CMI warns of ethics crisis as bureaucracy rules workplace

Too many managers are robotically following rules rather than making decisions with their hearts and minds, according to new research published today by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) and MoralDNA. It warns that workplace cultures dominated by rules, bureaucracy and targets mean that managers are switching off their sense of care for others.

The report, Managers and their MoralDNA, follows City scandals over mis-sold debt, PPI and rate fixing, plus crises in the NHS and the police, damaging public trust and employee engagement alike. It finds that 74%* of managers are at risk of overlooking the impact of their decisions at work on others - 28% more than among the general population.

The report shows that the general population can be divided almost equally into six different ethical character types - Philosophers, Judges, Angels, Teachers, Enforcers and Guardians - according to how far their approach to ethical matters is driven by their hearts, heads or compliance with rules.

Analysis of managers' morals revealed marked differences, with higher numbers of Enforcers, Judges and Philosophers (74%) and much smaller proportions of Angels, Teachers and Guardians (25%).

Ann Francke, chief executive of CMI, said: "To be successful, organisations have to meet the needs of their customers, employees and stakeholders. If the values and behaviours of those managing and leading organisations are out of kilter with those groups, they won't be run in a way that properly serves customers and stakeholders or gets the best out of employees. In short, they're destined to fail."