How to keep the ethics in the Corporate world

Why do the Corporate Sector slip away from ethics?

First of all, you want to make quick money with less effort and no loss. Business “ek sone ki chidiya hai” and unethical ways will really kill the very life of business. We are not aware of this or it goes out of our sight.

Secondly, to do something unethical it needs a lot of creativity. And to do something unethical, and to get away with it, you need much more creativity. But if the same creativity can be used, to be more creative, to come out with something more productive, the same creativity is invested in your R & D Department, then you don’t need to go into any unethical way at all.

It is intellectual bankruptcy which causes unethical ways in the business. We are not putting our efforts in that direction. If you want to really study the health of a company, you should see how enthusiastic is their R & D Department. Call and talk to them and examine their level of enthusiasm. Then you will be able to see if that company will go upwards, standstill or go down. Give them a small problem - you will know if they can tackle the problem or not. You will know whether they are fit to be in R & D or elsewhere. Most corporates do not give much importance to the R & D department in specially India.

A corporate house only looks at the academic qualification. They see a degree holder and put them in the R & D. Dept. An illiterate or a villager could turn out to be more intelligent and more creative then a Phd. We should recognize this. An intelligent person does not depend merely on the paper certificate or qualification of the individual e.g. an MBA. They see the level of enthusiasm in a person to do something creative. I feel that is a certificate.

If you see Japan, you learn a lot. They develop so much more creativity. When there is creativity, there is no need to go into unethical practice. If our creativity can be channeled into development of products, in R & D, in Marketing and Negotiating skills, we don’t need to resort to unethical ways to sustain or maintain a company. We have to think practically. The ground realities are to sustain, to develop, to maintain, to build. If you don’t have these two things, you will go to the fourth thing which is unethical means of maintaining a company. You need these skills. If you have good negotiating skills we will be able to talk to Govt. Agencies or buyers, then you will succeed.

Americans are very good negotiators, very good in marketing. Japanese and Germans are very good in technology – developing new things - invention. Indians have all the talents, all these three talents. We can be the best in marketing, we can be the best in R&D, and we can be the best in negotiating skills. Unfortunately, we are not utilizing them.

That which gives you short-term joy and long-term problems is that which is unethical. To be unethical is that which gives you short-term joy and in the longer period and makes you miserable. Example – what happened with Enron and so many other companies. Right ethics is that which though you have to hold your breath for a short period of time, would bring long- term success and enable you to enjoy the sustainable development.

Secondly, improving the big communication gap in our Industries. Today, one Manager can easily bring down a company or be responsible for the collapse of an organization due to his manipulation of people who hold the company. Many industries in this country have gone bankrupt due to ego problem. One manager can cause disharmony between the heads of an organization by creating mistrust between them, developing grudge against each other, playing between two people in the family. This is the biggest drawback for the economy of this country. Even between two departments also there is this problem because of ego leading to rift and misunderstanding.

These sort of personal animosity, grudges, have crept into our industry and business. So unfortunate. A certain level of human development, maturity and understanding has become imperative, absolutely essential for the growth of any organization, any society.

The other aspect is stress. When you are so stressed you don’t listen to anybody. There are three kinds of people who do not listen – the stressed, the unhappy, and the deaf. They don’t listen to any reason. Also, if someone is against you, even if they are talking sense because of your hatred you are biased. Even the good things they say you don’t take it. You think they are wrong. So what you do?

First of all recognize these are our problems. Once you know this half of the problem is solved. Next step is to improve communication and develop human values in our set up, in our environment, surroundings. Create a sense of belongingness and a broad vision. Then deal with stress. There are lots of programmes on stress relief. From time to time get together sing, meditate, loosen-up, celebrate now and then.

And instill self-confidence, self esteem in your subordinates. We often point out mistakes of other people and make them feel so guilty that they do not want to go ahead at all the next time. Skillfully point out their mistakes without making them lose their enthusiasm to work again. We need to look at this aspect in life.

Are you all here? Listening? What is happening? What’s happening in the mind? Take a look at your own mind from time to time. Look at yourself. What’s happening inside your mind? By simple self-examination from time to time you will sort out a lot of knots now and then. Becoming conscious of what is happening in your mind, body, in the self.

Another clue, another technique you can follow. When ever you have to do any important job, ethical or unethical, give a fifteen seconds gap. A C.E.O. once wrote a very nasty letter to his boss. He was going to sign off and send it, when suddenly he remembered what Guruji had said; to give a fifteen seconds gap. When he went through the letter again it was so nasty, he himself could not read it. That fifteen seconds gap made so much of difference.

Take home this technique. From today or tomorrow, practice this technique. The mind has a very strange tendency. Anything wrong it wants to do immediately. From now on, you postpone it. If you want to shout at somebody, postpone it to next week. We have a tendency of postponing doing something good. Anything that is good we tend to postpone it to later, to our next lifetime. So, we postpone doing something good and do immediately something that is harmful. So leave a fifteen seconds gap and relax. Be calm. Can you do it?

Look at the world around you! See all those people who have amassed wealth in a fraudulent manner. Where are they? What has happened to them? Are they happy? Are they blissful? Do they have honor? This broad vision of things the way they are can also give us a direction. You could argue that even the Mahabharat war could not have been won without a little ‘yukti’. I don’t expect all the corporate people to be Satya Harishchandras. Don’t need to be. “Yukti lagana hi padtha hai”. But not too much. Yukti should be like salt in the food, without over shadowing the ethics which is the central golden line of our conduct. Otherwise it is not going to be fruitful, yield business or improve things in any manner. Which we have seen time and again with all the examples around us. Isn’t it so? What do you say?

So, channel the creativity in the three areas of productivity, new designs – R & D, negotiating skills and marketing. Are you with me? Attend to the source of creativity. Our consciousness is the source of all creativity. Taking a little time for yourself is a great investment. Not a waste of time at all. Take a few days, spend a week in a year to relax, become calm, meditate, and expand your awareness. And then you will see that you will be able to achieve a lot with less effort. “Intelligent admi kya kartha hai?” Do less and accomplish more. That is a sign of intelligence. Do a lot and accomplish less is a sign of foolishness. This understanding needs to be developed within ourselves. As corporate members take some time off. The more responsibilities you have, the more stressed you are, the more the need for you to take some time off for yourself for 4-5 days in a year. Go some place, meditate and relax. The more responsibilities you have, more is the need to rejuvenate the body , mind and spirit.

Bring out the enormous amount of creativity that is hidden within you. The Creator is within you. There are millions of variety of flora and fauna in the creation, millions of species on this planet. That same consciousness is within us. Everybody spend a little time with yourself. It is the greatest, biggest, most yielding investment for sure.