Page 101 - Flip Banks TG

Questions
Objectives

Objectives

Ethical behaviour is an ideal that many companies

propound in their literature and embed in their mission and

value statements. But, often this is simply camouflage when

the individual is confronted with a decision on whether to

act in an ethical manner or cheat, lie or steal. Simply put,

companies don’t act unethically, people do.

Actions have consequences! The small first step on the road

to unethical behaviour is often also the first in a domino

effect where the consequences become more severe as

each domino falls.

The objectives here are to examine the circumstances that

lead to the actions that were taken by, in particular, the

strategic leadership of the company, and secondly to
appreciate that mechanisms to counter unethical behaviour

are, even when entrenched in the operating procedures of

the organisation, often eroded when unchecked, excessive

power, or lack of control is exercised.

In the case of HSBC, the bulk of the misdemeanours that

confronted its leadership, in particular Gulliver, had their

origins in an earlier period or prior to company acquisition

by HSBC. But this did not apply to all of them e.g. money

laundering.