Absolute Honesty: Building a Corporate Culture That Values Straight Talk and Rewards Integrity
288Absolute Honesty: Building a Corporate Culture That Values Straight Talk and Rewards Integrity
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Overview
In this invaluable resource, you will discover:
- the impact that truthfulness and accountability can have on organizations,
- a toolbox of techniques anyone can apply to improve his or her ability to confront and resolve difficult issues,
- and a template managers can use to maintain an environment of healthy debate.
Structured around the Six Laws of Absolute Honesty, this insightful book goes beyond simply extolling the virtues of ethics to attack the sort of passivity that allows little lies to grow into giant disasters. Companies can reap huge benefits from cultivating an atmosphere of trust.
Product Details
ISBN-13: | 9780814434802 |
---|---|
Publisher: | AMACOM |
Publication date: | 06/20/2003 |
Pages: | 288 |
Sales rank: | 475,330 |
Product dimensions: | 6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.80(d) |
Age Range: | 17 Years |
About the Author
Bob Phillips, PhD, is a licensed counselor and the director at large for Hume Lake Christian Camps, one of the nation's largest youth camping programs. He is the best-selling author of over forty books.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments | vii | |
Part 1 | The Challenge | 1 |
Chapter 1 | The Naked Truth | 3 |
The Kumbaya Syndrome | 4 | |
It Ain't Easy | 7 | |
Cultures of Integrity | 9 | |
Compelling Brands | 10 | |
Competitive Advantages | 12 | |
Productive Workforces | 13 | |
Consistent Leadership | 16 | |
Positive Morale | 18 | |
Chapter 2 | A Culture of Absolute Honesty | 22 |
What Is Corporate Culture? | 24 | |
Common Behavior Patterns | 25 | |
Organizational Values and Beliefs | 29 | |
Personal Attitudes and Assumptions | 37 | |
Embarking on the Transformation | 40 | |
The Formula for Effective Change | 42 | |
The Transformation Process | 46 | |
The Six Laws of Absolute Honesty | 49 | |
Part 2 | The Six Laws of Absolute Honesty | 53 |
Chapter 3 | Absolute Honesty Law #1: Tell the Truth | 55 |
Tell the Truth: You Create Trust | 56 | |
Tell the Truth: You Do the Right Thing | 57 | |
Tell the Truth: You Discover It's Rarely as Painful as You Think | 58 | |
Tell the Truth: You Pay a Higher Price for Lying | 60 | |
Tell the Truth: You Get It Behind You | 62 | |
Tell the Truth: You Keep Things Simple | 65 | |
Eight Great Fears of Telling the Truth | 66 | |
Fear Kills the Soul | 78 | |
No Excuse for Abuse | 79 | |
Fear No Truth | 80 | |
Chapter 4 | Absolute Honesty Law #2: Tackle the Problem | 82 |
Step 1 | Do Your Homework | 83 |
Step 2 | Open the Debate | 90 |
Step 3 | Open Your Ears | 96 |
Step 4 | Open Your Mouth | 100 |
Step 5 | Open Your Mind | 103 |
Step 6 | Close the Deal | 108 |
Chapter 5 | Absolute Honesty Law #3: Disagree and Commit | 111 |
Speak Up and Disagree | 113 | |
What Leaders Can Do to Encourage Disagreement | 120 | |
Stop Whining and Commit | 127 | |
What Leaders Can Do to Encourage Commitment | 135 | |
Creating a Cultural Norm of Disagree and Commit | 139 | |
The Brutal Facts of Greatness | 141 | |
Chapter 6 | Absolute Honesty Law #4: Welcome the Truth | 143 |
Defensiveness: The Enemy of Honesty | 145 | |
Reasons for Defensiveness | 151 | |
Moving from "Attack and Defend" to "Discuss and Solve" | 165 | |
Minimizing Defensiveness in Others | 168 | |
Removing the Great Wall | 174 | |
Chapter 7 | Absolute Honesty Law #5: Reward the Messenger | 176 |
Blatant Retribution | 178 | |
Intentional but Subtle Retribution | 179 | |
Unintentional Retribution | 181 | |
Disconfirming Messages | 184 | |
Perception Can Be Reality | 189 | |
Sleazy, Wacko, Bizarre Management Practices | 190 | |
Manager's Code of Conduct | 192 | |
Truth on a Napkin | 201 | |
Chapter 8 | Absolute Honesty Law #6: Build a Platform of Integrity | 203 |
Focus on What's Important | 208 | |
It Starts with Leadership | 209 | |
Leadership Obsession = Organizational Infection | 213 | |
Create a Platform of Integrity | 214 | |
Build Your Platform on Ethical Tenets | 217 | |
Noninstrumental Ethics | 219 | |
Why Noninstrumental Ethics? | 220 | |
Establish an Ethical Foundation | 224 | |
Applying the Five Tenets to Up-Selling | 227 | |
No Easy Answers | 228 | |
Create and Stick to a Platform of Integrity | 229 | |
Base Your Platform of Integrity on Solid Ethics | 230 | |
Live by Your Platform of Integrity | 233 | |
Developing the Tenets and the Platform | 235 | |
Ethics and Profitability | 239 | |
Toward an Ethical Culture | 240 | |
Part 3 | Where Do We Go from Here? | 243 |
Chapter 9 | Building an Ethical Infrastructure | 245 |
Leadership | 246 | |
Philosophy | 247 | |
Communication | 248 | |
Training | 249 | |
Rewards and Consequences | 250 | |
Small Businesses Too | 252 | |
Don't Forget Good Judgment | 253 | |
No Guarantee, but ... | 254 | |
Chapter 10 | Key Points to Help Your Implementation Efforts | 255 |
The Naked Truth | 256 | |
A Culture of Absolute Honesty | 258 | |
Absolute Honesty Law #1 | Tell the Truth | 262 |
Absolute Honesty Law #2 | Tackle the Problem | 265 |
Absolute Honesty Law #3 | Disagree and Commit | 267 |
Absolute Honesty Law #4 | Welcome the Truth | 270 |
Absolute Honesty Law #5 | Reward the Messenger | 273 |
Absolute Honesty Law #6 | Build a Platform of Integrity | 276 |
Notes | 279 | |
Index | 287 |
What People are Saying About This
"Cecil Johnson, syndicated columnist: "Absolute Honesty rises above most of the other books proclaiming honesty as the best policy that have flooded the market since the Enron and WorldCom scandals broke."
Pharmaceutical Representative: "Give the current climate of our fiercely competitive industry, and the scrutiny from government agencies in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, this is one you can’t be without. Use it as a template to create this kind of change in your company and any organization you belong to. Being honest and forthright with people while also being respectful is not always easy. It’s tough to fight the feeling of defensiveness or the urge to take things personally, but it’s worth it in the end. This book can show you how to do it and do it effectively."
Jack Covert, president and founder of 800-CEO-READ and syndicated columnist: "Absolute Honesty is the book we all need to read to create a culture that could and should help us avoid nightmares like Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Martha Stewart, and Adelphia."