Editorial February 9, 1998 Issue

Business ethics, service, and success

William E. Moody

No doubt there's still a long way to go. But a renewed interest in higher ethical standards for business and industry is making the news. It's a sign worth noting—and supporting.

Take, for example, a Pennsylvania company that handles auto parts. Forbes magazine reports that the company insists on "high moral standards from new hires. ... Lying is grounds for firing. Gossip and backbiting are firmly discouraged." And performance reviews go beyond typical benchmarks of sales productivity, work attendance, and the like. Performance is rated for "employees on how well they 'attempt to promote goodwill.'"

Forbes headlined its article "Righteousness pays" (Sept. 22, 1997, pp. 200–201). It described how the company has been growing at a rate of 25% each year since the mid-1980s and last year netted $16 million in profits on a total volume of $160 million. The company is doing right by its employees and its customers. And with a solid base of honesty and the motive to be of real service to others, the business is succeeding.

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