LEADERSHIP INSIGHT: DEALING WITH MISBEHAVING TOP PERFORMERS. Managers prove themselves to be leaders when they do what is right even when it costs more than they want to pay because they understand that the cost of losing credibility and moral authority outweighs the benefits of expedient compromise.

Just as the best athletes on a team often expect and get special treatment when it comes to violating the rules or ethical norms, top performers in the business world often believe their productivity will shield them from discipline for such things as expense reporting fraud and sexual harassment. Sometimes, the”golden boys or girls” simply act like jerks at the …

Ethics and Intentions

Ethics and Intentions

During the Watergate probe, the question continually asked was, “What did President Nixon know and when did he know it?” Our judgment of his behavior depends on the answer to those questions. The more he knew and the earlier he knew it, the worse it was. The Iran-Contra investigation of the decision to sell arms to Iran and use the proceeds …