An international audience of over 100 helped launch a field guide to ethical leadership last night, featuring well-known New Zealanders and global businesses, as COVID-19 accelerates the want and need for this guidance and this approach.

Business leaders, media, academics and interested participants from New Zealand and other countries as far afield as Europe and Pakistan tuned into the online event to launch HUMANGOOD.

Co-authored by Wellingtonians James Bushell and Professor Karin Lasthuizen, the book features interviews and practical lessons on ethical leadership from leaders such as Dr Ashley Bloomfield and regenerative farmer Sam Hogg, as well as companies such as ‘Air New Zealand, the Chia Sisters, and global cosmetics company L’Oréal.

A handy and practical toolbox, HUMANGOOD is designed for;

• guide and educate leaders and teams on how to approach ethics in their companies and organizations, and
• help make ethical decisions and implement ethical policies.

It goes “under the hood” of the companies and organizations presented and examines how ethics has a positive impact on their operations. Professor Karin Lasthuizen says it “humanizes” ethics.

“It’s a reminder that there are very real and fallible people behind organizations. In HUMANGOOD, we unpack how they consider their decisions to determine the best actions. Being ethical can be a difficult journey; it can also be nurturing, courageous, inspiring and ultimately change the world around us,” she says.

One such case study is L’Oreal. The beauty giant has been operating for more than 100 years in the world and sells more than seven billion products worldwide each year. The company was among the first to end animal testing in the late 1980s and implemented its first sustainability practices in the 1990s. It also has an online platform, Speak Up, where employees can anonymously raise ethical issues directly with management.

L’Oréal has 75 ethics correspondents worldwide, including Sarah Harper in New Zealand. Her role is to offer day-to-day support to employees on ethical issues, help senior management identify potential ethical risks, and most importantly, handle any reports of unethical behavior through their Speak Up program.

Aurélie de Cremiers, Country Manager New Zealand for L’Oréal, says the mantras ‘trust is the currency of ethics’ and ‘ethics is the beauty from within’ are part of everyday conversations.

“Our ethical values ​​of Integrity, Respect, Courage and Transparency are at the heart of all of our decision-making that helps guide how we work day-to-day, right down to our overall strategies and what we stand for. We care about the planet, our community and our people – so we work hard to put our values ​​into action across the company, with our people and what our brands stand for,” she says.

“Our L’Oréal For The Future sustainability commitments are an example of this, where we challenged ourselves to do better, rather than doing just enough in the previous decade. It is no longer enough for companies to reduce their environmental impact with objectives that they set themselves. In 2020, L’Oréal is committed to ensuring that our activities respect the “Planetary Limits”, i.e. what the planet can support, as defined by environmental sciences.

“It is not easy; however, we are convinced that our ethical values ​​are the foundation that keeps us grounded and gives us the reference to constantly question our decisions in order to ensure that they are the right ones”, says Aurélie of Creamers.

Author James Bushell says HUMANGOOD is a meeting place for kindness, to help people understand how they can be ethical, why it matters, and how change begins – from small businesses to large.

“The ideas shared by companies like L’Oréal are hugely important and demonstrate what it takes to bring about change, no matter the size of your business.

“HUMANGOOD is ultimately a practical guide to business ethics and how people can incorporate ethical decision-making into their business practices. This toolkit shows people how to be (and do) well at work and in life, giving concrete examples – demonstrating how a single decision can create a positive ripple effect that goes far and influences many,” says -he.

James Bushell Says By Publishing HUMANGOOD He Is Responding To Growing Consumer Demand For A Transparent, Ethical And Authentic Ethical Business

“We are all at our own point in the journey towards more ethics. HUMANGOOD illuminates these pathways, to inspire companies and decision-makers to integrate ethics into their daily work,” he says.

HUMANGOOD is available for sale here.

About HUMANGOOD

HUMANGOOD is a meeting place for good, written by experts in their field of ethics and sustainability. Featuring leading New Zealand leaders, companies and organisations, it traces their individual ethical journeys and provides practical tools to help people implement ethical decision-making in their daily operations.

The book is co-authored by James Bushell, a leader in sustainable business and Managing Director of MOTIF, with Professor Karin Lasthuizen, Brian Picot Chair in Ethical Leadership | Aritahi at Victoria University. A field guide to kindness, HUMANGOOD includes interviews and articles on ethics from Ashley Bloomfield, Air New Zealand, FMA, Wakatu, The Chia Sisters and L’Oréal. This toolkit shows people how to be (and do) well at work and in life, giving real-life examples – demonstrating how a single decision can create a positive ripple effect that travels far and influences a lot.

Reference:

Bushell, J., Cain, C., Duncan, LA. and Lasthuizen, K. (2021). HUMANBON. A field guide to ethical leadership. New Zealand: Brian Picot Chair in Ethical Leadership I Aritahi, Wellington School of Business and Government.

© Scoop Media