Key Takeaway 1: Conscious companies - those that are fueled by passion and purpose - perform better in the long run over non-conscious companies.  This is because their values line up from the Board to the CEO all the way down to the employees and across the value chain, as well as the customer (Anderson, 2023).

Key Takeaway 2: Leaders should follow these principles: Respect Others, Manifest Honesty, Serve Others, Build Community, and Show Justice (Northouse, 2012).

Key Takeaway 3: The choices leaders make and how they respond in a given circumstance are informed and directed by their ethics and influenced by their moral development (see Exhibit 1).  Therefore, ethical theories when applied to leadership are about the actions of leaders and who they are as people.  These theories are classified into 3 categories that are influenced by the leader's concern for self-interest vs. their concern of the interest of others as seen in Exhibit 2: Ethical Egoism, Utilitarianism, and Altruism.  It is important to note that the values promoted by a leader have a significant impact on the values exhibited by their organization (Northouse, 2012).

Analysis: Ethics is a requirement for leaders as a leader's decision directly impacts the lives of their followers as well as the values exhibited by their organization.  Thus, they must be responsible in their decisions, which are directed by their ethics and influenced by their morals.  When ethics align throughout an organization it has direct impact on culture.  When those ethics take into account the interest of others, then the organization and its culture take on purpose.  With purpose driven organizations and companies (i.e., conscious companies) performing better on the long run, it is worthwhile to choose and grow leaders who demonstrate concern for the interest of others (their followers, their stakeholders, and their customers).  

Application: I work for a purpose-driven company.  Mission drives who we are and our culture.  As a leader, I will continue to exemplify our ethics, purpose, and values so I can lead by example.  I will also hold other leaders accountable for upholding our ethics and mentor my followers in being ethical and instilling in them the same sense of purpose and mission that drives my passion.

References

Anderson, R. M. (2023). Leadership Mindset 2.0.  Columbia: Executive Joy!  https://rmichaelanderson.com/leadership-mindset-2-0/ 

Northouse, P. G. (2012). Leadership: Theory and Practice 6th Edition.  Los Angeles: Sage Publications.