Living in the Grey Zone
Management and HR often get caught in ambiguity or in the grey zone of right and wrong. What appears to some as clear cut is in reality just a matter of perception, and specifically the perception of the individual viewing a situation (or acting as part of the situation).
Ok lets use a specific example: The boss asks the staff person to tell a lie to protect the company in the market place. The staff person gains trust and eventually is promoted as a result. Happens every day of the week...to some this is fine and to others this is totally wrong...depends on who is viewing and where they are viewing this. In almost all situations this will go totally unnoticed, but add another element, lets say the staff person now gets invited out to dinner or for drinks after work, maybe the staff person is of the other sex and it appears to have some sexual overtones...well you know where this is going...and maybe the trust leads to sharing of business information that should not be shared, at least with someone in a junior role. These types of situations happen everyday, sometimes they evolve to something more serious (and more black and white) we can deal with this. There are rules and procedures and handbooks to refer to...but life is not black and white...what do you do when you see something that is GREY. Do you act or sit back...what makes us accept bad or inappropriate behavior. Are we part of the problem or solution?
Management and HR often get caught in ambiguity or in the grey zone of right and wrong. What appears to some as clear cut is in reality just a matter of perception, and specifically the perception of the individual viewing a situation (or acting as part of the situation).
Ok lets use a specific example: The boss asks the staff person to tell a lie to protect the company in the market place. The staff person gains trust and eventually is promoted as a result. Happens every day of the week...to some this is fine and to others this is totally wrong...depends on who is viewing and where they are viewing this. In almost all situations this will go totally unnoticed, but add another element, lets say the staff person now gets invited out to dinner or for drinks after work, maybe the staff person is of the other sex and it appears to have some sexual overtones...well you know where this is going...and maybe the trust leads to sharing of business information that should not be shared, at least with someone in a junior role. These types of situations happen everyday, sometimes they evolve to something more serious (and more black and white) we can deal with this. There are rules and procedures and handbooks to refer to...but life is not black and white...what do you do when you see something that is GREY. Do you act or sit back...what makes us accept bad or inappropriate behavior. Are we part of the problem or solution?
