 Dean's
Message
Three Dimensions of Ethical Behavior
by
Dean Ned C. Hill
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The 17 September issue of The Wall
Street Journal had many good
things to say about our students
and MBA program. Not only did we make
the largest jump in the publication to
26th overall from 38th—ahead of such
powerhouses as Stanford, UCLA, London
Business School, and Virginia's Darden
School—we were ranked second in the
"Emphasis on Ethics" category. We're particularly
gratified that recruiters, whose
opinions form the basis for the ranking,
see our graduates as ethical managers.
In this post-Enron world, business
schools are scrambling to add ethics to
their curricula. We laud their efforts and
hope they're successful in producing more
ethical leaders. At the Marriott School, we continue to
emphasize ethics and believe we are blessed
with some unique advantages that have
helped our students develop three important
dimensions of ethical behavior: awareness,
courage, and leadership.
Ethical awareness is understanding ethical
issues and defining boundaries. If individuals
have learned to define right and
wrong in life, it's easier to teach them to
extend that ethical awareness to other areas.
Unfortunately, if they have little experience
distinguishing between right and wrong, it's
more difficult to instill ethical awareness.
Luckily, most of our students come with
extensive experience thinking about right
and wrong. Their parents have taught them
to recognize what is acceptable behavior
and what isn't. Because of this background,
they have fewer troubles extending their
ethical awareness to management issues.
Ethical courage is the strength to act
appropriately in questionable situations.
In a recent fraud, more than twenty people
falsified financial statements. All testified
they were aware their actions were unethical,
but none had the courage to go against
superiors. Ethical courage is difficult to
teach because its roots are formed through
years of learning to be courageous in small
things. Again, many of our students have
seized opportunities to develop courage
—defending their faith to doubting
friends and facing challenges while serving
missions. In addition, they've frequently
examined their lives and values through
ecclesiastical interviews. Finally, they've
been exposed to numerous examples of
ethically courageous individuals such as
Church leaders, scriptural heroes, family
members, and business leaders.
Ethical leadership is instilling in others
a desire to develop ethical awareness
and courage. This higher form of ethical
behavior requires a person to inspire others
through word, example, persuasion,
and good management. Here, too, our
students have an advantage. They've seen
how Church organizations create processes
and structures and provide living
examples to help members behave ethically.
They've participated in a university
organization that functions the same way,
and they've practiced ethical leadership in
Church callings, missions, student organizations,
and families.
Given the unique preparation our students
have before coming to the Marriott
School, combined with the excellent preparation
they receive at the hands of remarkable
faculty, it isn't surprising that their
competitive advantage of ethical behavior
is being recognized. While we, of course,
don't have a monopoly on ethical graduates,
we're grateful for our association with
these outstanding students and see their
influence for good spreading throughout
the world. Thank you—our graduates and
friends—for your ethical awareness, courage,
and leadership at a time when such
qualities are in short supply.
Sincerely,
Ned C. Hill
Dean
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