{"id":2300,"date":"2016-03-03T11:48:32","date_gmt":"2016-03-03T16:48:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/questrom-magazine\/?page_id=2300"},"modified":"2019-11-14T12:57:51","modified_gmt":"2019-11-14T17:57:51","slug":"how-ethics-can-boost-the-bottom-line","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/questrom-magazine\/spring-2016\/how-ethics-can-boost-the-bottom-line\/","title":{"rendered":"How Ethics<\/span> Can Boost the Bottom Line"},"content":{"rendered":"

Christian \u201cChris\u201d F. Martin IV rose to be CEO of C.F. Martin & Co<\/a>. at a critical juncture for the venerable guitar manufacturer. Demand for acoustic instruments was down\u2014sales trumped by those of electric guitars for the first time ever. A strike had lowered morale. Several recent acquisitions had not worked out well, and the company was saddled with excessive debt. The future of the 153-year-old firm was in jeopardy.<\/p>\n

Martin (BSBA\u201978) had joined the family business after studying at Questrom, where he was powerfully influenced by a course that explored the fundamental role of corporate ethics in organizational behavior. \u201cThe professors were trying to convince us that something needed to change in American manufacturing, and that we needed to move away from a hierarchical, top-down structure,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n

After taking the helm in 1986, Martin quickly put the principles he learned into practice. He signaled his commitment to open communication and transparency, inviting employees to share their views and hiring consultants to help guide him in developing best practices. One of his early moves was to start taking colleagues from all grades on Outward Bound courses to inspire them with adventurous outdoor education programs\u2014and show he was available for their questions. He instituted a profit-sharing initiative that has given millions to the company\u2019s employees, who now number 600 at its Pennsylvania headquarters, according to PennLive<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

\ufffcChristian \u201cChris\u201d F. Martin IV says the changes he’s made as CEO of Martin & Co. should not be viewed as\u00a0beneficence, but strategic investments.\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Photo courtesy of C.F. Martin & Co.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

Over the years, Martin has also turned to his colleagues to help him build an ethical framework for Martin & Co., which now has a mission statement<\/a> that emphasizes diversity, fairness, and honesty, as well as innovation, craftsmanship, and managing risk. \u201cIt\u2019s not enough to send the memo or the email,\u201d he says. \u201cYou have to say, \u2018We\u2019re changing the way we do business, and here\u2019s why\u2014and what do you think about it?\u2019 And you really have to draw this out of people, so that they will tell you: \u2018If you do that, the consequences in my department are going to be this.\u2019 It\u2019s hard stuff, and a lot of companies don\u2019t want to take the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

And because the brand is closely linked with the fine woods\u2014the tonewoods\u2014used to craft its instruments, sustainable forestry is a natural area of focus for the company\u2019s ethical framework. As part of its commitment, the firm recently partnered with Central American Timber<\/a> to build a low-energy kiln for a Guatemalan community organization dedicated to sustainable forestry practices. \u201cOur primary raw material is rare exotic timbers,\u201d Martin says. \u201cWe have to be judicious about our resources, and we support the people who source them. This is the long game. We\u2019ve been doing this for a long time, and I want us to be doing this for many years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is adamant that all of the changes he\u2019s instituted be viewed not as beneficence, but as strategic investment. \u201cI am focused on profit,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m a successful entrepreneurial capitalist, and profit is the fuel that allows us to buy better equipment, to buy our raw materials. But I have to frame it in terms of what it can do for the company going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 1982, the company produced just 3,153 instruments, according to Walter Carter\u2019s history of the firm, The Martin Book<\/em><\/a>. Today, the company says it\u2019s setting sales records\u2014a report in LVB.com<\/a> had 2014 revenues at $100 million.<\/p>\n

