How Do You Make Ethical Decisions? 15 Leaders Reveal Their Approaches; Forbes, October 15, 2024

 Bruce Weinstein, Ph.D., Forbes; How Do You Make Ethical Decisions? 15 Leaders Reveal Their Approaches

"In honor of this year’s Global Ethics Day, a celebratory event created by the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, I asked 15 leaders from business, law, education and the arts how they make ethical decisions.

These successful professionals are from the U.S., Canada, the U.K., France, the United Arab Emirates, Hungary, Australia, and South Africa. This is how they responded...

Since Global Ethics Day was created by the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, I give the last word to its president, Joel H. Rosenthal.

True north

“When considering a course of action, I ask: What is my true north? What am I willing (and not willing) to do to achieve a goal, and how might those whom I respect judge my actions? It’s impossible to get ethical choices right all the time, and I’ve found that it’s essential to balance conviction with humility in any decision-making process. Most importantly, I try to remain open to reflection and correction along the way.”

Joel H. Rosenthal, President, Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, New York, New York"

LSU to Embed Ethics in the Development of New Technologies, Including AI; LSU Office of Research and Economic Development, April 2022

Elsa Hahne, LSU Office of Research and Economic Development ; LSU to Embed Ethics in the Development of New Technologies, Including AI

"“If we want to educate professionals who not only understand their professional obligations but become leaders in their fields, we need to make sure our students understand ethical conflicts and how to resolve them,” Goldgaber said. “Leaders don’t just do what they’re told—they make decisions with vision.”

The rapid development of new technologies has put researchers in her field, the world of Socrates and Rousseau, in the new and not-altogether-comfortable role of providing what she calls “ethics emergency services” when emerging capabilities have unintended consequences for specific groups of people.

“We can no longer rely on the traditional division of labor between STEM and the humanities, where it’s up to philosophers to worry about ethics,” Goldgaber said. “Nascent and fast-growing technologies, such as artificial intelligence, disrupt our everyday normative understandings, and most often, we lack the mechanisms to respond. In this scenario, it’s not always right to ‘stay in your lane’ or ‘just do your job.’”

NASA Administrator and Panel of 7 Astronauts Talk Leadership and Ethics; University of Central Florida, April 1, 2022

Zenaida Gonzalez Kotala, University of Central Florida ; NASA Administrator and Panel of 7 Astronauts Talk Leadership and Ethics

"It will take more than astronauts, engineers, and scientist to live in space. It will take clothes designers, food managers, communicators, artists, and a lot more.

That was one of the messages NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and several fellow former astronauts delivered Friday during a 90-minute presentation about leadership and ethics at the Plaza Live near downtown Orlando.

About 50 students from the University of Central Florida joined others from Bethune-Cookman, UF, USF and several local high schools for the free panel discussion, which was part of the Nelson Initiative on Ethics and Leadership based at the University of Florida. Nelson, a former U.S. Senator who flew on a space shuttle mission in 1986, moderated the discussion. The speakers included:

• Charlie Bowden, pilot, and former NASA Administrator
• Robert Lee “Hoot” Gibson, who flew with Nelson and served as chief of the Astronaut Office from 1992 to 1994
• Rhea Seddon, retired astronaut and a surgeon
• George Pinky Nelson, who is also a physicist and astronomer
• Brewster Shaw, retired astronaut and former Boeing executive
• Jim Weatherbee, retired U.S. Navy officer and former test pilot and aerospace engineer

The speakers talked about what it takes to be a leader, the courage needed to do the right thing and the many challenges they faced. For example, Bowden who is African American, couldn’t get any of his state representatives to appoint him to the Naval Academy. He eventually became an astronaut. Gibson first became a surgeon because the astronaut program was closed to women until the late 70s. She was among the first six women to join the NASA corp.

“Don’t listen to people who say you can’t do something,” Bolden said at the event. “You will always find people who don’t like you for one reason or another. Don’t waste your time explaining why you are there. Just do your job.”

Bolden also said people need to think about space in broader terms, as in STEAM, not just STEM.

“Of all the 18,000 people at NASA a very, very small percentage are engineers, scientists and payload specialists,” he said. “It takes everyone in a lot of different roles.”

All the astronauts encouraged students to pursue their passion and to be leaders in their own lives.

