's goal and vision. However, after introducing the immunizing agent, things have changed again, and the economy has begun to recover slowly. Some firms require that their employees come to work wearing a mask and having a hand disinfectant on every table, even if they are only 2 meters away. Responses to the current kind of near-normal work-life are mixed.
Some employees appear to be happier working from home and recognize that they'll be there even if it means sacrificing efficiency or possibly more, while others are concerned. And that they can't wait to get it started. They were returning to the workplace's social environment (Kujala, Lehtimäki, & Pučėtaitė, 2016). Trust is not just a result of rational considerations; it's also a decisive emotional issue. Employees will expect to be revered rather than pissed off by things on the other side of their management if they believe the organization's management or one line manager is "on their side" exhibiting emotion. When a leader can establish an emotional bond with his team, even if the outcome is uncertain, the latter are more likely to trust his decision. They'll believe that if you say you're going to do something, you'll do it. Even though some structure cultures are clearly and purposefully formed, others will grow organically and without being publicly defined.
Workplace environment, company mission, leadership style, values, ethics, expectations, and goals are all part of company culture. Institutionalizing ethical ideals is a never-ending approach for maintaining a strong culture, and it significantly relies on successful communication. It's also important to note that senior management should be in charge: the corporate CEO and senior management. When an organization's values and behavior become susceptible, it is the leader's responsibility to make ethical consciousness "happen." CEOs and other top executives don't work in a vacuum, and they'll need internal solid and packaging assistance to build an ethics-centric culture. In several circumstances, the highest-ranking packaging officers receive honest recommendations. They must have a good understanding of the values of the organization's strategically important community and be able to foresee the consequences (Nguyen, 2021).
Conclusions: Stepping Up Efforts to Rebuild an Ethic-centric Organizational Culture
The COVID19 epidemic has had a massive and quick influence on regional point culture. People's perceptions of the nature of labor and business interactions have been flipped upside down due to global locks and travel bans. People realize that they don't have to be in the office to complete their jobs; they can do most of them from home. They are not supposed to scroll. Others have shifted from flying to flying from home, although this has did not influence their business. Structure leaders should consider what cultural changes they need to keep and what cultural changes they need to oppose as they adapt to operations during the epidemic and gird themselves for recovery. COVID19 has posed a significant challenge to society, the environment, and humanity, and institutions are still responding, adapting, and addressing the new difficulties resulting from the crisis. Developing an Associate in Nursing moral culture and executing moral behavior can be disheartening even in the most stable operative environment. The exciting issue for accountable corporations is that in a crisis, organizations rely primarily on their values to go above and beyond their legal and regulatory requirements (Llopis, Gonzalez, & Gasco, 2007). So much so that, according to a new LRN study, 79% of respondents indicated their organization's moral culture is more potent as a result of their knowledge of COVID19.
Overall, the data indicate that, while COVID19 may serve as a check for moral culture and ethics and compliance programs, the company's cultural and moral framework serves as a real-world ethics compass, assisting leaders, managers, employees, and other stakeholders in dealing with the unexpected and unknown. There's no denying that we live in uncertain times, where present and future crises can strike at the exact moment. Simultaneously, stakeholders are increasingly expecting corporations to achieve performance by adhering to high norms of corporate behavior. The data shows that mission, purpose, and values are not just words on a wall but also practical tools that provide crucial guidance and timely direction. They are essentially semi-permanent and property. There may or may not be rules, laws, or procedures that apply to every situation, but there is always a price that dictates behavior, whether respect, honesty, justice, or truth (Horná, 2020).
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Roderick Mason, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Roderick M. Mason is a Certified John Maxwell Speaker Trainer Coach and the founder of Holistic Coaching Solutions. A platform focused on delivering high-end corporate training services. He is a Certified Bucket List Coach, a Certified CBMC Leadership Coach, a Certified Primal Health Coach, and a Licensed Diversity & Inclusion Trainer. He is an avid seeker of knowledge who highly appreciates the notion of continuous improvement and growth.
References:
Global Financial Integrity. (2019). Illicit Financial Flows to and from 148 developing countries: 2006-2015. Washington, DC: Global Financial Integrity. Accessed May, 12.
Horná, P. T. (2020). The Post-COVID-19 Challenges in ethical leadership. Journal of Global Science.
Llopis, J., Gonzalez, M. R., & Gasco, J. L. (2007). Corporate governance and organizational culture: The role of ethics officers. International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, 4(2), 96-105.
Nguyen, L. A., Dellaportas, S., Vesty, G. M., Jandug, L., & Tsahuridu, E. (2021). The influence of organizational culture on corporate accountants' ethical judgment and ethical intention in Vietnam. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal.
Swanepoel, E. H. (2020). From Covid-19 to 4IR: Exploring the influence of Emotional and Cultural intelligence on modern organizational structures and leadership. Journal for Cultural Studies, 41.
Kujala, J., Lehtimäki, H., & Pučėtaitė, R. (2016). Trust and distrust constructing unity and fragmentation of organizational culture. Journal of Business Ethics, 139(4), 701-716.