The hard work that Martin began his tenure with, of improving open communication and transparency, is essential for building an ethical corporate culture, says Kabrina Krebel Chang<\/a> (CAS\u201992), a clinical associate professor of law and ethics in the Markets, Public Policy & Law<\/a> Department at Questrom. She describes a cascading effect in which the well-being of a stakeholder group, such as a firm\u2019s employees, flows outward to serve the brand. \u201cIf you can make your employees feel invested, valued, respected, and trusted, they also feel proud of the business and want to do the right thing by the business\u2014and that motivation spills out into the community,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Chang gives the example of Starbucks<\/a>. In 2008, former CEO Howard Schultz returned to a company that was struggling. He later told Harvard Business Review<\/em><\/a> that the company needed to worry less about share prices and more about core values. One bold move saw\u00a0all stores closed for three hours for staff training, despite the obvious hit on profits. \u201cWe built Starbucks not through traditional marketing or advertising but through the experience,\u201d said Schultz. \u201cAnd that experience can come to life only if people are proud, if they respect and trust the green apron and the people they are representing.\u201d In October 2015, Starbucks reported record results\u2014Q4 revenues jumped 18 percent.<\/p>\n

Stakeholders Not Stockholders<\/h3>\n

Cars rigged to cheat emissions limits. Salmonella-tainted peanut butter. Drug company profiteering. The risks of unethical corporate behavior extend beyond the devastating damage a scandal can bring to a firm\u2019s reputation, to threaten people\u2019s lives, the environment, and the economy. In a December 2015 op-ed in the New York Times<\/em><\/a>, former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich argued that the ethical lapses of the largest corporations are endangering the continuing success of the global market: \u201cThe real threat to capitalism is no longer communism or fascism but a steady undermining of the trust modern economies need for growth and stability.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Martin is adamant that all of the changes he\u2019s instituted be viewed not as beneficence, but as strategic investment. \u201cI am focused on profit,\u201d<\/span> he says. \u201cI\u2019m a successful entrepreneurial capitalist.\u201d<\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI wish all of our courses on this subject could be retitled to \u2018Leadership Decision-Making,\u2019\u201d says Laura Pincus Hartman, director of Questrom\u2019s Susilo Institute for Ethics in the Global Economy<\/a> and a clinical professor of business ethics & values. \u201cEthics is about decision making, and making decisions that are aligned with our values. It is a fundamental part of business strategy. It is the umbrella, determining how you make every decision. Every firm that is successful and wants to be sustainable builds this in, through its mission and statement of values.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartman is at the vanguard of a movement of business leaders that seeks nothing less than alleviating global poverty by rethinking the way we understand corporate ethics. At food giant Danone<\/a>, top managers and directors have salaries pegged to social targets such as workplace safety and environmental factors; South Africa-based Econet Wireless<\/a> partners with Danish energy company Vestas<\/a> to bring wind-based power to small communities in southern Africa. Yet the ethical transformation Hartman champions is not about trading modern capitalism for Robin Hood philanthropy. \u201cRather than think of a firm that is only focused on the good of its stockholders, what we need to do is think about a larger group of stakeholders<\/em>,\u201d Hartman says. \u201cBy considering those interests, a business will make more money\u2014 and better serve its stockholders.\u201d<\/p>\n

\ufffc<\/p><\/div>\n

Stakeholder theory can be applied to corporate strategy in a myriad of ways, and certainly most firms with a serious mission and statement of values consider stakeholders in one sense or another. Stockholders, clients, potential customers, employees, suppliers, the media, members of the community in which a firm operates, governments, nonprofit organizations, and even other companies are all prospective stakeholders. But business ethics have generally been viewed through a firm-centered lens, in which corporations and their employees and representatives make decisions for the best interests of the firm and its shareholders\u2014with profit first and foremost.<\/p>\n

In a decentered ethical frame of reference, on the other hand, business leaders view their firms as part of a network of stakeholders who are dependent on and influenced by one another.<\/p>\n

