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>> I'M CHIP DEALE, A CAREER-LONG
ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE AND
CURRENT MEMBER OF THE
ASAE ETHICS COMMITTEE.
AS YOU LEARNED IN THE FIRST
SEGMENT OF THIS VIDEO SERIES,
THE ASAE BOARD OF DIRECTORS HAS
ADOPTED VOLUNTARY STANDARDS OF
CONDUCT THAT ARE DESIGNED TO
HELP ALL ASAE MEMBERS,
ASSOCIATION PROFESSIONALS,
CONSULTANTS, AND INDUSTRY
PARTNERS LEARN MORE ABOUT A
VARIETY OF ETHICAL ISSUES AND
HOW TO REALLY ASPIRE TO
ACHIEVEMENT AND FULFILLMENT OF
THOSE STANDARDS AND HOW TO ACT
APPROPRIATELY.
THE STANDARDS INCLUDE SIX CORE
PRINCIPLES TO WHICH ALL MEMBERS,
AGAIN, ARE ENCOURAGED TO ASPIRE.
IN THIS SEGMENT, WE'RE GOING TO
ADDRESS TWO OF THOSE CORE
PRINCIPLES.
FIRST, RESPECTING AND UPHOLDING
PUBLIC LAWS AND, SECONDLY, BEING
HONEST IN CONDUCTING THE
MEMBERS' BUSINESS.
JOINING ME FOR THIS DISCUSSION
IS PETER O'NEIL.
PETER IS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
OF AIHA, AND HE'S ALSO THE
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR OF THE
ASAE BOARD.
SO THANK YOU, PETER, FOR SHARING
YOUR THOUGHTS WITH US.
LET'S FIRST ADDRESS THE STANDARD
OF RESPECTING AND UPHOLDING
PUBLIC LAWS.
THE INITIAL REACTION THAT MANY
ASAE MEMBERS MIGHT HAVE -- AND
IT'S CERTAINLY ONE THAT I
PERSONALLY HAD -- IS THAT
KNOWING AND ABIDING BY THE LAWS
AND REGULATIONS IS MORE OF A
LEGAL THAN IT IS AN ETHICAL
ISSUE.
I'M CURIOUS ABOUT YOUR THINKING
ON THAT.
WHERE, FOR EXAMPLE, DOES ONE
STRAY FROM A BLACK-AND-WHITE
LEGAL OBLIGATION TO MORE OF A
GRAY ETHICAL AREA?
AND MAYBE YOU CAN THINK OF AT
LEAST ONE SITUATION OR EXAMPLE
WHERE THAT MIGHT APPLY.
>> SURE.
WELL, FIRST, HATS OFF TO YOU AND
THE ETHICS COMMITTEE MEMBERS FOR
THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE.
I THINK YOU'VE HELPED, OVER THE
YEARS, BRING THESE ISSUES OF
ETHICS TO THE FOREFRONT OF THE
PROFESSION AT A TIME WHEN A LOT
OF OTHER THINGS ARE GOING ON.
SO IT WAS SORT OF SERENDIPITY IN
SOME WAYS, BUT I KNOW YOU ALL
HAVE WORKED REAL *** THAT.
AND HATS OFF TO ALL OF YOU.
>> AND TO THE BOARD, AS WELL.
>> THANK YOU.
SURE. I MEAN, FOLLOWING LAWS ARE
SOMEWHAT EASY -- RIGHT? --
BECAUSE THEY'RE BLACK AND
THEY'RE WHITE.
YOU KNOW WHAT'S RIGHT AND WHAT'S
WRONG BECAUSE SOMEONE SAID SO,
AND YOU KNOW WHAT THE
CONSEQUENCES ARE WHEN YOU'VE NOT
FOLLOWED THOSE LAWS.
AND I THINK YOU ALL KNOW, IN THE
ETHICS WORLD, THAT THE CHALLENGE
WITH ETHICS IS, ETHICS IS IN THE
EYE OF THE BEHOLDER, LARGELY,
AND RELATIVELY GRAY.
I THINK, IN OUR PROFESSION, ONE
OF THE THINGS THAT COMES TO
MIND, TO ME, IS, AS WE INTERFACE
WITH OUR INDUSTRY-PARTNER PEERS
AS ASSOCIATION PROFESSIONALS, I
THINK WE HAVE TO REMAIN MINDFUL
THAT THEY'RE INTO IT FOR
RELATIONSHIPS AND BUSINESS, AND
HOW WE COMPORT OURSELVES IS
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.
I THINK, FOR EXAMPLE, THESE
FAM TRIPS -- OR THESE
FAMILIARIZATION TRIPS -- THAT
VERY OFTEN MEETING PLANNERS OR
C.E.O.s ARE ASKED TO GO ON, TO
TOUR A CITY AND SEE
INFRASTRUCTURE AND SEE HOTELS
AND GET A FLAVOR FOR A SENSE OF
THE CITY, AND THESE TRIPS HAVE
BEEN AROUND FOR YEARS.
