What is ethics?
This is my first post. And it tackles a fundamental issue in our field. There's thousands of years of debate about what 'ethics' actually is. This is what works for me and my practice.
Photo by Gabriella Clare Marino on Unsplash
I’ve run many workshops over the years, where attendees have signed up to a session on ‘ethics’ or ‘ethics by design’. One of the first questions I ask is: “what is ethics?”, and the [virtual] room tends to look down at the floor, unsure if they know how to define one of the most fundamental concepts in human culture.
Now if you’re not in the business of ethics, this isn’t a problem. It’s totally fine to have a fuzzy idea of important subjects. We have a fuzzy idea of what ‘love’ is for example, and we tend to get by just fine.
But if you are in the business of ethics in organisations, and/or you refer to ethics quite often in your work, I think it’s imperative to have a good idea of what you’re talking about. You should have a definition you can go back to again and again, and it will remind you about what your work actually entails, and the purpose behind your role.
The following is my own definition of ethics*. I’ve not held this up to rigorous academic scrutiny, although I have used it in workshops and panels for at least 7 years and presented it in academic forums. I am well aware that this won’t be everyone’s definition of ethics. I’m also aware that some might not consider it precise enough. Nevertheless, when it comes to designing ethics into organisations, I think it’s a practical one.
Ethics is concerned with answering questions about “how humans should live”
Ethics is concerned with answering questions about “how humans should live”. This means it’s preoccupied with questions about how humans become fulfilled and are maximising our wellbeing; how humans should interact with each other and our environment, and what makes a ‘good’ life.
As is implied, (and controversially) I think it’s far better to think of ethics in a professional setting as a methodological practice as opposed to a singular definition or ‘statement’.
There are many methods to answer ethical questions. Businesses are already aware of the benefits of the legal method - they usually have compliance, general counsel and legal specialists. However, other methods are underused. You might find some applications of anthropology in user experience departments, but it’s rare to find an anthropologist working on ethical questions in the design of products (though not unheard of). You might find artists working with the marketing department on an advert, but it’s rare to see them work with innovation teams to articulate their experience of the human condition and how better futures can be expressed in new services. Other methods might come from psychology, political science, architecture, history, literary studies and many others from the humanities and social sciences.
I specialise in philosophy with a secondary methodological specialism in social science. I work on defining ethical frameworks and then applying them in specific circumstances. Thus, I have a good understanding of meta-ethics, and a practical understanding normative and applied ethics. I use these methods to define ethical principles, create frameworks & toolkits, and develop education & training programmes in organisations. These principles, frameworks and toolkits generally concern the supply chain and products of an organisation. I practice ‘ethics-by-design’.
Since I do not equate ethics in organisations with a specific set of principles, but rather with a practice, I get annoyed when I’m told that an individual or organisation is ethical – this implies there is one way to be ethical, and that either you are ethical or you are not. Instead I think of ethics as purposely and intentionally moving towards a higher standard of excellence. These standards are different for every organisation as each organisation have different contexts.
This may appear that I’m advocating for some sort of ethical relativism – but I’m not a relativist. Ethical relativism states that there are no absolute truths in ethics. If I was to subscribe to a position fairly loosely, I would say I’m a quasi-realist. I believe there are some things that every society says are wrong – murder for example. And there are intrinsic truths that every society values, for example: peace, love and justice. Where we differ is in our expressions of these truths - what is appropriate for that community at that time.
Another way that you can adhere some ethical realism is by expressing what your own key values are in your practice. For example, a sustainability professional might have certain standards and commitments that they’d expect from the business leaders and/or the business model. Human rights barristers would expect standards around human rights. DEI professionals would have stipulations around equity and inclusion. I’ve had conversations with other ethicists where they’ve told me why they wouldn’t take on my clients, and I’ve felt similarly about theirs. Ultimately you’ve got to have the right person working with the right client – everyone needs to feel confident that they can generate some positive impact.
When it comes to ethics in organisations, I would say the universal behaviours should be applying ethics consistently and transparently. These two goals have been on every plan I’ve worked on.
When it comes to ethics in organisations, I would say the universal behaviours should be applying ethics consistently and transparently. These two goals have been on every plan I’ve worked on. (The mechanisms of this is dependent on the stakeholders in question and how it’s best to balance transparency with accessibility, and consistency with new learnings.) This means there is accountability in what we’re doing. As far as I can see, consistency and transparency are some of the best tools we have against ethics-washing.
When we are in the business of ethics, we are not only developing normative ethical theories and applying them to specific examples, but we are also spearheading a business transformation. You are transforming a business from one which centres a narrow profit maximisation logic, into one that also prioritises other factors that go into making ‘the best’ decision. From this perspective, ethics sits firmly in the innovation track of a business. Quite often we are pushed into the risk management silo, but I think ethics is the opposite. It expands our idea of what the business could be, what the relationships with stakeholders could look like, and how the business will impact the world.
I also think as the world leans more and more into automation, that ethics should unlock new industry for human economies.
Ethics in organisations is about new possibility and innovation. And it’s an ethicist’s role to facilitate that new possibility, communicate using ethical methods and enable change.
TE
*When I say ‘my’ definition - I know that it’s multiple other people’s too. Please see Simon Blackburn’s ‘Being Good’ and Stephanie Hare’s ‘Technology is not Neutral’.
So this is the first newsletter… let me know what you think. Is this helpful? What do you like about my take? What works for you?