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Do the Right Thing: Synergize Ethics with Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Posted on Sep. 22, 2023  /  Diversity & Inclusion, Ethics  /  Subscribe 0

By Kate Sayers 

Each September, PRSA recognizes Ethics Month to increase attention to the core foundation of the communications profession.

The term “ethics” involves doing the right thing and operating with integrity. It’s important to remember that ethics is not limited to journalism or public relations — it’s a critical tenet in every industry.

The Intersection of Ethics and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) often center on the benefits of an organization’s bottom line. A Harvard Business Review article, “Stop Making the Business Case for Diversity,” confirms this statement. “The vast majority of [Fortune 500 companies] — approximately 80% — used the business case to justify the importance of diversity.” 

However, the authors found that company rhetoric that makes the business case for diversity is not the best way to attract underrepresented job candidates. It may even harm well-represented candidates’ perceptions of a prospective employer, making it appear as a box-ticking activity. 

If organizations must justify their commitment to DE&I, they should make a fairness case — an argument based on moral grounds. To reap the best results, however, organizations should consider not making any case at all. 

Why? “If you don’t need an explanation for the presence of well-represented groups in the workplace beyond their expertise, then you don’t need a justification for the presence of underrepresented groups either,” the authors note. 

If the organization is not ready for the latter approach, then following its moral compass is key. So, how can companies shift from the business case approach to fairness and merge DE&I and ethics to work in harmony? 

According to Aly Colón, chair in Journalism Ethics at Washington and Lee University, “Ethics serves as the soil in which the seed of diversity must be planted.” 

Business leaders need to make progress toward diversifying the workforce by acknowledging the ethical dimensions and responsibilities of DE&I.

Deborah Michalowski, a CPA and former chair of the Committee on Ethics for the Institute of Management Accountants, says that most companies have an ethics policy or code of conduct separate from their DE&I programs.

Ethics and DE&I must permeate at a strategic level and across a company’s entire operation. Bridging the gap between ethics and DE&I begins with establishing policies and implementing systematic training. To start contributing to the solution today and become more ethically and culturally competent, companies can: 

1. Establish or rewrite ethics policies and a code of conduct. A formal ethics policy reinforces and makes explicit the values and principles of the organizational culture, allowing them to be communicated to its stakeholders. A formal policy also provides guidance and support to employees on their workplace conduct. According to the article “Diversity and Ethical Issues in the Organizations,” a policy can also provide context and vocabulary for employees to raise concerns and communicate with their supervisors or directors through various channels. This provides a framework for management and staff to decide on the right thing to do.  

If you’re looking for inspiration when writing ethics policies and codes of conduct, consider this one from Buffer that may help jump-start your process. 

2. Diversify and implement systematic DE&I Ethics training. Written policies must be distributed, and training programs must occur. “Employees can’t be held accountable to rules and company expectations if they don’t know or understand them. This is why training and review are imperative to integrating ethics rules properly into the organization,” says Small Business Chronicle journalist Kimberlee Leonard. 

Be sure not to treat training as a silver bullet. Diversify your approach and invest in a multipronged program inclusive of training, workshops and role-playing; updated hiring and retention practices; normalized flex time; and measurements for impact (i.e., measurement of attitudes and behavior, not diversity metrics). Regularly collecting and reviewing data will tell you how your programs and policies are performing so you can make adjustments. 

About the author: Kate has nearly 20 years of experience in strategic communications and public relations with a deep focus on the legal industry. She is a member of PRSA Tampa Bay’s DE&I Committee.

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