Ethics Hotline

In today's increasingly litigious society, companies, universities, churches, charities and the like have a need for viable ways for their members to voice concerns about possible breaches of ethical behavior without fear of reprisal. It takes only one honest voice to bring scandals to light, and an ethics hotline is avenue to enable that voice to speak. This article will examine five benefits that the implementation of an ethics hotline could produce in your organization.

Benefit One: Anonymity
Being able to blow the whistle, so to speak, is far easier when the one blowing it doesn't fear consequences from further up the chain of command - a chain that could be in on whatever ethics violation in question. This is the single greatest benefit that an ethics hotline provides, and the lack of it is the single greatest barrier to possessing a robust and genuine watchdog system. While it may lead to unsubstantiated and spurious "tips" because the subject does not have to provide an identity, the benefits far outweigh this drawback. Without anonymity, ethics breaches are rarely called out by people low in the ranks. Period.

Benefit Two: Strength
Keeping any possible breaches in check strengthens a company. First of all, it strengthens a unit fiscally, discouraging white-collar crimes such as embezzlement. However, a second more subtle strengthening occurs emotionally. Morale is boosted when unethical or uncouth behaviour can be stilted.

Benefit Three: Integrity
If keeping your organization functioning ethically creates inner strength, it also creates outer integrity. Trust is garnished by companies that maintain an untarnished reputation for honest dealing, and who also have a culture of continuing to create such an atmosphere, using such internal management techniques as ethics education to do so. Over the long run, the organization that operates without ethical reproach will outstrip the one with even minor marks against it.

Benefit Four: Finances
As stated above, keeping a tight reign on any possible ethical violations is keeping a tight reign on your profit margin. Even not-for-profit organizations must operate within their budget, so this benefit concerns them as well. Having a venue where members who may become suspicious of financial scandal can save much expense further down the road when the crime has been committed and the cash is unrecoverable. Think if someone had blown the whistle on Enron two years previous to the scandal coming to light. How many billions could have been saved from being stripped from the company shareholders by unethical and unscrupulous executives?

Benefit Five: Peace of Mind
Just knowing that a mechanism is in place to vent any possible breaches in ethical behavior or business practice takes a tremendous weight off one's mind. Even if no conduct is ever reported, an ethics hotline is worth having for any conduct that may come up. As the boy scout's say: Always be prepared.