Integrity is the essence of everything successful. It is a proven concept that has been true in the past while providing direction for the future.
The current research on business integrity reveals new applications for individuals and organizations.
The real value of integrity is that it is collective, not personal. Anna Bernasek, in The Economics of Integrity, argues that integrity matters-not just to our moral well-being but to our economic well being.
She observes that integrity is an essential part of all business transactions. Profitability is a natural outcome of integrity based relationships where sellers are trustworthy and when consumers trust.
These relationships hold everything together and allow the economy to work. Integrity, then, is a shared asset that brings financial rewards. Investing in our collective integrity; is investing in our collective wealth.
Without integrity, nothing works. Dr Michael Jensen, a Harvard Business professor, proposes that “As integrity declines, workability declines, and as workability declines, value declines. “ If you don’t have the right tools or parts to do the job, then the ability to do the job is compromised and value of the final product is diminished.
Maximization of any performance initiative requires integrity. Acting without integrity, he concludes, generates painful consequences just as surely as violating the law of gravity.
Integrity is a strategy for Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) management at PricewaterhouseCoopers. The strategy is built on three principles:
- An integrated approach to GRC fosters a culture of business integrity and accountability;
- The embedding of integrity into organizational structures and processes provides effective coordination of people, process and technology capabilities; and,
- An integral code of business conduct ensures compliance to the letter and spirit of the law.
Integrity is the key driver of marketplace differentiation at Novartis, a leading healthcare company.
At Novartis, integrity means doing the right thing, building a culture of integrity, managing risks, strengthening their reputation and fostering a competitive advantage. They establish performance standards for establishing, promoting and enforcing integrity in all business processes. .
Integrity is about firing on all cylinders. Dr Henry Cloud, a psychologist, states that integrity is the courage to meet the demands of reality. He examines how truthfulness, results orientation, overcoming adversity, continuous improvement and worthwhile purpose are the essential qualities for personal success. .
Integrity occurs when everything clicks and things unfold in an undivided, integrated, intact and uncorrupted manner.
Integrity is in the eye of the beholder. Tony Simons, in The Integrity Dividend, concludes that manages don’t define their integrity, others do. Employees assess whether management words and actions fit.
When employees trust their managers’ integrity, they demonstrate higher levels of engagement. The resulting discretionary effort drives the customer experience and the economic benefit of integrity is actualized. This is the integrity dividend.
Without trust you have nothing, without integrity you can do nothing. Integrity is actionable strategy for today’s business environment.
If you cultivate integrity within yourself and your organization, everyone has a better chance to succeed.
Want to learn more? Contact me at principledynamics@gmail.com or call me at 706-267-0609. I want to speak to you about integrity and how it can help you and all of us.
Douglas Ross is a businessman and an advocate for integrity. He is the founder of Principle Dynamics
