Even the smallest white lie can cause major damage to your
reputation.
By Laura Tiffany
swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the
truth." It can be difficult to abide by such a vow, especially
at work. But the temptation to cut seemingly innocent corners in
the truth department can damage your business's
reputation--especially if your reputation is the major product of
your business.
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"I'd bet everyone in business makes at least one
ethical decision a day without even knowing it. I do. All I have to
sell in my business is my word and my integrity," maintains
Rhonda Sanderson, owner of Sanderson & Associates Ltd., a
Highland Park, Illinois, public relations firm that specializes in
franchises and small business.
But it's not always easy when your client--the person who
signs your checks--requests you tell a little white lie.
"I've had clients say to me `Can't you just tell them
we'll have 44 units open by then?' when they only have 11
open at the time but have sold 33," says Sanderson.
"It's my job to tell the client this just isn't the
way we do it. Not only will [the press] remember, but they're
never going to write about you again, and they're going to say
bad things about you.
"In my early days of PR, the company I worked for lost a
client because I would not lie for [the client]. That was one of
the reasons I left that firm. I won't lie to the press. I need
the press--they're my bread and butter," Sanderson
explains.
Sanderson started her own company after that 1984 incident but
still faces similar ethical challenges as the boss. "I
[dropped] a client because he lied to his franchisees. [Ethics is]
truly a business decision. If a client treats franchisees or
customers badly, or says `Ha, they'll never know,' [that
client will] do it to you, too. Many respectable companies still
work on a handshake. I don't think I could trust someone I
couldn't work with on that level."
Contact Sources
America's Best Self Storage, (425) 861-7050
Boston Knish Inc., (978) 264-0107, bosknish@earthlink.net
Ethics & Compliance Strategies, (317) 849-1411,
http://www.ethicscompliance.com
Sanderson & Associates Ltd., 2310 Skokie Valley Rd.,
#204, Highland Park, IL 60035, (847) 432-2370
SeaRail International Inc., (713) 223-0022, fax: (713)
223-0729
Society for Human Resource Management/Ethics Resource
Center, (202) 434-8461, ethics@ethics.org
Walker Information Inc., (800) 231-4904, http://www.walkerinfo.com
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