Final Exam Macro - Ethics, Change, Power

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Causes of unethical behaviour - personal factors

• Greed / self-interest 
• Hubris / ego 

• Leadership style
• Personality traits (narcissism, machiavellianism, psychopathy)  

• Moral disengagement and exclusion (e.g. framing exploitation as something else)

• Cognitive biases  

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Causes of unethical behaviour - structural factors

• Excessive power in the hands of a person or group 
• Rewards linked to unethical behaviour 
• Low costs of unethical behaviour  

• Unethical norms 
• Shareholder orientation 

• Complexity 
• Lack of resources 
• Lack of transparency  

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Consequences of unethical behaviour 

  • In extreme cases, unethical behaviour can destroy organisations 

  • It can end long and successful careers 

  • Encourages unethical behaviour in others 

  • Harms the health and wellbeing of colleagues and stakeholders 

  • Causes environmental damage (e.g., habitat destruction, climate change) 

  • Linked to negative attitudes and low motivation among others 

  • Reduces employee retention, weakens networks, and deters investment 

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What can individuals do 

• Moral awareness (sensitivity to ethical issues) 
• Moral identity (importance of moral traits to self-concept)  

• Moral efficacy (confidence in ethical decision-making) 
• Moral courage (perseverance despite adversity) 
• Affect (e.g. empathy) 
• Perspective taking “stepping into another personal shoes”  

• Moral reasoning (e.g. principles, justice, consequences)  

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What can organisations do 

  • Formal elements: ethics codes, polices and audits, communications, training, monitoring systems, rewards linked to ethical behaviour, penalties for unethical behaviour, whistleblower protection

  • Informal elements: ethical leadership (role-modelling ethical behaviour), ethical culture, perception of fairness.  

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Forces Initiating Change: External and Internal 

External Forces:  

  • Socio-cultural factors: market competition, shifts in market tastes / preferences, social license to operate, etc.  

  • Technological factors: digital technology, R&D intensity  

  • Economic factors: inflation, income levels  

  • Political and legal factors: lawsuits/investigations, standards on safety, environment, labor practices, social license to operate (public outrage), etc.  

 

Internal Forces: 

  • Employee performance outcomes: employee absenteeism, productivity, whistleblowers, etc.  

  • Shareholder activism: Social license to operate  

  • Internal processes: ineffective decision-making, cumbersome procedures  

  • New management philosophy culture / vision  

  • New strategies: objectives, products, markets, businesses  

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Role of the Change Agent 

Change Agent will:  

  • Identify and interpret forces causing the change  

  • Diagnose the problem (what needs to change)  

  • Decide objectives  

  • Generate solutions (what type of interventions are needed)  

  • Champion the change (communicate vision)  

  • Implement change (unfreeze > change > refreeze)  

  • Monitor, review results & get feedback (determine effectiveness)  

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What Needs Change? 

  • Power: Perhaps your company has too much top-down decision-making?  

  • Communication: Perhaps your company is withholding important information from its employees?  

  • Culture: Perhaps your company has fallen prey to greed?  

  • Strategy: Perhaps your company has fallen behind technologically?  

 

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Types of Intervention: Evolutionary and Revolutionary 

  • Evolution; a gradual, progressive change 

  • Revolution; a sudden, complete change 

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Force field analysis 

A tool used to assess the factors that support or oppose a change. It identifies driving forces (for change) and restraining forces (against change), helping decision-makers strengthen supports and reduce resistance to successfully implement change. 

  1. Driving Forces (Pro-Change Forces)

    • Factors that support and push toward the desired change.

    • Examples: New technology, market demand, leadership support, financial incentives.

  2. Restraining Forces (Anti-Change Forces)

    • Factors that hinder or oppose the change.

    • Examples: Employee resistance, outdated policies, lack of resources, fear of uncertainty.

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Steps to Conduct Force Field Analysis

  1. Define the Goal or Change

    • Clearly state the desired outcome (e.g., "Increase employee productivity").

  2. List Driving Forces

    • Identify all factors supporting the change.

  3. List Restraining Forces

    • Identify all factors resisting the change.

  4. Assign Weights (Optional)

    • Rank forces by strength (e.g., on a scale of 1-5).

  5. Analyze & Strategize

    • Strengthen driving forces (e.g., training, incentives).

    • Weaken restraining forces (e.g., address fears, remove barriers).

  6. Implement & Monitor

    • Execute actions and reassess the balance of forces over time.

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Lewin's Three-Step Model 

  • Unfreeze – Prepare the organization for change by challenging current beliefs and creating awareness of the need for change. 

    • Could be forceful (e.g. lawsuits, investor pressure)

  • Change – Implement the new processes, behaviors, or thinking. 

  • Refreeze – Stabilize the change by embedding new practices into the culture to make the change stick. 

