Integrity as a Company Aim - Ethics as a Challenge for the Employer

Prof. Dr. Dr. Ulrich Hemel is speaking at Schloss Köngen on 7th June 2005 

Is ethical behaviour in industry actually worth it?

Only a few speakers can provide a competent stance on this issue and offer perspective. As a lecturer for Catholic theology, management consultant and chairperson of the board, Professor Hemel has got to know the challenge of ethical behaviour “in practice” and has drawn his conclusions.

At our event on 7th June 2005 at Schloss Köngen, our guests were extremely satisfied and thanked the speaker for his committed and highly-competent speech. The lively discussion with many questions showed that this issue is a subject important to everyone personally, with many different facets from private and commercial life.

Ethical behaviour and intergrity

Integrity combines economical and ethical aims into one long-term horizon! Is ethical behaviour in industry actually worth it? Summary: in the short term, not always; in the long term, very much so.

You can argue about the issue of whether a moral property such as integrity can be a company objective? Is ethical behaviour possibly just a detour to a better image and economic success of a company which is not really meant all that seriously? The reverse is true, but people combine their economic behaviour with the search for sense, life design and expression of the individual person. And so does the entrepreneur!

You can even formulate the question in this way: is the creation of economic added value possible without simultaneously creating ethical added value? Without a doubt, it comes down to trust. Without a minimum of trust, economical behaviour is not possible. Trust becomes the catalyst of adding value, and is therefore the connector between the ethical added value of commercial activities. Ethical and economical objectives are interrelated on the long-term horizon in the value of integrity in terms of the trustworthiness and reliability of commercially trading people. In addition, the issue remains that the risks regarding this must be observed, as ethical behaviour alone still does not guarantee economic success. Ethical behaviour within companies must, therefore, be focussed on the special reality of economical behaviour. It must be professional and follow the priority of adding value. At the same time, the issue at hand is transparent communication and personal responsibility. 

Impressios of the event with Prof. Dr. Dr. Ulrich Hemel