Profit isn\u2019t secondary, emphasizes Hartman, but the path to boosting the bottom line is different. The viewpoints and voices of a broad range of stakeholders are brought into every stratum of corporate culture, from inviting diverse perspectives into everyday decision-making to long-term strategic planning that considers the repercussions of decisions on groups far from the corporate boardroom. When People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals<\/a> (PETA) hit The North Face<\/a> and Patagonia<\/a> with accusations of animal cruelty in the sourcing of the down commonly used in winter jackets, the two companies met with the nonprofit to figure out a response. Both investigated their supply chains and made changes, updating sourcing standards and making them public.<\/p>\n

Those in favor of the decentered model say it helps decision-makers take a global view, encourages creative thinking, supports transparency and open communication, and provides tools to assess and mitigate risk. Hartman believes it may also hold the key to replacing corporate charitable giving with a more sustainable, effective, and mutually beneficial philanthropy, as corporations build strategic partnerships with the communities in which they operate\u2014bringing stability and economic independence as they cultivate prosperous new markets.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a broader, more progressive perspective, and it\u2019s also a more strategic perspective,\u201d Hartman says. \u201cIf we listen to the community and the media and our competitors\u2014if we invite them to the table and really listen to them\u2014then we\u2019re going to make more money, and then our stockholders are going to be happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

If you ask me today if I would ever cheat, I would say no.<\/span> But the fact is that at some time in the future, I might be in a situation where there are influences on me that might get me to compromise my values.
\n\u2014 Laura Pincus Hartman
\n<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

Some may worry that corporate values (profit, legal standards) and societal ideals (honesty, a commitment to do no harm) could sometimes come into conflict in practice. An ethical firm treats its employees fairly. But values that are in the employees\u2019 best interests, such as fair compensation or family-friendly policies, may seem to clash with the best interests of the stockholders, the maximizing of profits.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose policies actually lead to a more committed, loyal, and sustained workforce with less attrition and lower training costs,\u201d says Hartman. \u201cThose elements are all in support of profits and stockholder interests. So, in the long run, interests are aligned.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a study published in the Strategic Management Journal<\/em><\/a> in December 2014, researchers at New York University and the University of Pennsylvania tested the profitability of stakeholder theory. In a 15-year analysis of 26 gold mines, they found \u201cexistence of a direct positive and economically substantive relationship between stakeholder support and financial market valuation.\u201d Companies were also more likely to complete projects on time and on budget.<\/p>\n

Within this framework, acting for social good need not be antithetical to wealth creation; indeed, Hartman argues that a solid ethical foundation is crucial to a business\u2019 success and sustainability over the long term.<\/p>\n

Making Defensible Decisions<\/h3>\n

While family-friendly policies might seem like an easy win, other decisions will be more complex\u2014and fraught. Moving factories and other job sites outside of the United States may boost profits, but these actions have repercussions not only on the laid-off workers, but on their families and the communities in which they work. Countering the conflicts of interest that can lead to unethical behavior requires the expansion of one\u2019s point of view. \u201cTwo people can have different perspectives on a set of facts, and different perspectives on a decision to be made,\u201d Chang says. \u201cThis doesn\u2019t mean that one is right and one is wrong. The true value comes when you are able to talk about a decision knowing that these different perspectives exist. You don\u2019t make a narrow decision in a vacuum, without looking at all of the potential consequences. It\u2019s a more holistic analysis, and it puts you in a better position to make a smarter move\u2014a more well reasoned, more easily defensible decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even the strongest mission statement and most principled leadership are not alone sufficient to ensure an ethical corporate culture. Indeed, the shift to a decentered ethical model reflects recent scholarship on how our minds work.<\/p>\n

<\/p><\/div>\n

A growing body of research in the field of behavioral economics has found that context affects our ability to judge whether our actions have slipped out of alignment with our values. These cognitive biases call into question our concept of ourselves as rational\u2014and ethical\u2014decision-makers.<\/p>\n

