Manage your human resources like an ethical entrepreneur

In France, according to the OECD, only half of small and medium-sized enterprises are located at an appropriate level of CSR. 7% of them reach an exemplary level. So how do you become an ethics pro, an ethical boss? What’s the secret? Take care of your human resources! Here you are offered a concrete three-step approach…

Step 1: Awareness of the need for ethics

Caring for wage welfare is often costly, but can directly have a positive impact:

Your reputation
Your turnover.

The most extreme example of the last 20 years is probably that of Nike. In 1997, a scandal broke over the working conditions of the shoe manufacturer’s employees. This has led to a significant drop in sales. Nike then made a series of ethical commitments (minimum age of workers, overtime, etc.), and sales rose again.

This proves the effectiveness of ethics in the business world!

Of course, the ethical approach is to respect human beings in the workplace, to avoid discrimination, corruption… But beyond these fundamental requirements that you surely already meet, adopt ingesting an interrogative attitude, and constantly question your wage practices is essential.

Step 2: Care, or the subtle ethical art of well-being at work

Care is an American philosophy of caring for the Other in general. He invites himself into the company in the form of modern management. According to Jean-Luc Dufournaud director of ethics for the SNCF group (in an interview for the website Village Justice):

«[…] I feel that ethical issues in large and medium-sized enterprises make more sense. We now realize that we no longer manage only by the rules, but that we must manage by values, and that we must therefore convey these values, and make them live. »

Today’s management therefore relies on a deep respect for the Labour Code and the rights of employees, but even more so on listening attentively to them, to build a real QVT (Quality of Life at Work ).

Step 3: The social barometer to take the temperature

This is where the measurement and analysis of the ethical steps you will take with your employees comes in. Every good ethical entrepreneur must assess the effectiveness and appreciation of the internal policies he implements.

To do this, you’ll need a satisfaction survey management tool tailored to HR surveys. I Feedback Now offers you a simple and intuitive software to accompany you to the extent of your social climate. Find out here!

In short, being an ethical entrepreneur means doing well but above all doing more for your employees. Pillars of your business, the quality of their working conditions affects both their productivity and your image as a brand and therefore your employer e-reputation! Ethical commitment is still considered too broadly for granted, while it is a work of substance.

So don’t wait and let yourself be carried away by the movement of managerial ethics…