Weatherbee said the best leaders in extreme industries share three traits, which can be adopted into any field. These leaders have an intense commitment to a mission. They care about their people as people, not for what they can give the mission, but because you are interested in their individual success. And lastly, leaders are highly competent in their technical field and know how to communicate."

Wake County Library Makes It Harder to Ban Books; IndyWeek, March 16, 2022

Jasmine Gallup, IndyWeek; Wake County Library Makes It Harder to Ban Books

"Wake County’s Community Services program manager Frank Cope replied that if a book was challenged on the grounds of “obscenity” or another First Amendment concern, the library would consult the county attorney’s office. Leaders plan to add a provision to the policy clarifying how and when a lawyer will be involved in book challenges.

The American Library Association advises that libraries have a lawyer on retainer to consult on legal issues, Caldwell-Stone says. But there are some potential snags in using the county attorney to fill that role.

“There’s a conflict of interest, especially when there are elected officials arguing a book should be pulled and you have the county attorney make a decision,” Caldwell-Stone says. “It should be independent legal counsel that doesn’t also represent the police department and the county government.”"

PLA responds to growing intellectual freedom challenges with virtual townhall; ALA News, February 22, 2022

ALA News ; PLA responds to growing intellectual freedom challenges with virtual townhall

"For Immediate Release

Tue, 02/22/2022

Contact: 

Samantha Lopez

Manager

Marketing and Membership

American Library Association

slopez@ala.org

CHICAGO — As libraries continue confronting unprecedented attacks on the freedom to read, the Public Library Association (PLA) will offer a virtual townhall event, Facing the Challenge: Intellectual Freedom in Libraries, on Friday, March 4, from 1–2 p.m. Central time.

During this free session, panelists will participate in facilitated conversations that explore effective responses to the coordinated attempts at censorship currently sweeping the nation. A moderated chat will follow, inviting attendees to pose questions and share insights based on personal experiences. Due to high demand, PLA will accept up to 1,500 registrations, but only the first 1,000 viewers will be able to attend live. The webinar room will open about 15 minutes before the start of the event, and we recommend you arrive early. The on-demand recording will be available in the ALA eLearning site within 1–2 business days. Learn more and register for this event.

As those who have faced book banning attempts and related legislative efforts know, the experience is often isolating and stressful. The virtual townhall will provide an opportunity for public library professionals to connect in the face of these difficult experiences. At the conclusion of the event, participants will be able to:

• Support colleagues in local school libraries who are facing challenges;
• Advocate for the role of public library staff in making selection decisions and managing requests for removal, in accordance with established library policy; and
• Amplify and support community voices not heard during challenges, especially from historically marginalized groups and students.

Townhall panelists include Deb Sica, deputy county librarian at Alameda County Library (Freemont, CA); Cindy Hohl, director of branch operations at the Kansas City (MO) Public Library and immediate past-president of the American Indian Library Association (AILA); Kathy Carroll, school librarian at Westwood High School (Blythewood, SC) and immediate past-president of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL); and Melanie Huggins, executive director of the Richland Library in Columbia, SC and president of the Public Library Association (PLA).

Facing the Challenge: Intellectual Freedom in Libraries is presented by the Public Library Association (PLA) with support from the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, the Freedom to Read Foundation, and the LeRoy C. Merritt Humanitarian Fund.

PLA will also be hosting an Intellectual Freedom Forum on March 24 as part of the upcoming PLA 2022 Conference in Portland, Ore. This forum will give attendees an opportunity to share resources and build connections in support of intellectual freedom. Forum sessions include: Ask a Lawyer, Peer-sharing roundtables, and 1-on-1 appointments with ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom.

About the Public Library Association
The Public Library Association (PLA) is the largest association dedicated to supporting the unique and evolving needs of public library professionals. Founded in 1944, PLA serves nearly 10,000 members in public libraries large and small in communities across the United States and Canada, with a growing presence around the world. PLA strives to help its members shape the essential institution of public libraries by serving as an indispensable ally for public library leaders. For more information about PLA, contact the PLA office at 1 (800) 545-2433, ext. 5PLA, or pla@ala.org."