AND I THINK, ON THE WHOLE,
THEY'RE NOT A BAD THING.
BUT I THINK THERE ARE STILL
PEERS IN OUR BUSINESS WHO ARE
TAKING THESE TRIPS TO SOME VERY
NICE DESTINATIONS, CANDIDLY,
THAT REALLY HAVE NO INTENTION IN
THE RELATIVELY NEAR FUTURE -- I
DEFINE BY THREE YEARS OR LESS --
BRINGING BUSINESS TO THOSE
CITIES.
SO I THINK, WHETHER IT'S THAT OR
WHETHER IT'S GOING TO A
TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER, SAY, IN THE
INDUSTRY OR SOMETHING SIMILAR
AND GETTING SOME SERVICES FOR
THE ORGANIZATION, WHERE THERE'S
NO QUID PRO QUO -- LEGITIMATE
QUID PRO QUO -- IS A REAL
ETHICAL DILEMMA THAT WE HAVE TO
CONTINUE TO BE MINDFUL OF AND BE
TRANSPARENT ABOUT AS WE CONDUCT
OUR BUSINESS FROM OUR SIDE OF
THE FENCE, SO TO SPEAK.
>> RIGHT. SO, THEY'RE CERTAINLY
ABIDING BY THE LAW.
>> RIGHT.
>> BUT, LIKE YOU SAY, IT'S
PERHAPS DRIFTING TOWARDS THAT
AREA WHERE IT'S QUESTIONABLE,
FROM AN ETHICS STANDPOINT.
SO, VERY HELPFUL AND CERTAINLY
SOMETHING FOR PROBABLY ALL
MEMBERS TO THINK ABOUT -- ALL
ASAE MEMBERS -- BECAUSE, AT SOME
POINT OR ANOTHER, IT PROBABLY
AFFECT THEM IN THAT AREA.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
>> RIGHT. SO, LET'S TURN TO THE
SECOND STANDARD -- TO BE HONEST
IN CONDUCTING ONE'S BUSINESS.
AND HERE, THERE ARE JUST A WHOLE
HOST OF ISSUES THAT YOU AND I
COULD TALK ABOUT, BUT WE CAN'T
IN THE LIMITS OF THIS VIDEO
SEGMENT.
ONE EXAMPLE THAT COMES TO MIND,
FOR EXAMPLE, IS BEING HONEST IN
DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE AND
CREDENTIALS.
IN SHORT, DON'T FUDGE ON THE
TRUTH ON YOUR RéSUMé AND IN YOUR
ONLINE PROFILES.
BUT THERE ARE TWO OTHER
IMPORTANT AREAS OR TOPICS THAT
ALSO COME TO MY MIND.
ONE IS CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT,
AT YOUR ORGANIZATION, WHERE ALL
EMPLOYEES -- ALL EMPLOYEES --
REALLY FEEL SAFE TO TELL THE
TRUTH, INCLUDING, WHERE
NECESSARY, BLOWING THE WHISTLE
ON WHAT THEY MIGHT PERCEIVE TO
BE ETHICAL OR LEGAL WRONGDOING
OR BREACHES.
AND THE SECOND EXAMPLE COULD BE
DEMONSTRATING TRANSPARENCY IN
THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS AND
HAVING CLEAR
CONFLICT-OF-INTEREST
DISCLOSURES, MUCH LIKE YOU WERE
JUST TALKING ON FAM TRIPS.
AND THAT'S CERTAINLY AN AREA
WELL-KNOWN TO ASSOCIATIONS.
SO, IT'S SORT OF YOUR CHOICE
HERE, WHICH ONE YOU WANT TO
TALK -- WHICH TOPIC YOU WANT TO
ADDRESS -- AND HOW DO YOU, AS A
C.E.O., REALLY ENSURE THAT THE
SYSTEMS, THE PROCESSES ARE IN
PLACE TO GUARANTEE THE ETHICAL
INTEGRITY OF THE ORGANIZATION.
>> SURE. WELL, YOU KNOW ME WELL
ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT WHEN FACED
WITH A CHOICE, I TAKE BOTH, SO I
WANT TO JUST TOUCH ON BOTH, IF I
CAN.
I THINK THE NOTION OF HAVING A
WHISTLE-BLOWER POLICY IS
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, AND WE
CERTAINLY HAVE ONE AT AIHA AND
I'M HAPPY TO SHARE THAT POLICY.
IT'S A PART OF OUR EMPLOYEE
HANDBOOK.
IT'S GIVEN OUT EVERY YEAR.
