Defining Moments: When Managers Must Choose?

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Table of Contents

Influences that have shaped my ethical values
How personal influences and defining moments affect my workplace decisions
How feelings and intuitions define, for me, the right versus right conflict
A recent right vs. right conflict in my organization
Applying the concept of tent, candle, and plain table
References

Influences that have shaped my ethical values

As we grow up, certain influences shape our ethical values. Some of them are unique to individuals while others are widespread. Four primary elements have greatly influenced my ethical values. These are culture, education, religion, and globalization. I find it true in my case that, “people experience the world as infused with many different values” (Anderson, 1995, p. 1). Having grown up in an Arab nation, my ethical predisposition has a fair degree of influence from the Arabic culture. This defines the way I look at people from other cultures and how I treat them. Arabs are a proud people with a long history written over many centuries. As traders, the Arabic people interacted with people from different parts of the world. The culture has strong elements of respect for all persons since it is impossible to trade with someone you do not respect.

Education has also left a notable mark on me in shaping my ethical values. Through the lessons taught in various classes and training programs, I have had a chance to learn about and practice certain ethical standards, which have instilled ethical values that guide my ethical judgments. Also in the process of learning in schools and other learning institutions, I had the opportunity to interact with various instructors who instilled various ethical values in me by requiring the performance of certain tasks within certain parameters outside of which there would be penalties. This made issues like cheating in exams ethically unacceptable to me. They saw to it that they punished those caught engaging in such actions.

Growing up in an increasingly globalized world, universal values have shaped my ethical values too. These values require all global citizens to be tolerant, understanding, and cordial with all others. I have grown to accept that people look at ethical values differently and therefore I have learned to accept all people in relationships based on mutual respect. Guy implores us to “treat all human beings with fairness (1990, p. 17). It is impossible to interact beneficially with people from across the globe without basing the relationship on international values. This does not mean that it is necessary to disown one’s values, but that their practice is with full regard to what others interpret them to be. The redeeming quality here is that ethical values tend to have the same elements in all places across the globe.

One other significant influence on my ethical predisposition is religion. As a Muslim, I am expected to uphold certain values when interacting with all people, whether of my faith or otherwise. The practice of true Islam requires a commitment to peace with all humanity. This requirement is the basis of all ethical relationships a Muslim should form with other people. Instructions issued to Muslims through religious authorities encourage practices that are ethically sound and acceptable in most settings.

How personal influences and defining moments affect my workplace decisions

Badaracco lists three elements that constitute defining moments. These are revealing testing and shaping. My influences that have formed the core of my ethical values manifest through these elements. It is true that “a defining moment reveals something important about a person’s basic values and his or her abiding commitments in life” (Badaracco, 1997, p. 57).

During these defining moments, I have found out severally that my actions revealed to others and myself what my closely held values are. These moments do not allow for initial rehearsal. They just happen and in many instances, I have to retrieve some form of value outlook to decide on what action to take. When the situation occurs, certain ways of looking at the issue emerge. I see their basis as the primary influences that have contributed to my values in life. I quickly have to decide whether any issues are requiring me to act like an Arab, a Muslim, a global citizen, or an educated person. Depending on the context, some form of influence supersedes the others, but on many occasions, I find that I settle for some position that does not compromise any of my deeply held values.

When I choose a course of action, it usually leads to a moment where I feel as though I am under scrutiny from others and myself regarding my commitment to my ethical values. In some instances, I have risked going counter-culture while in others I have found affirmation from people who share some of these values. These moments of testing normally result from whether I am willing to compromise on something I regard as ethically acceptable or to go for the expedient option. My experience is that sacrificing ethical values at the altar of expedience leads to excruciating internal conflicts. I with the assertion that “Many difficulties with making headway on problems arise from poorly orchestrated and unresolved conflicts – internal contradictions in values, beliefs, and habits” (Heifitz, 1994, p. 5).

I have seen that depending on how well I pass through the testing element, my values receive some form of shaping from the defining moment. Whenever the results were generally acceptable, I felt much affirmed in the ethical values that I hold. On the other hand, as is wont to happen, whenever I have ended up in conflict with others because of differences in value systems, those experiences left me feeling insecure, and only after introspection have I found a reason to continue abiding by my value system. In some cases, I have found that it is better to adjust my outlook to fit in certain contexts because what I hold as ideal values are not necessarily practical and agreeable across the board. This especially applies in multicultural contexts requiring a lot of understanding because of the different cultural values such contexts present.

How feelings and intuitions define, for me, the right versus right conflict

A right versus right conflict is an interesting type of situation. It pits one against him! In real life especially in the workplace, we have to deal with several of these situations, some of which are defining moments. The choice between two logically sound choices is not an easy one for a trained mind since “rational analysis plays a role” (Badaracco & Ellsworth, p. 23). These choices fall in the realm of intuition and instinct and do not lend themselves to training. Badaracco declares that “these reasons are written in a language different from the formal, explicit, logical one with which our mind operates” (1997, p. 72). As a person of the Muslim faith, I have an appreciation of issues that have a similar kind of sense, not easily describable in purely logical terms. The area of intuition compares well to the conscience, which at times will not use pure reason as its basis for taking a position on something. Indeed, anyone with a religious appreciation understands that reason is not a prerequisite for faith.

