Table of Contents |
Leadership is more than setting direction. To be effective, leaders must embody values that shape the culture of their organizations. Fairness, integrity, and equity are especially powerful because they influence both the morale of employees and the long-term success of the organization.
Recall that we learned earlier in this challenge about stakeholder theory, the idea that businesses had an obligation to all the people they affect, and not just shareholders. He argued this not as a moral premise, but a business strategy. The long-term viability of companies requires the goodwill built with external stakeholders.
However, the ethical obligations of business leaders runs deeper than simply doing “the right thing,” because it’s “good for business.” And we know, if we watch the news or even read through our social media streams, that business leaders in reality fail time and time again to do what’s right in the moral sense or right for the company.
Alasdair MacIntyre was a philosopher who published one of the key texts on ethics in business, After Virtue, in 1981. MacIntyre argued that in putting efficiency and effectiveness over virtue and character, many institutions—especially corporations—had detached from moral purpose (Abadal & Potts, 2022). He further stated that managers themselves were compelled to deal with measurable outcomes, which made them fail in a broader sense to be the leaders their organizations needed.
Most people believe in "right and wrong", but to MacIntyre these beliefs have little meaning as abstract ideals. To have the kind of meaning that motivates people to live up to the ideal, they need to be rooted in a shared narrative, that is, a story about origins and destinations, both as individuals and as an organization.
For leaders, the key points are to:
So why do so many fail to live up to their values? This is where MacInyre stresses the shared narrative. He states that:
EXAMPLE
Educational leadership is largely its own field that builds on those narratives – of successful schools and academic excellence – to inspire their followers to a deeper commitment.IN CONTEXT: PAUL POLMAN
[placeholder]
Whether he’d read MacIntrye or not, Paul Polman embodied his work at Unilever, which he led from 2009-20019. Paul Polman's decade-long leadership at Unilever provides a compelling case study for Alasdair MacIntyre’s ideas on ethics (Schwabel, 2017). While many leaders pay lip service to virtues like integrity and fairness, Polman embodied them by intentionally moving away from the kind of short-term thinking that MacIntyre criticized. Rather than prioritizing efficiency and quarterly profit, the measurable outcomes that can detach a company from its moral purpose, Polman centered Unilever’s strategy around a deeper, more meaningful narrative.
A powerful leader understands that a business's ethical obligations go beyond just being a "good corporate citizen" for the sake of public relations. Polman’s approach was rooted in a belief that a company could only thrive in the long term by actively contributing to the well-being of its stakeholders and the planet. He did this by integrating sustainability and social impact into the very core of Unilever's operations, proving that doing the right thing could be the right thing for business, too.
This shift was possible because Polman crafted a shared narrative for the organization. He didn't just tell employees to be fair and honest; he gave them a story to live by. Unilever's mission became about making sustainable living commonplace, giving purpose to every role and action within the company. This powerful narrative provided narrative unity, creating a story of collective growth and moral development that transcended the diverse backgrounds of its employees. By making the organization's purpose the source of this shared story, Polman provided a context where virtues became meaningful practices, not just abstract ideals, and inspired a deeper commitment from his followers.
MacIntyre's philosophy, exemplified by Paul Polman at Unilever, shows that virtues are not abstract ideals but are made meaningful through a shared narrative. Leaders who successfully embed a moral purpose into their organization's identity create a collective story about what the company stands for. This shared story makes virtues like honesty and fairness a reality, transforming them from abstract concepts into a practical guide for action. This commitment to an organizational narrative is the very foundation of integrity in leadership—a crucial virtue that we will now explore in more detail.
If values and narratives provide the foundation of leadership, daily practices are what make them real. Integrity and fairness are not one-time choices but repeated actions that build trust and shape culture over time. Importantly, each practice also connects to the broader narrative of the organization, reinforcing the story that gives meaning to people’s work.
| Practice | Explanation | Connection to Shared Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| Explaining decisions | Transparency shows employees how effort connects to outcomes, reducing uncertainty. | Builds a story of fairness and predictability where outcomes follow clear principles. |
| Taking ownership of mistakes | Admitting errors models accountability and encourages others to do the same. | Reinforces a narrative of integrity in which everyone contributes to growth and learning. |
| Telling the truth | Honesty with employees and stakeholders builds a reliable moral identity over time. | Embeds trustworthiness into the collective story, making the leader’s role intelligible to others. |
| Sharing your story | Connecting personal values to organizational work gives context to decisions. | Invites others into the leader’s values, weaving personal stories of growth into the organization’s larger mission. |
| Keeping promises | Following through—or explaining when circumstances change—reinforces credibility. | Sustains a story of reliability where commitments form the backbone of the community’s trust. |
Fairness also becomes visible in daily choices. Leaders who apply standards consistently, listen carefully before making decisions, and avoid favoritism build a record of impartiality that others can trust. Over time, fairness is not episodic but part of the leader’s character and the organization’s culture.
Respectful and inclusive leadership extends this principle further. Leaders who avoid micromanaging, invite input across roles and ranks, and create space for disagreement signal that all voices matter. Protecting whistleblowers and supporting those who speak up about unethical behavior reinforces the organization’s moral core. In narrative terms, these practices ensure that team members are not passive characters but co-authors in the ongoing story of the organization. Their successes become part of the organization’s shared narrative.
Source: THIS TUTORIAL WAS AUTHORED BY SOPHIA LEARNING. PLEASE SEE OUR TERMS OF USE.
REFERENCES
Abadal, L. M., & Potts, G. W. (2022). A MacIntyrean account of chronic moral injury: Assessing the implications of bad management and marginalized practices at work. Frontiers in sociology, 7, 1019804. doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2022.1019804.
Schawbel, D. (2017, November 21). Unilever’s Paul Polman: Why today's leaders need to commit to a purpose. Forbes. www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2017/11/21/paul-polman-why-todays-leaders-need-to-commit-to-a-purpose/.
