ETHICS
Ethical Intelligence: Core Personal Skill for Responsible Leadership
Prof. Dr. Bartosz Makowicz
In today ' s complex business and policy landscape, the concept of ethical intelligence is moving beyond a mere " nice-to-have " to become a core competency for modern leadership and resilient organizations. As stakeholders and society increasingly demand accountability and purpose-driven conduct, understanding the mechanics of ethical behaviour is no longer optional.
This article provides a clear framework for understanding this critical concept. First, ethical intelligence will be defined as a learnable skill. Its practical application will then be explored through observable leadership behaviours. Finally, a few global initiatives will be adressed that could support the development of this critical concept.
31
Ethical Intelligence as a Personal Skill Like the concept of culture, for which there are several hundred definitions, ethical intelligence is also difficult to define. In general, and simplified terms, it can be described as the ability to effectively apply moral and ethical principles in different situations. This definition is based on the concept of intelligence as the ability to effectively solve problems and ethics as the discipline that deals with the question what behaviour is good and what is bad.
From the perspective of an organization, ethical intelligence can be defined as the ability to consider the effects of
From the perspective of an organization, ethical intelligence can be defined as the ability to consider the effects of one ' s own actions on other people, society, and the environment and to act accordingly.
one ' s own actions on other people, society, and the environment and to act sential sub-skills. The first of these
it can be expressed as a set of four es- accordingly. An advantage of this definition is that it ethical intelligence can the ability to recognize and understand
skills is moral awareness, which means
be operationalized as a personal skill at moral and ethical issues in upcoming the organizational level. constellations. Second to mention is Once this approach is operationalized, value orientation, which means the