Free Webinar: Students and Freedom of Expression on Campus: Tuesday, January 25, 2022 2 PM EST

Free Webinar: Students and Freedom of Expression on Campus

"Today’s students are challenging free-speech norms and are more likely than older generations to support restrictions that limit offensive speech. What’s more, the rise of social media, new sexual-harassment policies, and demands for more racial diversity and inclusiveness have sometimes complicated free expression on campus. In this environment, how can colleges promote open inquiry and discussion while balancing changing attitudes?

Join us for a virtual forum that brings together Michael S. Roth, the president of Wesleyan University, and other experts to share their perspectives on these topics:

• How is free expression evolving on college campuses?
• How do college leaders respond to claims that their institutions have become unwelcoming places for certain views?
• How can colleges mitigate potential conflicts when they do arise?

With Support From the Knight Foundation"

Register here.

Emerging technologies pose ethical quandaries. Where does IT leadership fit in?; CIO Dive, February 22, 2021

Katie Malone, CIO Dive; Emerging technologies pose ethical quandaries. Where does IT leadership fit in?

""More organizations are seeing that trust is a measurement of profitability, of organizational health, of success," said Catherine Bannister, Tech Savvy and ethical tech leader at Deloitte. "This notion of ethics is becoming much more visible to stakeholders across the board and they are using that as a measure of trust, both internally and externally."

But there's no common definition for what ethical technology looks like and the conversation is ongoing. Instead, CIOs and other members of IT leadership are responsible for figuring out what tech ethics mean for their organizations in the near- and long-term. 

If an organization doesn't do its ethical due diligence, customers will catch on and trust will be diminished, according to Bannister."

Warren Buffett Says These Often Ignored Traits Separate Successful Leaders From All Others; Inc., January 18, 2021

 Marcel Schwantes, Inc.; Warren Buffett Says These Often Ignored Traits Separate Successful Leaders From All Others

"2. Value your employees' whole being.

I have found that leaders of the best organizations value the whole person -- their emotional, mental, physical, and even spiritual well-being -- to achieve outstanding business outcomes. The evidence overwhelmingly asserts that a more humane and human-centered approach to leadership will produce great results.

3. Lead with empathy.

An empathetic leader is important in keeping employees engaged. Empathetic leadership involves investing in the individual contributors on the team and listening and acting on employee needs. However, if managers are not trained to understand how to recognize and respond to these needs, it can negatively impact employee engagement."

Why Ethics Matter For Social Media, Silicon Valley And Every Tech Industry Leader; Forbes, January 14, 2021

Rob Dube, Forbes; Why Ethics Matter For Social Media, Silicon Valley And Every Tech Industry Leader

"At one time, the idea of technology and social media significantly influencing society and politics would’ve sounded crazy. Now, with technology so embedded into the fabric of our lives, it’s a reality that raises legitimate questions about Silicon Valley’s ethical responsibility. 

Should tech companies step in to create and enforce guidelines within their platforms if they believe such policies would help the greater good? Or should leaders allow their technology to evolve organically without filters or manipulation? 

One authority on this fascinating topic is Casey Fiesler—a researcher, assistant professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, and expert on tech ethics. She is also a graduate of Vanderbilt Law School. There, she found a passion for the intersections between law, ethics, and technology."

How to Inoculate Your Team Against Conspiracy Theories; Harvard Business Review, July 30, 2020

Cynthia Wang, 

Jennifer Whitson, 

Tanya Menon, 

Joongseo Kim and 

Brian D. Webster

, Harvard Business Review; How to Inoculate Your Team Against Conspiracy Theories
"Why does this loss of control make conspiracy theories so appealing? Research shows that when people experience loss of control, they tend to search for illusory patterns in their environment. These patterns are appealing because they reduce the environment’s randomness, uncertainty, and disorder — even if the certainty they offer is both ludicrous and unpleasant (such as governments or tech companies plotting to infect the world).

Luckily, it’s possible to inoculate yourself — and others — from susceptibility to these dangerous conspiracy theories. Our work shows that how people think about control determines their vulnerability to these theories. Specifically, we found that individuals with a “promotion-focused” mindset (i.e., those who tend to focus on achieving their goals and aspirations) are more resistant to conspiracy theories than those with a “prevention-focused” mindset (i.e., those who focus on protecting what they already have), because the promotion focus on shaping their own futures involves a greater sense of control."