For example, in study after study, subjects overestimate their ability to act ethically under adverse circumstances. \u201cIf you ask me today if I would ever cheat, I would say no,\u201d Hartman says. \u201cBut the fact is that at some time in the future, I might be in a situation where there are influences on me that might get me to compromise my values. And these experiments are showing that in circumstances when we are under pressure, we might not act the way we thought we would\u2014simply because we are human.\u201d<\/p>\n

That pressure can be explicit, as in a supervisor using the threat of demotion or another punishment to coerce a subordinate into an unethical action. Often, however, the pressure is subtler. Misapplied incentives, says Chang, can lead people to do things that we don\u2019t want them to do. If commissions or promotions are based solely on dollars brought in, for example, is it surprising that immediate sales will take priority over long-term customer satisfaction? Training alone is not sufficient to counteract these \u201cethical blind spots;\u201d not even the most experienced leaders are immune. One recent study, published in the December 2015 issue of the Strategic Management Journal<\/em><\/a>, found a correlation between CEO compensation and the quality of a firm\u2019s products: the higher the proportion of stock options in CEO pay packages, the more likely a firm was to have product recalls.<\/p>\n

Another blind spot arises from the fact that we tend to make decisions using only the information in front of us\u2014using the facts that we see, rather than the facts that we need. \u201cA better approach,\u201d says Chang, \u201cis to look at what you have and then ask, \u2018What else do I need to make this decision\u2014not only to cover all of my bases but to consider all of the potential impacts?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Diverse voices may push us outside of our comfort zone, but they also open the door to new ideas, providing the raw materials for true innovation. \u201cOne of the tools that we don\u2019t often utilize in our toolbox is something called ethical imagination,\u201d Hartman says. \u201cSo you work at VW, and you\u2019ve just found out about this technology that seems to have been designed to get around emissions testing, and you are being pressured to do something that is in conflict with your values. What do you do? Your first response may be, \u2018Well, I have no choice.\u2019 But of course you have a choice. You could quit, you could go to the Feds, you could go to the media.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a corporate culture that incentivizes unethical behavior, we may need to step outside that culture in order to see clearly, Hartman says. Not enough people \u201ctake a moment to stop and breathe\u2014and we don\u2019t share our problem with others. Go ask your mentor; go ask your mom. Take the time, and something will come to you as an alternative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cultivating ethical imagination requires openness and creativity. As part of a business ethics course at Questrom, second-year MBA students have the opportunity to learn basic improvisational skills from an expert in theater arts. In the classic improv exercise \u201cYes, and…,\u201d scene partners take turns building on one another\u2019s ideas. No idea gets killed and everyone is forced to listen to the person before them. By learning to respond \u201cYes, and…\u201d business leaders push themselves to look outside of their own fixed world views to consider, and then creatively build upon, another perspective.<\/p>\n

\n

Don\u2019t Do That<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019<\/strong>t<\/strong> Make decisions in a vacuum. Get outside perspectives to understand all potential consequences.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019<\/strong>t<\/strong> Misapply incentives. If commissions are tied only to dollars brought in, is it surprising if immediate sales take precedence over long-term customer satisfaction?<\/p>\n

Don\u2019<\/strong>t<\/strong> Think there\u2019s no choice. If you see unethical behavior, there\u2019s always a choice: quit, blow the whistle, go to the media.<\/p>\n

\n

Do This<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Do<\/strong> Make ethics part of your strategy. It should be the umbrella that determines how you make every decision\u2014not just a responsibility.<\/p>\n

Do<\/strong> Be open and transparent. Valued and respected employees will want to do the right thing for your business\u2014and community.<\/p>\n

Do<\/strong> Ask your mom. In a tight spot? Take a moment, breathe, and share the problem with a mentor\u2014or relative.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The Triple Bottom Line<\/h3>\n

