XYZ Communication Ethics Code

This Code excerpts the pertinent parts of XYZ’s Code of Ethics, in order to apply them to ethical communication. It applies to all interpersonal communication, whether the interaction is by face to face conversation, e-mail, text message or anything else. It applies to interpersonal communication between XYZ supervisors and employees, employees and customers, employees and vendors, and every combination thereof. It also applies to written, contractual business communications.

As scholar Daphne Jameson notes in her 2011 article in Business Communication Quarterly, there are sometimes apparent conflicts between an employment contract and a published ethical code (294). If that occurs, XYZ will support employees’ ethical decisions whenever possible, and work to improve agreements if necessary. As in other facets of our business, we are responsible for conducting ourselves ethically while communicating for XYZ and doing so within the spirit of this Code.

The Code has the following tenets: We Tell the Truth, We Walk the Talk, We Listen, We Have Consideration and We Communicate Professionally.

We Tell the Truth. XYZ trades on its reputation for honesty and fairness; so should its employees. We will tell the truth. That is not to say, however, that truth requires so-called brutal honesty. It is possible to tell the whole truth and be tactful, which is what we strive to do at XYZ.

We Walk the Talk. If one of us says XYZ will do something, everyone will work to ensure that it happens as promised. When one of us makes a promise, it is not only that person’s talk; it is our talk to walk. Each of us will get assistance if needed to keep an XYZ promise, and everyone should be prepared to assist others as needed to meet our collective obligation to live up to XYZ’s promises.

We Listen. We will really listen and try to hear what other people are trying to say. This is especially important for managers and executives. Our line employees know more about our day to day business than all managers and executives put together. The way to access that knowledge is to really listen to what people are saying, whether it is through their words or actions.

We Have Consideration. We will be sensitive to the feelings and respect the human rights of the people we interact with every day. If none of us ever tells an offensive joke, none of us will have the awkward experience of explaining why a person was made to feel offended and why all of us at XYZ were embarrassed due to an offensive joke. Also, we accept that others may have different opinions, and we treat their opinions as valid. We will disagree respectfully.

We Communicate Professionally. Each of us will act as if ethical communication is our profession, and we will work every day to improve our individual skills and knowledge in this area. This is because it is XYZ’s belief that the most successful businesses are those whose people communicate the company’s vision effectively through their day to day interaction with other people. The conversation may be about widgets, but underlying the technical jargon should be XYZ’s ethical culture.

Each employee of XYZ Corporation will represent XYZ and each member of the XYZ family by communicating ethically. It is possible to fill volumes with the specific things each of us should do every day to demonstrate ethical communication, but this Code covers all of those individual things. Simply: We Tell the Truth, We Walk the Talk, We Listen, We Have Consideration and We Communicate Professionally.

Work Cited

Jameson, Daphne A. "The Rhetoric of Industrial Espionage: The Case of Starwood v. Hilton." Business Communication Quarterly 74.3 (2011): 289-297. Business Source Complete. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.