Leading with integrity Leading with integrity

Integrity is paramount in leadership. The defini­tion of integrity has been hotly contested for years in theory and practice. As re­searchers and practitioners work to bridge the gap between Merriam-Webster and what occurs in practice, the definition of integ­rity has begun to take shape. The current understanding of integrity, at its core, is the combination of both consistencies in words and actions as well as the adherence to morality and one’s values in these actions.

Assessing integrity

A leader’s actions are indeed central to integrity, but followers and stakeholders are those who assess this integrity on a daily basis. Although each individual judg­es a leader’s integrity differently, Kathryn Christie believes there is consensus regarding some of the criteria through which they screen their superiors. Laws, codes of conduct and ethical standards, as well as informal norms and values expected by stakeholders, are three major ways in which followers assess the integrity of their leader.

As a leader, one can signifi­cantly impact the assessment of their integrity in various ways. By knowing your values and what is expected of you, by showing your values, and by leading through your values, as a leader you can espouse and enact integrity that will lead to greater organisational effectiveness and build lasting trust.

Nobody is perfect and this last­ing trust will inevitably be shaken some time over your tenure as a leader. Acting without integrity can severely damage trust, but there are ways in which you can be prepared. By keeping your word, telling the truth being transparent in your actions and giving unconditionally, you can always rebuild trust and regain your integrity as a leader.

After creativity, integrity has been ranked the second most essential leadership quality for the coming years by CEOs, stressing the importance of integrity in decision-making and leadership. Indeed, integrity is often cited as a key leadership expectation and employees consistently demand integrity from their immediate supervisors. Moreover, integrity itself can predict job performance, counter-productive work behaviors, and leadership across job types. Despite its importance and rele­vance to business today, research­ers and practitioners alike struggle to reach consensus about the true definition and scope of integrity in practice.

Defining integrity

Merriam-Webster defines in­tegrity as: “a firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values”. Currently, there is a debate over if integrity is simply acting consistently with what you say, or if it should contain a moral and ethical element as outlined in the dictionary. Although, in its most basic sense, integrity does not con­tain a moral and ethical element, leading with integrity must be defined not only as consistency, but also as acting in a morally consis­tent matter that is harmonious with your values and statements. If in­tegrity is seen simply as consisten­cy, the most unpleasant of leaders could still be defined as possessing integrity if they act consistently with their espoused values, regard­less of how detrimental the values may be. Thus, leadership integrity will be elaborated as the act of being morally trustworthy, honest, true to oneself, and/or acting in accordance with what one says.

Given this understanding of in­tegrity as consistency and morality, it can then be stated that integrity is, in fact, not a value. Integrity is much more than a value. Values, defined by Merriam-Webster as “a person’s principles or standards of behavior and one’s judgments of what is important in life”, are essential components of success­ful leadership. Indeed, managerial values have been shown to strongly influence organisational behaviour. With this knowledge, we can then look at integrity as the piece of the puzzle that gives meaning to one’s values. It is one thing to have a strong set of core values as a lead­er, but it is another thing to have strong moral values, share them, and act consistently according to them on a daily basis. The latter, then, is the true embodiment of integrity.

Integrity in the eye of the beholder

Bill George in ‘Authentic Lead­ership’ articulates that integrity that is not just the absence of lying, but telling the whole truth, as painful as it may be. “If you do not exercise complete integrity in your interac­tions, no one will trust you.”

An individual’s perception that their leader has integrity signals that it is reasonable and appro­priate to base decisions on and to follow what their leader currently promises and supports. This, in turn, will allow the follower to feel confident in and believe in what their leader says and what they will do, which is the very foundation of successful leadership.

As no two people see the world in the same way, the perception that a follower has regarding the integrity of their leader and the subsequent impact on their desire to follow becomes very compli­cated. Indeed, depending on the characteristics of a given follower, they will tap into varied categories of information and beliefs before attributing integrity to their leader. Although this is the case, there is an essential element of integrity from a follower’s perspective, which is that it is connected with a concept of what is “good”. This concept of “good” is judged through the consistency with which this moral “goodness” is professed and enacted.

Thus, the perception of integ­rity is connected to the idea that a leader is “good” and moral, but a follower’s attributions of integrity also require a very high standard of consistency that would eradi­cate any concerns that followers may have about the leader’s moral virtue. This final element brings together both the morality and consistency elements of our defi­nition of integrity into a follower’s understanding of a leader’s integri­ty and inherent “goodness”.

How, then, do followers actually judge this inherent “goodness” that a leader must possess in order to have integrity? According to Dr. Six there are three distinct lenses through which followers judge leader integrity and create percep­tions of their leader. First, a leader must act in accordance to societal laws, the basic rules and regulations of society. Once leaders adhere to these laws, they will then be judged against the codes of conduct and ethical codes of their particular in­dustry and profession. These codes of conduct and ethical standards drive business actions and deci­sions within a given industry, such as the ethical standards embedded in the law profession. These codes are often created and reinforced by professional associations and soci­eties. If leaders succeed in acting in accordance with these standards, they will most importantly be judged against the informal norms and values expected by stakehold­ers.

Developing integrity

Know your values: The first and most vital element to developing integrity is to know exactly what you stand for and what you truly value. It is easy enough to recite your organisation’s values as those that you promote, but often times these are not your true, personal standards of what you believe to be “right” and “good”. Your values must define your character; your values must define you. There are many different ways to explore your values, but the most import­ant method is through self-aware­ness and reflection. In the fast-paced world that leaders work in, we often forget to take the time to reflect on who we are and what we stand for.

Know the standards: In addition to knowing your values, you must have a keen understanding of what your followers, teammates, and organisation as a whole value. Do whatever you can to discover the standards of integrity that are es­poused by those around you. Think of it as a 360-degree investigation of what is expected of you and your values. Most importantly, if you are to lead with integrity in the eyes of your followers, you must know what they currently perceive and what they expect. No leader is an island, and you are only as “good” as your followers believe you to be.

When trust is broken, relation­ships are strained and we must work to rebuild it and repair the very bonds that are the organ­isation’s lifeblood. By focusing on your skills, and leading and managing with morality, you will build and reinforce an environ­ment where integrity will prevail. Focusing on integrity will lead to stronger and more trusting rela­tionships.

BY CAPT SAM ADDAIH