IT'S UPDATED IF IT'S NEEDED TO
BE, BUT WE REMIND FOLKS THAT
WE'VE GOT THIS POLICY AND THAT
WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT OF THE
POLICY IS WHAT ARE THE THINGS
THAT HAVE TO BE DONE FOR THE
EMPLOYEE TO BE ABLE TO DO REPORT
THINGS THAT THEY FEEL SO
INCLINED -- LEGITIMATE THINGS,
NOT THINGS THAT ARE BEING DONE
THAT ARE NORMAL COURSES OF
BUSINESS AND SO FORTH.
>> YEAH, THAT'S A KEY
DISTINCTION.
>> YEAH, BUT I THINK, ONE OF
THEM -- I THINK, TRANSPARENCY IN
OUR TRANSPARENCY IN OUR
PROFESSION TODAY IS PROBABLY ONE
OF THE MOST TALKED-ABOUT WORDS
AND ONE OF THE MOST TALKED-ABOUT
ATTRIBUTES OF A C.E.O. AND OF
STAFF.
AND I THINK, IN THE CASE OF MY
BOARD, AS A PROFESSIONAL
SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY IN
PARTICULAR, WE'RE PROBABLY
UBER-MINDFUL -- PROBABLY OVERLY
MINDFUL SOMETIMES -- OF IT,
BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT MY MEMBERS
DEAL WITH ON A DAILY BASIS, IN
ACADEMIA, IN GOVERNMENT, IN THE
FOR-PROFIT LARGE MULTINATIONALS
THAT THEY DEAL WITH.
>> RIGHT. I'VE CERTAINLY HAD THE
SAME EXPERIENCE.
>> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.
AND I THINK, HOW WE COMPORT
OURSELVES AS C.E.O.s, WHEN IT
COMES TO BUDGET DEVELOPMENT TO
HOW CONTRACTS ARE AWARDED, I
THINK A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS ARE
MOVING INTO THIS WORLD OF, "DO
YOU PAY VOLUNTEERS TO DO WORK?
AND IF SO, UNDER WHAT
CIRCUMSTANCES?"
AND ALL THAT, I THINK, REQUIRES
A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TRANSPARENCY
TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY
UNDERSTANDS THE WHO, WHAT, WHEN,
WHERE, HOW, AND WHY OF WHAT
WE'RE DOING.
SO HOW I TRY TO MODEL IT
INTERNALLY IS TO BEHAVE THE WAY
THAT I WANT MY STAFF TO BEHAVE.
IT SOUNDS, I THINK, IN SOME
WAYS, VERY SILLY, BUT, REALLY, I
THINK IT'S THE GOLDEN RULE OF
"DO UNTO OTHERS."
AND I THINK, IF I DON'T MODEL
WHAT I WANT TO BE DONE, I DON'T
KNOW THAT I CAN EXPECT THEM TO
DO FOR ME WHAT I DONE.
>> RIGHT, YOU SET THE STANDARD,
AS THE C.E.O.
>> I THINK THE NOTION OF
TRANSPARENCY, IN OUR PROFESSION,
WILL CONTINUE TO BE A HUGE
ISSUE, AS WE GO FORWARD.
>> RIGHT, AND LIKE YOU SAY,
ENSURING THAT IT'S NOT JUST THE
C.E.O. BUT IT'S THE ENTIRE
ORGANIZATION -- THE VOLUNTEER
LEADERSHIP, ALL EMPLOYEES OF THE
ORGANIZATION.
>> CONFLICTS-OF-INTEREST
DOCUMENTS IN PLACE, SIGNED EVERY
YEAR, VETTED EVERY YEAR, LOOKED
AT EVERY YEAR, ET CETERA --
THINGS LIKE THAT.
>> AND LIVING BY WHAT YOU HAVE
IN PLACE, EXACTLY.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
>> GREAT. GREAT THOUGHTS, GREAT
THINGS FOR ALL ASAE MEMBERS TO
THINK ABOUT, AGAIN, REGARDLESS
OF THE MEMBERSHIP CATEGORY INTO
WHICH THEY MIGHT FALL.
>> EXACTLY.
>> SO, THAT BRINGS US TO THE
CLOSE OF THIS SEGMENT.
AGAIN, PETER, I APPRECIATE YOUR
BEING WITH US.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR
THOUGHTS -- GREAT EXAMPLES,
GREAT LIFE EXPERIENCES, IF YOU
WILL.
AND FOR ASAE MEMBERS -- YOU, ME,
ALL MEMBERS -- I REALLY
ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO VISIT THE
ASAE WEBSITE AND BECOME VERY
FAMILIAR WITH AND, OBVIOUSLY,
ABIDE BY THE STANDARDS OF
CONDUCT.
SO, AGAIN, THANK YOU.
>> YOU'RE WELCOME.