My initial feelings about a situation normally indicate to me my general acceptance of a situation whenever I have a conflict. I then set to interrogate myself to see if I can see the reasons for the ill-feeling. However, this is not an easy thing to do in right versus right situations. The reason for this is that in these instances, reason seems insufficient for use in distinguishing between these situations. My usual reaction is normally to check on the level of infringement from among the values I hold to decide on the course of action that is in synergy with a greater collection of ethical values I hold. Indeed, it is true that “core ethical values are like beacons in the night that guide you along your desired moral path” (Larimer, 2004, p. 93).

A recent right vs. right conflict in my organization

I went through a trainee program at a Major Bank in Saudi Arabia. During that time, I went through a moment where I had to decide a right versus right nature. I found that “participating in the richness and depth of organizational life often teaches us that what we think, do, and say matters not just in a pragmatic sense but from a moral perspective as well” (Pava, 1999, p. 77). My manager asked for my written honest opinion on a project without realizing that one of my colleagues who had developed the project proposal earlier requested me to provide a recommendation for it as a member of the department. This was a required practice at the bank.

In my view, I was not under any threat in as far as my stay at the bank was concerned since the bank had predetermined the duration of my stay. This meant that providing an honest opinion for the project, if negative, would not have had a significant impact on my future if the colleague knew about it. Besides, if I provided my recommendation for the project despite some elements being unacceptable for the bank, there were no long-term consequences. I feel that my position was not under any threat. My honest view was that the bank stood to benefit from the project. My dilemma was on from which end to support the project.

The project promised many benefits not just for the bank but also its stakeholders. If implemented the bank would have made better profits and would have been involved with the community in its development agenda. This project was not a problem. The deeper question for me was whether supporting the project as a referee was the better part or whether supporting it as an independent observer was the more beneficial one. It was impossible to do both since my superiors would have considered my view biased. This would also risk the outcome of the deliberations for the project. For them to avoid situations like this, Hopkins advised that “Organizations must formulate proactive strategies for creating ethical synergy” (1997, p. 97)

In Machiavelli’s eye’s I had the option of being a fox or a lion. If I chose to be a fox, it meant I would have been satisfied to present a recommendation for the project as one among many. To be a lion meant giving my view to the manager in whose hands the future of the project lay. It was riskier but bolder, and possibly more rewarding. I find that my choice to be a lion in the situation served me well since there wasn’t much personal risk to it, and whatever risk to the project my opinion presented I could well control. However, in keeping with Machiavelli’s admonition, I had to “imitate the fox and the lion” (1999, p. 92). I needed to act in ways that required both the lion’s and the fox’s characteristics. On one hand, I ensured that I did not overtly tell of my opportunity to push the project forward by giving a favorable opinion to the manager, while on the other hand I did not oppose it either, but showed goodwill for it without committing to offer the recommendation my colleague sought. This ensured that no one knew that I had the rare opportunity of providing an opinion to the manager, while at the same time I avoided the accusation of not supporting the project.

Applying the concept of tent, candle, and plain table

Marcus Aurelius refers to an inner retreat, which is a place to “reflect and renew” oneself when he speaks of a tent, candle, and plain table (Badaracco, 1997, p. 124). He does not refer to a physical place but a mental sanctum. It is a place to retreat from the normal hustle and bustle of life, to reflect on the detailed workings of one’s life and the meaning thereof. It is a function of the soul. This may well happen in a distinct physical location but that is not the emphasis. This concept will provide me with the opportunity to renew my strength and vision if I apply it as a leader. It will make possible the interrogation of my motives and provide me with the opportunity to consider the consequences of my actions to others and myself. It will provide me with an opportunity to tell whether I am still true to my ethical values and whether indeed, those values are worth holding anymore.

The importance of this concept especially in the modern world where even sleep and meals are under constant interruption by alarms, text messages, input from television sets, and countless other disruptions that attend to any modern leader’s life. It is a concept that I believe will enable me to perform better than those who do not take a minute off their duties to reflect on the meaning of it all. This reduces them to machine-like operatives, who do not require meaning but just goals and targets. Preparation is indispensable for a leader, and reflection is a key part of this. By going through the issues and the motives one has in a situation, makes them ready to be effective every day. Heifitz and Linsky observed, “Every day the opportunity for leadership stands before you” (2002, p. 1). If I am going to meet the challenge of leadership daily, then I must find time to renew myself and meet the challenges.

References

Anderson, E. (1995). Value in ethics and economics. Boston, MA: Harvard University Press.

Badaracco, J. L. (1997). Defining moments: When managers must choose between right and right. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing.

Badaracco J. L. & Ellsworth R. R. (1993). Leadership and the quest for Integrity. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press.

Guy, M.E. (1990). Ethical decision making in everyday work situations. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group.

Heifitz, R. A. (1994). Leadership without easy answers. Boston, MA: Harvard University Press.

Heifitz, R. A. & Linsky, M (1994). Leadership on the line: Staying alive through the dangers of leading. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press.

Hopkins, W. E. (1997). Ethical dimensions in diversity. California: Sage Publications.

Larimer, L. (2004). Ethical virtuosity: Seven steps to help you discover and do the right thing at the right time. Ontario: Human Resource Development.

Machiavelli, N. (1999). The prince. New York, NY: New American Library.

Pava, M. L. (1999). The search for meaning in organizations: Seven practical questions for managers. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group.

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