Governor Pat Quinn: Ethical Leadership

The Barometer doesn’t see it too often.  The Barometer hopes for it.  The Barometer cajoles others to just do it.  “It” is ethical leadership.  Folks pretty much understand when they have crossed an ethical line.  The courage to do the right thing is much more difficult to muster.  The ability to do the right thing and by so doing inspire others? Darn tough these two things in action and practice.  Governor Pat Quinn (D. Ill.) has come under fire from former Governor Rod Blagojevich for “frivolous travel.”  File this accusation into the pot and kettle feuds.  So, folks looked into it and found Governor Quinn didn’t even take the state’s allowed $32 per diem for traveling employees and paid his own way on 8 of 10 trips and often stayed in cut-rate hotels.  He even paid for his own lodging quite often.  The Barometer is sure the governor doesn’t expect state employees to paytheir own way on trips.  But he is showing ethical leadership by helping them to see how important it is to be sensitive to the fact that they are spending someone else’s money.  That sensitivity goes a long way in guiding those employees on expenses and in setting an ethical culture for the state.  Well done, Governor Quinn.  Sally forth and carry on as you change the ethical culture in Illinois. Your conduct when no one was looking inspires others to muster the courage to do the right thing.  Living the principles you tout is ethical leadership.  So few leaders translate those principles right down to per diem and budget hotels.  The Barometer has an extra spring in the step today.   

About mmjdiary

Professor Marianne Jennings is an emeritus professor of legal and ethical studies from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, retiring in 2011 after 35 years of teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in ethics and the legal environment of business. During her tenure at ASU, she served as director of the Joan and David Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics from 1995-1999. In 2006, she was appointed faculty director for the W.P. Carey Executive MBA Program. She has done consulting work for businesses and professional groups including AICPA, Boeing, Dial Corporation, Edward Jones, Mattel, Motorola, CFA Institute, Southern California Edison, the Institute of Internal Auditors, AIMR, DuPont, AES, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Motorola, Hy-Vee Foods, IBM, Bell Helicopter, Amgen, Raytheon, and VIAD. The sixth edition of her textbook, Case Studies in Business Ethics, was published in February 2011. The ninth edition of her textbook, Business: lts Legal, Ethical and Global Environment was published in January 2011. The 23rd edition of her book, Business Law: Principles and Cases, will be published in January 2013. The tenth edition of her book, Real Estate Law, will also be published in January 2013. Her book, A Business Tale: A Story of Ethics, Choices, Success, and a Very Large Rabbit, a fable about business ethics, was chosen by Library Journal in 2004 as its business book of the year. A Business Tale was also a finalist for two other literary awards for 2004. In 2000 her book on corporate governance was published by the New York Times MBA Pocket Series. Her book on long-term success, Building a Business Through Good Times and Bad: Lessons from Fifteen Companies, Each With a Century of Dividends, was published in October 2002 and has been used by Booz, Allen, Hamilton for its work on business longevity. Her latest book, The Seven Signs of Ethical Collapse was published by St. Martin’s Press in July 2006 and has been a finalist for two book awards. Her weekly columns are syndicated around the country, and her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Reader's Digest. A collection of her essays, Nobody Fixes Real Carrot Sticks Anymore, first published in 1994 is still being published. She has been a commentator on business issues on All Things Considered for National Public Radio. She has served on four boards of directors, including Arizona Public Service (1987-2000), Zealous Capital Corporation, and the Center for Children with Chronic Illness and Disability at the University of Minnesota. She was appointed to the board of advisors for the Institute of Nuclear Power Operators in 2004 and served on the board of trustees for Think Arizona, a public policy think tank. She has appeared on CNBC, CBS This Morning, the Today Show, and CBS Evening News. In 2010 she was named one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Business Ethics by Trust Across America. Her books have been translated into four different languages. She received the British Emerald award for authoring one of their top 50 articles in management publications, chosen from over 15,000 articles. Personal: Married since 1976 to Terry H. Jennings, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Deputy County Attorney; five children: Sarah, Sam, and John, and the late Claire and Hannah Jennings.
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