The Value of Integrity and Trust in Personal and Organizational Spheres

Does integrity still matter? The thought came up over a cup of coffee while thinking about how there exists difficult to measure constructs because they are primarily latent functions (You have to measure them in multiple ways to help define the concept because you can't observe directly. Economics also has latent functions that are not easily observable because economics is a study of human choice/behavior.). As I take a sip of my black coffee, no sugar, I realize there are very core truths in human exchange that lay the foundation for cooperation and economic performance (We have thus far touched upon values, beliefs, oaths, and other foundational concepts of social-economic engagement. Social Exchange Theory)

It depends on who you talk to and whether or not they respect the value of integrity for a purpose beyond simple lip movement and public display for others. From an organizational and societal point of view, integrity still matters. It matters because all organizations are collectives of people, and they share information and knowledge through a medium of trust. When you are trusted you have more influence and that becomes increasingly important for leaders and executives (Your handshake should mean something because if people know it does, then connections influence reach because people minimize risk by doing business with you.)

Don't believe?

Let us use two example lenses where integrity of an executive, decision maker, or leader would create trust because they do what they say and say what they do even when no one is looking (Internal consistency of behavior and pronouncement.). The very nature of leadership and/or leadership teams/managers is to provide direction to others. High or low integrity perception will have an impact an organization at different levels. It may be subtle but the impact can make or break the long term financial health viability of the whole because engagement/exchange increases or decreases transactions (...organization as a formal collective. i.e. firm). 

Example 1 of Organizational Integrity: Implement a completely unfair rule no one understands or expects into the mix and watch the social and performance outcomes (must be short and long-term performance). Just because no one says anything to the boss doesn't mean there hasn't been a shift in patterns (i.e. all people who wore brown ties or green shoes are fired or all people who have 03 in their birthdate get demoted). While people will hang on for dear career they also will adjust much of their behavior to match the new risks and that will limit knowledge sharing and collaborative effort. Likewise, they will look to join the competition or start their own businesses where the environment is more stable (i.e. risk reduction strategy). It sounds like lack of integrity would not be a good outcome for competitive reasons.

Example 2 Playing Favorites: One of dangers of people who hold little integrity is that they may profess one thing but then do the opposite making a separation between what is and what is not. However, there are short term gains to playing favorites as short term loyalty rises but ultimately it caches you as the broader social structure of people adjust behavior based on the outcomes.  Equity Theory.

Integrity is a trust issue. Integrity means that you say what you believe, are transparent in those beliefs and will act to support those beliefs despite the personal consequences. Definition of Integrity (One can be ethical or unethical but still have integrity if they do what they say they will do.) Since it is an essential glue of human interaction most people start learning about it at an early age despite one's occupation, culture, belief or background (i.e. a universal truth/value/form). You can find an example in Montessori Integrity

Managerial integrity often takes into account interactions, norms, culture and values of managers/decision makers in a business setting. It is a little wider conception of the same idea. Managing for Organizational Integrity

Interestingly, one can actually hire for and screen candidates for integrity. One should understand that no psychological test can be 100% correct because they often measure the bell curve, and neural diversity can be a good thing for a species and competitiveness of an organization (One wouldn't want to hire cookie cutter characteristics that have limited utility under various market factors. If the market shifts you won't have the variability to deal with it.). There is a role for good judgement, instinct, and experience in hiring. If it ends in a handshake then there has been trust built that comes with an underlining truth and expectation (The power of the bond is based in part on an underlining expectation. Integrity allows you to build those bonds even with people who might not be your #1 fan because they expect people will act in alignment with words.).