Moral Intelligence. Enhancing Business Performance and Leadership Success by Doug Lennick and Fred Kiel
When you think of the characteristics of those who head up successful businesses, it’s unlikely that morality will spring to mind. Corporate scandals and executive greed are in the news so much, it becomes easy to assume that concepts of right and wrong have little relevance to the world of commerce. But the purpose of Moral Intelligence is to prove an indisputable correlation between strong moral principles and business success. In fact, the authors of this book take the idea much further, with the proposition that business leaders are – whether they like it or not – moral educators in a global context. ‘The moral lessons you and your company teach are lessons more powerful and pervasive than that of churches, schools and families. If you do the right thing you will teach moral behaviour to your employees. If you cook the books, fire someone unfairly or use deceptive business practices you will be teaching others to do the same thing.’
This book aims to provide a comprehensive guide to doing the right thing – an extraordinarily difficult concept to write about in a readable and culturally neutral way. Extensive use of storytelling makes for readability while regular references to academic research on the topic provide an air of authority. This is not wishful thinking or ideas plucked out of the air, anecdotes are supported by learned investigation and consumer research. The premise being that companies with a moral approach succeed because they are able to build trust and commitment among staff and customers, which in turn translates into increased profits.
But cultural neutrality comes and goes. The skills which underpin Moral Intelligence – integrity, responsibility, compassion and forgiveness – are ones everyone can relate to. However, the supporting stories are nearly all tales of the success and failure of US companies and individuals. A substantial number of the good guy anecdotes relate to American Express, with whom one of the authors has strong connections. Some examples of doing the right thing stretch credulity.
Despite such distractions, it’s an extremely worthwhile and thought-provoking book. As a reader you might be cynical about some of the examples but the majority do provide heartening evidence of the growing recognition that short-term greed is not a sustainable approach. Once you’ve read it, worked through the exercises and aligned your moral compass, pass it on to your CEO. It has the potential to make the world a better place.
Review by Irene Krechowiecka, a career coach, author and freelance journalist