Life is full of challenging situations, and business is no exception. If you’re a leader or aspire to be one, you’ll face dilemmas with no clear answer and far-reaching impact.
“Reflecting on complex, gray-area decisions is a key part of what it means to be human, as well as an effective leader,” says Harvard Business School Professor Nien-hê Hsieh in the online course Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability. “You have agency. You must choose how to act. And with that agency comes responsibility.”
Business ethics are principles that guide decision-making within your organization. They range from explicit rules and regulations to moral codes and personal values.
One way to learn about your leadership responsibilities and how to incorporate business ethics into your daily work is by taking an online course.
Here are the benefits you can experience from pursuing an online business ethics certificate course and how to get started.
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DOWNLOAD NOWWhat Is a Business Ethics Certificate Course?
Business ethics certificate courses are designed to help you identify your responsibilities as a leader, determine how to deliver on them, and navigate situations in which they clash or conflict.
While there are live and in-person program options, an online certificate course may be right for you if you aim to take it while working full-time.
For instance, Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability is a six-week online course delivered in modules that take seven to nine hours each. You can complete the course content on your own time with weekly deadlines—ensuring you stay on track while fitting your education into your schedule.
Upon successful completion, you earn a certificate you can add to your resume to signify the skills you’ve gained.
If you’re an aspiring leader, earning a business ethics certificate can prepare you for the role and help you build foundational decision-making skills and balance stakeholder needs. If you’re an experienced leader, a course can be a refresher or provide new perspectives from HBS faculty and business leaders on how to handle ethically difficult situations.
While an investment of time and money, taking a business ethics course can enable you to make positive change in your organization and career. Here are seven benefits to consider.
Related: Examples of Ethical Leadership in Business
7 Benefits of an Online Business Ethics Certificate Course
1. It Can Help You Determine and Deliver on Your Responsibilities
As a leader, you have ethical responsibilities to four stakeholder groups: customers, employees, investors, and society.
For instance, you have the following responsibilities to customers and employees:
- Well-being: What’s ultimately good for the person
- Rights: Entitlement to receive certain treatment
- Duties: A moral obligation to behave in a specific way
- Best practices: Aspirational standards not required by law or cultural norms
Your responsibilities to investors are called fiduciary duties and encompass how you maintain trust and communicate with them. Your responsibilities to society are often called corporate social responsibility (CSR). They comprise an organization's impact on people and the planet in addition to profit—the “three P’s” of the triple bottom line.
An online ethics course can teach you to identify how to protect and support each stakeholder group. Learning the framework to determine your responsibilities is the first step to delivering on them.
2. It Can Strengthen Your Decision-Making Skills
Another benefit of taking a business ethics course is that it provides tools and processes for making tough decisions.
“Many of the decisions you face will not have a single right answer,” Hsieh says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability. “Sometimes, the most viable answer may come with negative effects.”
To work through this type of dilemma, Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability provides real-world examples—as told by business leaders who experienced them. You learn each scenario’s specifics and are then prompted to react as if you were living it. How would you respond in their circumstances? After providing your answer, the leader explains how they handled the issue and what they hope you learn.
This hallmark of the HBS Online learning experience enables you to practice course concepts in a controlled setting with supportive peers and actionable takeaways. When facing a difficult decision in your career or personal life, you can recall the insights you gleaned.
3. It Can Prime You for Leadership Roles
If you hope to land a leadership role, earning a business ethics certificate can set you apart from other applicants.
During interviews, highlight the skills you gained. Not only is ethical decision-making beneficial for building a company culture of ethics and accountability, but it could save your organization hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and fines.
At a time when employee rights surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion are top of mind—paired with the ever-changing digital world—listing an ethics certificate on your resume can position you as a valuable candidate.
4. It Can Increase Your Earning Potential
With new business skills comes the potential for increased compensation. In a survey of over 2,000 HBS Online learners conducted by City Square Associates, 42 percent said their course helped them increase their salaries. The average increase was $17,000—a 10-times return on investment.
Additionally, 16 percent received a bonus after taking their course, with an average increase of $14,000.
When applying for jobs, showing that you’re ethically minded can position you as a cutting-edge candidate and help you negotiate increased compensation.
Related: How to Negotiate a Salary: 7 Tips
5. It Can Help You Build and Retain Strong Teams
In addition to your career, sharpening your ethical leadership skills can improve employees’ work performance and satisfaction.
A study published in the Journal of Business Ethics found that ethical leadership has a positive effect on employee job performance due, in large part, to employees and leaders aligning on common goals. Furthermore, according to business ethics consulting firm LRN, corporate ethics is a strong predictor of employee loyalty—82 percent of respondents say they want to stay at their companies because of corporate ethics.
Hiring and promoting ethical leaders can literally pay off for your organization—resulting in less turnover, attracting talent that cares about ethical practices, and inspiring your team to do better work.
6. It Can Connect You to a Network of Ethical Leaders
The saying “It’s lonely at the top” often refers to leadership’s isolating aspect. By selecting a course that provides opportunities to interact with peers, you can build a network of leaders working toward making more ethical decisions.
For example, you can connect with other business professionals through the HBS Online Community before, during, and after taking a course. While based online, you can join a geography-based Chapter in your area to meet others in person, attend the annual Connext conference, and collaborate on a Community Challenge to help a nonprofit solve global issues.
When dealing with challenging situations, you can reach out to your network for advice and support long after your course has ended.
7. It Can Prompt Reflection
Finally, taking a business ethics course promotes continually reflecting on your leadership style and responsibilities to others.
“Reflective leadership requires the continuous practice of reflection over time,” Hsieh says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability. “This allows you to regularly examine and re-evaluate your decisions and responsibilities in order to practice, broaden, and deepen your skills and understanding, and to apply this knowledge when analyzing present situations.”
This continuous reflection can help you renew your sense of purpose, avoid burnout, and assess and change your approach.
Becoming a More Responsible Leader
If you’re considering pursuing a business ethics certificate, start by exploring your options. Consider courses’ durations, costs, and schedules, as well as their faculty members, content, and opportunities for social interaction.
Earning your certificate can empower you to make difficult decisions and lead your organization through gray-area scenarios.
Are you interested in learning how to navigate difficult decisions? Explore Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability—one of our online leadership and management courses—and download our free guide to becoming a more effective leader.