As the strands of the web of stakeholders extend outward, astute strategists will see opportunities for innovations that can benefit those groups, as well as the firm itself. In an environment open to new ideas, these initiatives\u2014like the Martin & Co. kiln in Guatemala\u2014can emerge organically from a well-defined corporate mission.<\/p>\n

Hartman says we should stop using the term \u201ccorporate social responsibility.\u201d She teaches instead the importance of an intelligent corporate social strategy<\/em>. \u201cI\u2019m not talking about putting my hand in my pocket, pulling out cash, and supporting something,\u201d she says. \u201cBut if a corporation has a strategic interest in contributing to a social objective, that should be encouraged.\u201d<\/p>\n

In creating a successful social strategy, Hartman quotes three essential steps outlined by Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer in the 2006 Harvard Business Review<\/em> article, \u201cStrategy and Society: The Link Between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility\u201d<\/a>: First, identify your mission. Second, identify your company\u2019s particular skill set. Finally, link that skill set with a specific set of problems you are equipped to solve\u2014and from which you can gain the best competitive benefit.<\/p>\n

Hartman tested this approach in vivo. Twenty years after Chris Martin introduced profit sharing at his family company, Hartman joined her brother Mark Pincus<\/a>\u2019 firm, the social gaming company Zynga, as director of external partnerships for the firm\u2019s philanthropic arm, Zynga.org. In the wake of Zynga\u2019s tremendous success with games like Words With Friends<\/em><\/a> and FarmVille<\/em><\/a>, Pincus wanted to develop a social strategy for the company.<\/p>\n

Hartman and her colleagues at Zynga.org began by looking at the parent company\u2019s mission: \u201cConnecting the world through games.\u201d Zynga\u2019s skill set\u2014its area of expertise\u2014is social games. Its social strategy, then, began with games. If you were playing FarmVille<\/em> on Facebook in January 2010, you might have seen a pop-up asking if you\u2019d like to help those affected by the earthquake in Haiti: instead of leveling up or buying a new seed for a dollar, players could send their dollar to the World Food Programme<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In directing the Zynga.org strategy, Hartman selected nonprofit partners that worked internationally and would be able to account for every dollar contributed. By sharing the information with those who chose to donate, Zynga.org connected donors to recipients, thus supporting the parent company\u2019s values. \u201cOur mission was to connect the world,\u201d she says, \u201cand so we were working on a global level and creating real connections through reporting and transparency.\u201d<\/p>\n

The strategic benefits for the parent company were numerous, Hartman found. Game players were often willing to spend more (or buy more) if they knew their money was supporting a good cause. Following up with information about how the donated money was being spent kept users in contact with Zynga. Players shared their good deeds on social media, and encouraged others to do the same. And the opportunity to do good fostered a general feeling of goodwill toward the gaming company, strengthening the brand.<\/p>\n

Since 2009, the nonprofit has raised nearly $22 million for global disaster relief, education, and health, demonstrating that a well-thought-out ethical strategy can lift all boats, with each component of the triple bottom line\u2014social, environmental, and financial well-being\u2014supporting the prosperity of the others.<\/p>\n

Questrom’s Susilo Institute for Ethics in the Global Economy will host its inaugural annual symposium in Surabaya, Indonesia, on May 28, 2016.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Christian \u201cChris\u201d F. Martin IV rose to be CEO of C.F. Martin & Co. at a critical juncture for the venerable guitar manufacturer. Demand for acoustic instruments was down\u2014sales trumped by those of electric guitars for the first time ever. A strike had lowered morale. Several recent acquisitions had not worked out well, and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10779,"featured_media":0,"parent":2285,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"story.php","meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow Ethics Can Boost the Bottom Line - Questrom Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/questrom-magazine\/spring-2016\/how-ethics-can-boost-the-bottom-line\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Ethics Can Boost the Bottom Line - Questrom Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Christian \u201cChris\u201d F. Martin IV rose to be CEO of C.F. Martin & Co. at a critical juncture for the venerable guitar manufacturer. 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