Organizational Culture and Leadership

moraL and eThicaL Leadership There is a demand for moral leadership considering the decline in trust at the present time. According to Ciulla (1998, p. 25), leadership is not a person or a position, but a complex or moral relationship between people, based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the good. Leaders are considered to be the symbols of moral leadership, which emphasizes ethics and values. People do hold different values because of the society to which they are exposed, but leadership can influence the individuals toward a common summum bonum (Zekos 2004).

There is also a correspondence between moral and transformational leadership (Bryman 1992). Moral leadership focuses on society’s deepheld values to mobilize people in pursuit of important goals. For example, Gandhi led the independence movement of India based on “Satyagraha” or the moral force. This inspired the non-violent non-cooperation movement that brought an end to British rule in India. Gandhi’s leadership inspired the other moral leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela. These three leaders fought for injustice and suppression with high moral values. Under globalization, the moral leadership can focus on the issues of income inequality, poverty, and environmental degradation. The moral leaders can galvanize the people under a cause, which emphasizes a higher goal. When the followers see a higher goal pursued by the moral leaders, it provides more incentives to rally around the leaders.

Trust in senior management is crucial to secure the smooth operation of the organization. The lack of trust has important implications for managing the workforce and in influencing employee attitudes and behavior (Pate et al. 2007). Clarke and Payne’s (1997) research outlines five dimensions of trustworthy managerial behavior, as follows: Integrity: sincerity, honesty, truthfulness. Competence: the technical ability, knowledge, and skill to successfully perform a job. Consistent behavior: actions those are consistent, fair and predictable. Loyalty: intentions and motives to protect a person. Openness: willing to share ideas and information freely and accurately.

A morale leader must reflect these values to build the trust of the people.

The leaders bear a responsibility to create an organization culture promoting trust among the people.