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Overcoming Resistance to Change 

Championing Change:  

  • Learning and Communication: reduce misinformation  

  • Involvement and Participation: enhance commitment, increase quality of change decision  

  • Facilitation, Support, Stress Management: reduce anxiety and fear  

  • Negotiation: reduce and overcome conflict  

  • Overcome cultural inertia

 

More forceful ways: 

• Manipulation and co-optation: make change more appealing  

• Coercion: enforce change 
• Realigning Staff Profiles: dismiss resistors, hire adopters of change  

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Refreezing: Supporting Permanent Change 

  • Reward allocation system: rewards that meet expectations and are aligned to new priorities  

  • Transformational leadership: person with power and authority to provide legitimacy for the change  

  • Coalitions, social networks: in-group members accept and support the change  

  • Effective transmission of new information: people need to know what is expected of them  

  • Diffusion in the change effort: wide spread change carries greater legitimacy 

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Six Silent Killers (Beer & Eisenstat, 2000) 

Common mistakes in managing change:  

  1. Management style is either too top down or too laissez faire  

  2. Unclear strategy/conflicting priorities  

  3. Ineffective senior management team  

  4. Poor vertical communication  

  5. Poor horizontal coordination  

  6. Inadequate skills at lower levels  

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Interventions For Change 

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Managing Change at SRSD 

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Why is Power important? 

Provide managers with a better understanding of why, when they try to manage complex organisations, they often fail (sometimes managers think they hold all the cards!)  

  • Understand the ethical implications of the exercise of power in organisations  

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The Dimensions of Power 

First dimension  

  • Managing resources  

  • Conscious strategy to defeat resistance  

 

Second dimension  

  • Managing process  

  • Conscious strategy to sideline resistance  

 

Third dimension  

  • Managing meaning  

  • Conscious strategy to prevent resistance  

 

Increasing “invisibility" of power from first to third dimension  

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The First Dimension of Power - Visible Power / Control over resources

Core Idea

  • Power is about winning conflicts by controlling valued resources.

  • Visible control over resources determines outcomes.

  • Zero-sum: If one gains power, others lose it.

Sources of Power

  • Reward Power: Ability to give rewards/punishments.

  • Coercive Power: Ability to harm or threaten.

  • Authority Power: Formal position/hierarchy.

  • Referent Power: Charisma, personal rapport.

  • Expert Power: Unique skills, credibility.

  • Information Power: Access to key knowledge.

  • Affiliation Power: Connections to powerful people.

  • Group Support: Backing from many individuals.

  • Resource Control: Budgets, equipment allocation.

Key Principles

  • Power depends on context—what’s valuable in a situation.

  • Must actively use resources to exert power.

  • Power shifts based on relationships and needs (e.g., "blood transfusion" scenario).

  • Anything can be a power source if others need it.

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The First Dimension of Power example

  • A wants B to do something B wouldn’t normally do 

  • A directly challenges B’s resistance 

  • A uses resources to make it happen 

  • The power being used is easy to see 

  • Conflict is open and obvious 

  • Managers call it “authority” when they do it, but “politics” when others do 

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The Second Dimension of Power - Hidden power / Controlling processes

  • Power is used by controlling the decision-making process, not just the outcome 

  • Selective transparency, gatekeeping, information control

Power is used to control: 

  • Who gets to be involved 

  • What gets talked about 

  • When and how it's talked about 

  • Who gets to decide or vote 

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The Second Dimension of Power - example

  • A wants B to do something B wouldn’t normally do 

  • A avoids direct conflict by playing by the "rules" and bending the system 

  • A controls the process, not just the decision 

  • The power is harder to see 

  • Conflict is hidden or delayed 

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The Third Dimension of Power - Invisible power / Shaping beliefs

  • Power isn’t just about winning fights—it can be used to prevent conflict from ever happening 

  • Ideological control, framing exploitation

  • A shapes what B thinks or wants, so B goes along willingly 

  • It looks like cooperation, but A is still influencing things behind the scenes 

  • This type of power is almost invisible 

  • A is still acting intentionally to get what they want 

 

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Possible 4th Dimension of Power - Structural power / societal conditioning

The Fourth dimension: places our understanding of power in a social, cultural, and historical context which ought to lead us to challenge the “natural” social order  

Core Idea

  • Power operates invisibly by shaping social norms, identities, and beliefs.

  • Makes unequal roles (e.g., boss/worker, teacher/student) feel "natural" rather than constructed.

  • Embedded in culture, history, and ideology—not just visible control.

  • Creating a narrative

How It Works

  • Socialization: Schools, media, and institutions teach us "appropriate" roles.

  • Internalized Beliefs: Both dominant and subordinate groups follow unseen rules.

  • Everyday Power: Shapes how we speak, act, and think in subtle ways (e.g., manners, dress codes).

  • Invisible Until Challenged: Only noticed when someone breaks norms (e.g., protests, unconventional behavior).

Key Implications

  • Power isn’t just about conflict—it’s about what goes unquestioned.

  • Maintains the status quo by making inequality seem inevitable.

  • To resist, we must critically examine "common sense" assumptions.

Example

  • Gender roles: The idea that "women are nurturers" or "men are leaders" isn’t biological—it’s socially reinforced until it feels natural.

In short: This dimension reveals how power works beneath the surface, conditioning us to accept hierarchy without realizing it.