Best Buy's Chief Ethics Officer publishes a blog all about ethics, and while the concept may be good, I and other colleagues in the industry thought the execution was somewhat lacking, especially the series of posts detailing ethics violations by specific employees, even if the names remain anonymous. When asked about the blog several communications professionals had advice for the Best Buy blogger and company. Here are three recommendations culled from social media interviews and blog comments.
1. Shel Holtz: On sensitive topics such as ethics communicate generically not specifically.
Shel stated, "an alternative approach is to talk about it more generically, the way Jonathan Schwartz did when addressing leaks of product information. He acknowledged that it was happening without singling anybody out, and agreed that the motivations were probably good, outlined why it was problematic and asked employees to stop (which they did)."
2. Wayne Hurlbert: Don't single out staff members.
"There are many more ways to write about ethics without singling out staff members. This blog doesn't inspire anyone to become more aware of ethics and the challenge of ethical behavior throughout organizations."
3. Jeff Domansky: Rewards for ethical practices.
I'd like to see more evidence on tangible rewards for following ethical practices. Guest bloggers and employee and manager posts would also broaden credibility and close the us-them gap.
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Read the Ethics blog and let me know what you think of the blog, and what if any social media advice you'd give to the blogger and Best Buy.