Movers & Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries; Library Journal, May 2020

Francine Fialkoff, Project Manager and Cofounder, LJ Movers and Shakers, Library Journal; Movers and Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries

"Welcome to LJ’s 2020 Movers and Shakers 

It is my great pleasure to congratulate and welcome the 46 individuals named 2020 Movers and Shakers. They join a distinguished group that is now nearly 1,000 strong. Reading any of these profiles will surely bring a little light into our COVID-19–quarantined days.

The 2020 Movers, like so many librarians and library workers, are passionate about what they do. They’re transforming their communities, schools, and colleges and universities in myriad ways. They’re changing education for children and adults, with innovative approaches to literacy, learning, and teaching. They’re lowering barriers to access for English language learners and those who aren’t connected to the internet—and creating opportunities. They’re empowering voters. They’re redefining archives to include groups that have been marginalized, erased, or misrepresented. They’re devising strategies to make libraries, and our society, more inclusive for everyone.

With most schools, colleges and universities, and public libraries closed due to COVID-19, they’re delivering formerly inperson services virtually and expanding online services on the fly, like so many reading this. For more on what librarians are doing now and insights on what the “new normal” must include, see Meredith Schwartz’s editorial, “Don’t Settle for Normal.”"

A call for ethical use of artificial intelligence; Boston Globe, March 26, 2020

John E. Kelly III, Boston Globe; A call for ethical use of artificial intelligence

"The Vatican document calls for international cooperation in designing and planning AI systems that the world can trust — for reaching a consensus among political decision-makers, researchers, academics, and nongovernmental organizations about the ethical principles that should be built into these technologies.

But we at IBM don’t think this call to action should stop with the Vatican. Leaders of all the world’s great religions, as well as right-minded companies, governments, and organizations everywhere, should join this discussion and effort."

Great Leaders Understand Why Small Gestures Matter; Harvard Business Review, January 13, 2020

Bill Taylor, Harvard Business Review; Great Leaders Understand Why Small Gestures Matter

"Maybe it’s time for all of us to reflect on the wisdom of Getnet Marsha and the performance of Executive Shine. So much of the business culture remains fixated on strategic disruption, digital transformation, and the meteoric rise (and disastrous fall) of venture-backed unicorns. What if we took just a moment to think a little smaller, to act a lot more humbly, to elevate the person-to-person interactions that lead to more meaningful relationships? Sure, successful companies and leaders think differently from everyone else. But they also care more than everyone else—about customers, about colleagues, about how the whole organization conducts itself when there are so many opportunities to cut corners and compromise on values. In a world being utterly reshaped (and often disfigured) by technology, people are hungrier than ever for a deeper and more authentic sense of humanity...

Small gestures—whether signage or speech, body language or handwritten messages—can send big signals about who we are, what we care about, and why we do what we do. Even (maybe especially) in this age of digital disruption and creative destruction, never underestimate the power of a shine with soul or a well-crafted card. Don’t let technology overwhelm your humanity."

Seven Bold Leaders Reveal How Ethical Leadership Is A Boon To Business; Forbes, October 14, 2019

Bruce Weinstein, Forbes; Seven Bold Leaders Reveal How Ethical Leadership Is A Boon To Business

"Ethical leadership in a business benefits the bottom line. It’s also a boon to the people who work for the organization and the people it serves.

The relationship between ethical conduct and benefits is one of the themes of this year’s Global Ethics Day. The Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs created this event nine years ago to provide an “opportunity for organizations around the world to hold events on or around this day, exploring the meaning of ethics in international affairs.”

Last year, I observed Global Ethics Day in this column by asking 20 leaders what “ethics” meant to them. Each provided a one-sentence summary. This year we’re stretching out a bit. I asked seven leaders to provide a concrete example or two of how ethical leadership benefits businesses, employees, clients and communities.

Here’s what they said."

What's The Difference Between Compliance And Ethics?; Forbes, May 9, 2019

Bruce Weinstein, Forbes; What's The Difference Between Compliance And Ethics?

 "As important as both compliance and ethics are, ethics holds us to a higher standard, in my view. It's crucial to respect your institution's rules and policies, as well as the relevant laws and regulations, but your duties don't stop there.

