A recent national poll conducted by Junior Achievement (JA) and Deloitte indicates teens freely admit to unethical behavior today.
A few of the key findings:
- 80% of teens believe they can make ethical business decisions when they join the workforce, yet 38% think they have to break rules at school to succeed nearly half believe that lying to parents/guardians is acceptable with 61% having done so in the past year.
- Only 25% said they would be very likely to reveal knowledge of unethical behavior in the workplace.
Because “moral courage is a missing piece in today’s business environment” says Robin Wise, President and CEO of Junior Achievement – Rocky Mountain Inc., we (JA) decided something needed to be done.
In 2002, in response to high profile corporate scandals and a negative public perception of business prompted the JA staff created a program where executives could engage local high school students in an interactive conversation about personal character and business ethics issues. Called “Capitalism with a Conscience” (CWC), the goal of the program is to help high school students understand that ethics is doing what is right - even if no one is watching, event if it costs more money or takes more time and event if it goes against the majority.
What really makes this program unique is that local business executives visit classrooms to share their own values and beliefs, provide examples of ethics in their day-to-day decision making, and engage students in discussions about real-life ethical decisions they face in school life and personal relationships.
It’s a win for all involved - from business volunteers to teachers to students:
- Gary Lutz, EVP/Head of Private Banking and volunteer from Wells Fargo believes that it might help “if kids could just understand that the unwritten rules of what happens between your buddies are not that dissimilar from what happens in business.”
- “It’s not only a unique opportunity to put yourself in front of students, but it’s a way to give back without having to write a check” states Brian Addy, President and a volunteer from Ad-Venture Capital Management. He continues “we all face ethical decisions that are not necessarily profit oriented and we see it quite often in the news where people just lose their moral compass”.
- “The CWC program helps bring the real world, with its relevant issues, up close and personal for the students”, says Pam Cummings, teacher at Dakota Ridge Sr. High.
- Matt Nicolo, teacher at Thomas Jefferson High believes that “having a business professional come into my classroom and re-emphasize what I’ve taught makes all of the difference in their (students) retention of the material.”
What JA wants to communicate to young people through the CWC program is that the vast majority of business is conducted honestly, and that “business” is an honorable profession to pursue.
“With CWC we hop to teach students a way to make decisions so they can act on their onw values and confront unethical behavior in the classroom, in their jobs, and with their friends”, says Wise. And progress is being made, 22% of teens surveyed said they would act unethically if there was no risk of getting caught compared to 33% a few years earlier.
Obviously, there is still room for improvement. As a business person reading this, we hope you’re ready to influence our future leaders and provide them a foundation for dealing with Capitalism with a Conscience.
Triche Guenin, president of Partners Through Change, Inc., a process improvement consulting firm, and is a business volunteer with Junior Achievement.
As the number of women surpasses men in the workforce, a recent Junior Achievement(JA)-ING poll found striking differences in the opinions of teenage boys and girls when it comes to what motivates them to excel on the job and that tools they consider important in determining career success.