Copyright © 2018 by Barney Rosenberg President, Ethics Line, LLC™ barney@ethicslinellc.com

In previous articles I have written about fear in the workplace and the use of hotlines to address that and other pressing questions and concerns.  This article falls in the category of an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure.  Roughly 80% of calls to hotlines relate in one way or another to Human Resources issues.  And most of those deal with a lack of respect in the workplace (the subject of a future article). Wouldn’t it be better to prevent the offenses in the first place?  I am reminded of a call to a hotline that went like this.  “My supervisor shouts at people and even uses profanity.  I am a good, religious person and I am not used to being treated that way!” Companies often promote good individual performers to supervisory roles without any preparation for those roles.  They are not prepared to manage the different ways people approach their jobs; their aspirations; their personal “calamities” that impact job performance; their strengths and areas for improvement. A wise person once counseled: “Remember the cube!”  We all started out somewhere before some of us moved to the C-Suite, Mahogany Row, or even just a workspace with a door!  How we treat those we supervise or manage is a reflection on who we are as people.  Occasionally, we forget.  We would never treat the spouse, son/daughter of our neighbor or friend that way.  We would not want to be treated that way by our supervisors.  It’s the Golden Rule, right! Maybe I can illustrate this Kindness thing with a couple of examples. I was once in a hotel room, settling in after a long trip and getting ready for the workday ahead.  In the room next door was a couple (no idea what their domestic status was but it didn’t sound healthy!)  At one point in their loud argument he shouted “You know what your problem is Andrea!) That is no way to begin a sentence if you really want Andrea to listen to you.  I turned up the TV. Try this: You can always begin a sentence “I love you and….”  Not such a good idea to begin that sentence “I love you but….” Or this example.  Speaks volumes.  It illustrates how tiny things can make a huge difference.  It’s my favorite.  Two almost identical sentences.  What a difference a comma makes! “Do it right now!”  or “Do it right, now!” Which would you rather hear from your boss? I don’t always get it right but I do try to remember the cube.  I also think about Andrea from time to time.  What has worked well for you?  What small, simple acts of kindness would make all the difference where you work?  Please share.

Copyright © 2018 by Barney Rosenberg President, Ethics Line, LLC™ barney@ethicslinellc.com

Some people in the ethics field are very fussy about what we call our “hot lines”.  They have their reasons, I’m sure.  The range of choices is:

1. hot line;
2. call line;
3. ethics line; and
4. help line to you name it. No, really, you name it and let us all know if you are aware of others, please.

The system I am most familiar with operates like this.  These are the key things I look for in assessing how well any “hot line” works.  It may be a good checklist:

1. How do people even know about the “hot line”? The usual ways are posters in all the facilities; references in the company’s ethics policies; and reminders during training.
2. Internal Audit is tasked with making sure that the posters are placed prominently while they are on-site conducting their financial audits.
3. Employees and people outside the company are free to call. They are encouraged to raise questions or concerns.  It can simply be “I don’t understand X.  Can you help me?” or “Such and such is happening and it’s wrong/illegal.”
4. People are encouraged to call if they don’t feel comfortable speaking to someone face-to-face where they work. We can only solve problems that we know about.
5. An independent, external service provider, based in Europe, with truly global reach, handles the incoming, toll-free calls and/or the web-based service for online questions or concerns.
6. Their services are available 24/7, 365 days a year…even the extra day in February during leap years.
7. Their system can recognize the country in which the call originated and they can have a translator available, live, in a matter of a few minutes, if English is not the caller’s first language.
8. The caller has the option to remain anonymous or provide their name and contact information. If they choose to remain anonymous, an investigation may be a little harder but the operators are trained to get enough information so that the company can conduct a proper investigation.
9. Anonymous callers are given a unique case number so that they may call back for feedback.
10. They are told to call back in 4 weeks, by which time it is expected that the company will have findings and recommendations.
11. All calls are managed centrally in the company and all reports are transcribed and sent to the senior ethics officer who decides who should investigate and report out.
12. If there are concerns raised about the person who would typically investigate, the senior ethics officer may select someone from outside that business or even outside the division of the company, to assure objectivity and independence.
13. If, heaven forbid, there should be a complaint about the senior ethics officer, that officer is by-passed and the written report is sent to that person’s manager.
14. Generally, the investigation and follow up is conducted at the business location by the site’s Ethics Coordinator. In some companies they are called Ethics Ambassadors.  They are the embodiment of the company’s ethics program and are also available to help with training and to generally point people in the right ethical direction.  They have other, full time jobs at the site.
15. Confidential information, such as HR actions in response to the investigation, are not disclosed. Instead, the caller is told whether their allegations were confirmed or not; that appropriate action was taken; and that they should expect to see results at their work location.
16. They are thanked for calling and invited to call again if the circumstances don’t improve.
17. They are reminded that the company does NOT permit retaliation for calling the service.
18. The company maintains a database of all calls and can generate reports based on the nature of the complaint; the business location involved; the division to which the business reports; the number of cases open and under investigation; and the country involved. Pie charts and all!
19. On occasion, new policies are required to correct a situation that may extend beyond one location.
20. An employee engagement survey will give you some insight into how well your system is working.

Your turn.  Care to share how your company does it…if you do?  Thank you.