The now almost 2,400-year-old Hippocratic Oath, named after Hippocrates of Kos (circa 460–370 BC), established physicians’ fundamental obligation to exercise their profession responsibly and to the best of their ability. In essence, the key maxim derived from Hippocrates’ teachings “primum non nocere” (First, do no harm) applies to anyone seeking to exercise their profession responsibly, including management. No doctors, managers, or legal experts can actually promise to do only good, but they can promise not to knowingly do harm. This was what Peter F. Drucker considered to be the fundamental rule of professional ethics and public responsibility.
Bearing in mind management’s noble obligation to practice corporate social responsibility and discuss business ethics and responsibility, the requirement to act responsibly seems precious little to ask. But it is essential to start off with something really simple, yet totally fundamental: a personal decision. One such personal decision is to exercise your profession responsibly.
The main thing people need to do to honor their commitment to professional responsibility is to be responsible for what they do—and occasionally for what they fail to do.1 As Peter F. Drucker pointed out, many discussions about business ethics have nothing to do with business and little to do with ethics. His impression was that the core issue actually boiled down to straightforward, everyday honesty. Accordingly, Drucker’s response to solemn declarations that managers should not steal, lie, cheat, bribe, or be corrupt was that such an outlook had nothing to do with specific business ethics. Moreover, against this backdrop there was no need for such business ethics anyway, because the values in question were of a moral nature, the key factor being basic honesty, which should naturally apply to everyone, not merely managers.
In this connection, senior managers have to assume a special responsibility. As individuals, on the one hand, managers are employees of their organization, and set an example within it, but on the other hand top executives, especially in public, are also representatives of professional managers in general. The problem here is that immoral conduct, especially in senior management, affects the general public’s view of “business.” The portrayal of some top executives in the media and their apparent scope of influence leads people to believe that misconduct by managers is the norm and that “business” itself is equally immoral, corrupt, and dishonest. Consequently, the damage caused by immoral behavior, especially in senior management, extends way beyond the individual’s respective organization. Public debate totally ignores the fact that the vast majority of top managers are honest, responsible, and decent in how they go about their work. In other words, irresponsible behavior by managers divides society, projecting a false picture to the public and eliciting hostility to business—the very last thing a modern society needs! In short, managers serve as role models whether they like it or not. How they behave affects the “bigger picture” in people’s minds and thus also impacts on social cohesion.
Plenty of aspects of management can be learned, but the willingness to assume responsibility for what one does or fails to do is not among them. Occasionally, responsibility can be forced onto people, imposed as a requirement; and individuals can also appeal to another human being’s sense of responsibility, though ultimately the positive decision to act responsibly remains a personal one.
While starting out with the simple principle to, “Above all not knowingly do harm” may not be much—and arguably just represents a modest first step, as doctors following the traditional Hippocratic doctrine have always known—living up to this maxim is no easy matter.
Consider the issue of responsible management in depth and discuss it with others. Have your say!
Take responsibility both for what you have done and for what you have failed to do.
Above all, do no harm.