How to handle it if you witness unethical practices at work

By Dr Joan van den Brink, Executive Coach, management consultant and founder of Araba Consulting

Ethics are moral principles that guide our behaviour. Our morals are formed from a range of external influences such as, parents, schools, religion/spiritual, society, work. These values and principles act as filters for how we view the world and guide how we behave in different situations. Whilst institutions, such as legislators and professional bodies, invest time in defining ethical standards for their members to uphold, they cannot cover every circumstance. Dilemmas arise where there is no clear-cut answer. You can infer from this, that whilst there are some common standards, our ethics are personal. What I might regard as unethical can differ from your perspective of the same act.

What do you do If you witness unethical practice at work? Some of you may immediately determine that the witness is obligated to report the practice to the right authorities. Others may believe that it’s not their responsibility to act. There is no ‘right’ course of action, what you do will depend on:

• What the unethical practice is – is the practice against the rules or illegal? For example, bribery, awarding contracts to suppliers with a direct connection to the contract giver, massaging sales figures, misleading financial reporting, claiming unjustified expenses, using company property for personal use.
• How you personally feel about the situation – this will depend on your personal values and how strongly you feel about what you have witnessed. If the act seems like a minor indiscretion (e.g. fudging expenses) you may turn a blind eye. If the practice clashes with your values and you have a strong reaction, you may feel that you must act. A young lecturer, let’s call her Alice, learnt that a colleague had acted inappropriately towards a student in a public setting. Alice felt that she had to support the student in her grievance claim even though she was not tenured and at risk of losing her job. Alice persevered for the 12 months that it took for the case to be resolved to her satisfaction. Alice told me that she ‘could not have lived with herself’ if she had done nothing, despite the risks to her career.
• The nature of your relationship with the perpetrator – it is hard to speak out and/or act if the person behaving unethically is your line manager or holds some power over you. This is exacerbated if your relationship is difficult.
• The consequences to you and others of any action that you take. There could be personal risks if you act, such as damaging your reputation, losing your job, being side-lined, or otherwise punished. If you are dependent on the income, you may feel that you cannot afford to raise your head above the parapet. Alternatively, you may feel that the consequences are too great to be ignored. Consider Alice, she felt that the university stood for social justice and diversity and inclusion. She had to act to uphold these principles, particularly as there had been witnesses to the inappropriate behaviour.

Dilemmas are not simple to resolve, there may be good, although not necessarily excusable, reasons why the individual has adopted unethical practices. Alternatively, the perpetrator may not realise that what they are doing is unethical. Therefore, it is important to give the person whom you believe is acting unethically a chance to explain.

The following steps will help you to do this.

Seek to understand

Often, we are not in possession of the full picture, and we make judgements based on what we know and infer. An important skill is to try to understand the perspective of the person behaving unethically. Some questions to ponder include: What pressure are they under? What was at stake for them? Future business? Their job? The workforce? New opportunities? The more that we can understand the fuller context, the better informed our decision will be.

Rehearse

It is important to prepare for the conversation and practise what you will say so that you convey that you are open, curious and want to learn. Reflect on your relationship with the individual, how do they respond to being questioned? What is the best way to have a productive conversation with them? How might they react to what you are enquiring about? This preparation helps you to frame the conversation in a way that will be heard.

The conversation is an opportunity for the perpetrator to give their perspective and potentially learn from you. They may not see their behaviour as unethical. They may feel forced into a position they don’t like. They may be relieved that you have approached them. It is important to be curious and ask open questions, such as, ‘Can you tell me more about…’ ‘I am curious about…’ ‘What was your reason for…’ This stance is more likely to get a positive response than if you declare that they have behaved unethically.

Think of this as a dialogue. You need to be curious, open, demonstrate empathy, suspend judgement, and be prepared to speak up. The latter approach will feel like an accusation and is more likely to be met with defensiveness. You may find it helpful to speak in confidence to someone you trust to get another perspective first.

Reflect

After the conversation take time to consider what you have learnt. How does this affect your position? What do you feel is the best course of action now?

If you decide at any stage to do nothing, allow yourself the grace to do that without feeling guilty. Accept that is what you can do in this moment.

Alternatively, if you determine that you need to act, ensure that you draw on your courage, compassion, and wisdom. You can bolster these by showing self-compassion, being true to your values, establishing clear boundaries, show self-care and have a support network whom you can turn to if the going gets tough.

This is an iterative process. At each step of the way, be open to what you’re hearing and prepared to review your position either to speak up or remain quiet.

Dr Joan van den Brink is an Executive Coach, management consultant and founder of Araba Consulting. Her new book, The Three Companions, is available in paperback, priced at £14.99. You can read an extract from the book here.