The ability of leaders to exercise their ethical compass at work may be influenced by their personality, suggests a recent study by the Centre for Synchronous Leadership.
Researcher Justine Lutterodt conducted in-depth interviews with 15 business leaders from the professional services sector to examine their approach to ethics at work. She was due to present her research at the 1st International Congress of Coaching Psychology on 14 December.
Lutterodt targeted leaders in senior positions, ranging from director to CEO. “I wanted to get a clearer picture of whether leaders in these prominent positions ever perceived a conflict between their personal values and business interests. If so, how? And what was their response?”
By grouping themes from the stories that emerged, Lutterodt found that leaders fell into four distinct segments. Interestingly, these appeared to align with two well-established personality dimensions.
“All leaders seemed concerned with doing the ‘right thing’. However, their way of defining this at work and the actions they were willing to take differed substantially according to segment.”
The study concludes that each segment of leaders appears to have strengths and weaknesses when promoting an ethical environment. There is an opportunity for coaches to contribute by raising leader awareness of their natural tendencies, and fostering appreciation for those who think differently among their team.
“I’ve already found that segmentation has provided me with invaluable insight into where I’m likely to encounter inconsistencies and points of tension with clients. By highlighting these, I provide a safe place for clients to explore how to integrate their ethical sense with their business sense, and determine when it is appropriate to challenge the status quo.”
See the next issue for more stories from the conference