The Characteristics Needed to Implement a Shared Ethical Culture
A Shared Ethical Culture that is also referred to as workplace ethics, is the set of values, standards, and moral principles expected to be followed by both employers and employees. All a company’s staff should adhere to rules accepted within the culture to ensure the appropriate ethical climate. In this case, BOT Inc. company has a formal code of ethics but intends to change it to a less rigid one, which would complement a new organizational structure as well. Therefore, there is a necessity to re-establish the existing workplace ethics.
It is possible to list characteristics that should be considered for developing and implementing an updated shared ethical culture. A strong values statement is an encapsulation of what the organization stands for and is due for defining workplace ethics because its principles serve as a guidepost for employees (Lighthouseserv, 2019). Then, there should be a code of conduct that enables a company to unite ethical principles with values.
Ongoing ethics training and leading by example are necessary for ensuring the implementation of a shared ethical culture. Finally, integration of values into work processes, establishing a reporting mechanism, and tracking ethics violations are the characteristics of complete workplace ethics that ensure its efficacious operation and help maintain the culture. The mentioned characteristics are needed to implement the desired conduct of any type successfully.
How the Ethical Culture Will be Affected by the Global Context
According to Competing Value Framework, the company’s current focus is the internal one because of its hierarchical structure. However, it is possible to suggest that based on the intentions of the company to become more adaptable and less rigid, the new focus of the enterprise is expected to be external. Thus, either adhocracy or market culture is expected to be adopted, which derives from the necessity to discuss how the new workplace ethics will be affected by the global context.
The external focus of organizational culture implies the more significant impact of the target audience on the company’s decision. Therefore, one of the global implications is the tendencies in the market that will define the strategy the company is to adhere to, which, in its turn, is the key point that affects the ethical culture established. It is advisable that workplace ethics are chosen with consideration of how business is expected to respond to customers’ demands and what is the source of competitive advantages.
The other global implication is inventing modern technologies, which are of great importance for such an innovative business as BOT Inc. This global context is especially vital in the rapidly changing world, as the need for robotics software can be significantly influenced by one or another shift in clients’ technical equipment. Moreover, the risk-taking customer-driven approach BOT Inc. company is expected to stick to already implies the need to focus on adapting the innovative approaches rather than supporting the established ones. A flexible structure that the company will have should be responsive to market changes and designing new technologies related to robotics. It is so because the two global implications can influence the choice of a more appropriate structure and strategy, thus impacting the ethical culture-shifting its focus.
The Current Organizational Structure and Key Questions
Based on the provided data, the current Organizational Structure of BOT Inc. company can be defined as a Centralized Bureaucratic structure. It is so because the SEO of the company has all the authority, and commands are transferred following the strict hierarchy. In this case, there are V.P. Finance and V.P. H.R. responsible for their divisions. However, as stated, the company’s managers intend to change the current organizational structure to a less strict and more adaptable one, which would better suit the needs of the growing enterprise.
It is possible to list key questions the executives need to answer to define and establish the most effective and suitable organizational structure and culture. First, “what are the business’s sources of competitive advantage”? It is based on the fact that the business’s value proposition defines how an enterprise competes and to which extent target customers affect a finished product, which should be considered before decision-making. Then, it is “what organizational structure’s downsides a company agrees to struggle with”? This key question is intended to reveal that weaknesses are less severe for the operation of the company.
The next question is, “what type of leadership and culture are required to achieve the best outcomes?” This consideration enables us to define the desired culture first; based on already existing challenges of BOT Inc. company, the change of the structure is expected to manage. Finally, it is “which organizational practices are required for the new method of managing the company.” By examining this inquiry, executives directly define which structure’s strengths are more suitable for the desired operation of the company. After answering the proposed key question, the business managers must be capable of defining the optimal organizational structure and its complementing type of ethical culture.
The Importance of Ethical Leadership
Ethical Leadership is an essential point to discuss while considering a change in a company’s culture and structure. Leadership styles should complement a chosen strategy and adhere to an ethical climate to ensure the maximal efficiency of a business’ operation and prevent difficulties with communication. Currently, the BOT Inc. company’s leadership style is most likely autocratic, based on the existing structure and culture. However, to implement the changes and suit the new approaches of the enterprise, it is advisable to consider a switch to a transformational leadership style. It is both beneficial for a middle-sized innovative business and for ensuring the success of the growth in the workforce planned.
It is possible to suggest a new structure based on the above discussions provided. A decentralized functional organizational structure can be the best decision in this case. Considering the intentions of BOT Inc. company to become a global one, structuring around distinct responsibilities such as marketing, finance, and others, seems to be a good strategy. I also can derive into dividing the company or regions with the growth of the business. This structure must be complemented with a transformational leadership style and market organizational culture.
Such a decision is selected because of the need to switch the way the company operates to a less strict one, with the possibility of growing the number of employees and expanding the business. It is also beneficial for the workplace ethics and climate because of the opportunity to make it less formal and more innovative. In addition, such a switch is less expensive than other options such as matrix or networked structure. Finally, it would enable the implementation of market or adhocracy structures, both of which are externally focused, which is a due for this case. Therefore, establishing a decentralized functional organizational structure can be recommended.
Reference
Lighthouseserv. (2019). Top 10 Characteristics of an ethical culture. Syntrio Lighthouse Hotline. Web.