The Conscience Code: Lead with Your Values. Advance Your Career

by G. Richard Shell

The Conscience Code is a practical guide to creating workplaces where everyone can thrive. Surveys show that more than 40% of employees report seeing ethical misconduct at work, and most fail to report it--killing office morale and allowing the wrong people to set the example. Collegiate professor G. Richard Shell has heard work misconduct stories from his MBA students which inspired him to create this helpful guide for navigating these nuances. Shell created this book to point to a better path: recognize that these conflicts are coming, learn to spot them, then follow a research-based, step-by-step approach for resolving them skillfully. By committing to the Code, you can replace regret with long-term career success as a leader of conscience. In The Conscience Code , Shell shares tips and facts that: Driven by dramatic, real-world examples from Shell's classroom, today's headlines, and classic cases of corporate wrongdoing, The Conscience Code shows how to create value-based workplaces where everyone can thrive.

Genres: Nonfiction, Business

272 pages, Paperback

Published June 8, 2021

About the author

G. Richard Shell is the Thomas Gerrity Professor of Legal Studies, Business Ethics, and Management at the Wharton School of Business. His latest book, The Conscience Code: Lead with Your Values. Advance Your Career, is the essential guide to creating and maintaining ethical, speak-up cultures at work. His Springboard: Launching Your Personal Search for Success (Penguin/Portfolio 2013), was named Business Book of Year for 2013 by the largest business bookseller in the United States. Shell is the Director of Wharton’s Executive Negotiation Workshop and its Strategic Persuasion Workshop and has taught everyone from Navy SEALs, UN diplomats, and Fortune 500 CEOs to FBI hostage negotiators, emergency room nurses, and front-line public school teachers. His earlier works include the award-winning Bargaining for Advantage: Negotiation Strategies for Reasonable People (2nd Edition, Penguin 2006)and (with co-author Mario Moussa) The Art of Woo: Using Strategic Persuasion to Sell Your Ideas (Portfolio/Penguin 2007). His books have sold over 500,000 copies and are available in over seventeen languages.

Reviews

[Anjali Lal · Rating 4 out of 5]

As good as a book on ethics can get.
I also love reading like minded people who believe in good things and doing it with integrity.

Loved this book. It felt like a good friend was sitting beside and telling me to keep courage and do good things in the world.

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Convicting, thought-provoking and insightful guide for professionals looking to align their personal values with their career goals. Shell, a Wharton professor and renowned expert on leadership and ethics, offers practical advice on how individuals can navigate the complex world of business while staying true to their moral compass. One of the key takeaways from this book is the importance of leading with integrity and authenticity. Shell emphasizes the importance of being true to oneself and not compromising one’s values for professional gain. He provides strategies for how individuals can effectively communicate their values to others and build trust and credibility in the workplace. Another valuable aspect of “The Conscience Code” is Shell’s emphasis on the long-term benefits of leading with values. He argues that individuals who prioritize ethics and integrity are more likely to succeed in their careers and earn the respect of their colleagues and friends. This is a must-read for anyone looking to advance their career while staying true to their values. Richard Shell’s practical advice and real-world examples make this book a valuable resource for professionals at any stage of their career.

[Patty Kluding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good review of stories from business students about how to face common ethical challenges in the business world. Not a lot of new ideas but I liked the consistent emphasis on how to stick to your ethics in the face of ‘everyone does it’ and other rationalizations.

[Cathy Hawkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practical with real life examples from his Wharton classroom the book is highly relevant for today’s business environment. Highly recommend for anyone with a conscience.

[Sanford Chee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wharton webinar
https://apps.wharton.upenn.edu/webina...

Fighter pilot’s OODA loop = Observe, Orient, Decide, Act

Shell’s modified OODA loop:
Observe: take a breather. What is the underlying conflict is present? Differences of personality? Interests? Beliefs/World view? Values? Could be a combo of conflicts

Own the problem. It’s my responsibility to manage/resolve/avoid this. No need to act alone. Can enrol others even if I own the problem. Consider engaging a negotiations partner to help me. Be clear of my goals, the outcome I want from this.

Decide: how best to deal with the underlying conflict?
Conflicts of personality: EQ required, understanding, empathy. Match intensity without needing to match volume. Story of Andy Grove’s assistant.

Conflicts of interest => negotiations. Are there other underlying interests not surfaced? Are there items of unequal value? Is it only zero sum negotiations?

Conflicts over beliefs: not easy to quickly resolve. Persuasion, framing. Tact, diplomacy. Or is power more expedient? Cognitive dissonance - mandated behaviour change could lead to changed beliefs. Or is a man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still?

Act & adjust. Don’t necessarily have to do it alone. Napoleon’s battle strategy: prepare, engage then see what happens

[Sharmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

In his book "The Conscience Code," G. Richard Shell addresses a significant conundrum: how to succeed in the modern corporate environment without sacrificing your morality. Young professionals handling morally dubious situations is his obvious area of concentration. Shell reveals the five sneaky "forces" that lead us to act unethically: coercion, authority, groupthink, rationalization, and self-interest. The book provides readers with a useful "values-to-action" paradigm that enables them to recognize their own values, evaluate their circumstances, and make decisions while upholding their moral compass. Unquestionably, the framework works, even though some people may find it a little formulaic. Shell uses relatable real-world situations to show us that we're not the only ones dealing with these difficulties. It is a useful road map that will give you the confidence to walk through ethical minefields if you have aspirations of a job that is in line with your principles.

[Srinivasan Tatachari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book has kindled the desire in me to actually think of teaching this as a course in my B-school. The book is a beautiful compilation of excerpts of issues around ethics and Richard comes up with nice frameworks and suggestions on how to deal with these kind of situations.

A book I would highly recommend to anyone in any role in business.

[David Fredh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book with vision towards committed integrity-based leadership and great examples and stories about why this is so important. Lead with your values and you create the right type of organization and right type of society and a more fulfilling life. You move beyond work-life balance into work-life integration.

[TBHONEST · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Conscience Code should be given to every employee. Insightful, easy to follow and could change how approach and manage all types of conflicts in your career.

[Theodore Kinni · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good guide to practical ethics for businesspeople by an expert