High-character leaders ask, "What is required of me?" but they don't leave it at that. Ethical leaders also ask, "What is the right thing to do? How would an honorable person behave in this situation?"

Ethics as Conversation: A Process for Progress; MIT Sloan Management Review, January 28, 2019

R. Edward Freeman and Bidhan (Bobby). L. Parmar, MIT Sloan Management Review; Ethics as Conversation: A Process for Progress

"We began to use this insight in our conversations with executives and students. We ask them to define what we call “your ethics framework.” Practically, this means defining what set of questions you want to be sure you ask when confronted with a decision or issue that has ethical implications.

The point of asking these questions is partly to anticipate how others might evaluate and interpret your choices and therefore to take those criteria into account as you devise a plan. The questions also help leaders formulate the problem or opportunity in a more nuanced way, which leads to more effective action. You are less likely to be blindsided by negative reactions if you have fully considered a problem.

The exact questions to pose may differ by company, depending on its purpose, its business model, or its more fundamental values. Nonetheless, we suggest seven basic queries that leaders should use to make better decisions on tough issues."

In Memory of Lawrence Roberts The man who actually got the internet going has passed away.; Slate, January 3, 2019

Morten Bay, Slate; In Memory of Lawrence Roberts

The man who actually got the internet going has passed away. 

 

"Why, you may ask, have you never heard of Larry Roberts if he was so influential in developing and implementing technologies still in use five decades later?

First of all, no single person is the “mother” or “father” or the internet. Hundreds of people contributed to its emergence, even in the early years. Second, we unfortunately often confuse achievements with likability and communication skills. The people lauded in the media as internet “fathers,” such as Vint Cerf, Leonard Kleinrock, and Tim Berners-Lee, have all made invaluable contributions. But they’re also excellent storytellers and charming personalities. The soft-spoken Larry Roberts and his stern demeanor didn’t work well on TV, and he spoke in technical facts rather than sound bites. But Roberts, driven by his credo of faster knowledge sharing for civilization’s sake, did more than anyone else to get the job done. Where others theorized, Roberts executed."

Accenture CEO: Diversity and Inclusion Start From Within; Fortune, January 8, 2019

Damanick Dantes, Fortune; Accenture CEO: Diversity and Inclusion Start From Within

"Good leaders succeed by not only treating employees well, but also by measuring the results of building an inclusive work environment. After all, “the real driver of culture [outside of good leadership] is about how it feels to come into work every day,” Sweet says."

The Empress of Facebook: My Befuddling Dinner With Sheryl Sandberg; Wired, December 7, 2018

Virginia Heffernan, Wired; The Empress of Facebook: My Befuddling Dinner With Sheryl Sandberg

"When you’re making money hand over fist, and your company seems to be on the right side of history, it’s natural to think you’re a very moral and whole person, who has made some lovely decisions, and who has a lot to teach other women about work and families. But what about … when the company founders?...

“You know, when I was a girl, the idea that the British Empire could ever end was absolutely inconceivable,” Doris Lessing once said. “And it just disappeared, like all the other empires.”

Empires vanish. The memes that kept them glued together for a short time—from "Dieu et mon droit" to "Bring the world closer together"—are exposed as fictions of state. And the leaders are, surprise, mortals with Napoleon complexes."

How to Identify MBA Programs That Emphasize Ethics; U.S. News & World Report, September 27, 2018

Ilana Kowarski, U.S. News & World Report; How to Identify MBA Programs That Emphasize Ethics

""Students need to ask if ethics is integrated into all classes," Scott MacDonald, the director of the MBA program at the University of Dayton's School of Business Administration, wrote in an email. "Does the curriculum integrate ethics into finance, marketing, operations etc. or does the program just offer a stand-alone ethics class? How ingrained is ethics in the DNA of the school?”

 

Leigh Hafrey, a senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management who teaches courses on professional ethics, says discussion-based ethics courses are particularly valuable. "I have attended many very good lectures on ethics, and that certainly qualifies as a legitimate method to convey ethics instruction, but I do think that the opportunity to participate in the conversation makes a huge difference," Hafrey says. "It gives the student ownership … and invites them to take an active stance on issues of major concern to all of us and the organizations in which we work.""