How Company Culture Contributes to Ethical Decision Processes

Kat Willette

kw154717@ohio.edu 

    Every year around this time, when the leaves are changing as the Appalachian air becomes crisp, thousands of soon-to-be college graduates begin the daunting task of career research. Though there are countless features that may attract young professionals to a certain job, one of the most important assets that a company has to offer is its culture.  

    Within the modern professional world, most qualified candidates for any given job are actually more concerned about the culture of the company they are applying for, with the thought that positive company culture leads to better productivity and an overall higher quality of work. According to Refresh Leadership, "86% of Millennials say they would consider taking a pay cut to accept a position at a company that has a mission and values that align with their own" (Price). Surprisingly enough, a majority of young professionals value the culture of a company far more than how much they are payed. 

Photo Source: Landscapeprofessionals.org

    Similarly, according to LinkedIn's Workplace Culture Report, "70% of professionals in the U.S. today would not work at a leading company if it meant they had to tolerate a bad workplace culture" (McQueen). Again, we see that modern professionals refuse to work for companies that do not promote positive, inclusive and diverse culture experiences. This statistic is the main reason that many large firms have had to tighten their company cultures in order to win and retain young talent. According the the same culture report produced by LinkedIn, they believe the key to cultivating a gleaming internal culture is to invest in their employees, maintaining values and creating a culture in which people feel they belong. 

    Though companies have been putting extra care into encouraging positive workplace atmospheres in the recent months and years, there are still some situations in which employees feel the company's values have been breached. An active example of this is the ultra-popular entertainment machine, Netflix. Many of Netflix's employees were upset by the releasing of comedian Dave Chapelle's latest work, "The Closer" on the platform due to its insensitivity toward members of the LGBTQ+ community. After many internal meetings and even public comments from CEO Ted Sarandos, employees decided to host a walk-out, in which any Netflix team member who disagreed with the show or who wanted to show support to those who were hurt by the show excited the Netflix headquarters in Las Angeles. 

       Events such as this one that are aimed to show dissatisfaction with company standards are becoming more popular within the professional realm, and are used as a method to keep ethical values firmly lodged within a company's everyday decision making processes.