I am studying Item 1.6. This covers the skill of compliance and ethical behavior.
These notes are a little less thorough today; not because I do not think the topic is important but because I just did not have much time to study. Hopefully more to come.
This is part of the Building Personal Capability category
These are notes, so expect typos.
Basic Notes
Probably the best resources is the ATD Vision, Mission, and CoE: https://www.td.org/about/vision-mission-code-of-ethics
ATD BoK definition: “Ethical behaviormeans exhibiting good values and acting in ways that are consistent with the beliefs of society, the organization, and the profession.”
“Compliance is an action that is mandated by a law, agency, or policy outside the organization’s purview.”
Employees with integrity are open about conflict of interest. For example, TD professionals are open and upfront about personal relationships with potential vendors, perhaps recusing themselves from the final decision.
Ethical behavior is not about right or wrong but choosing between competing values. A TD professional can test a decision by asking:
- Can I defend my actions?
- How do I feel about the decision?
- Is it the greatest good for the greatest number?
- How would I feel if my family, colleagues, and friends learned about the decision?
10 Ways Ethics Engages Employees
TD professionals can use to help establish an ethical and compliant culture
- Align compliance to organizational strategy
- Designate a compliance and ethics owner and committee.
- Compile organizational standards, policies, and procedures into categories.
- Document written standards and legal requirements for each category.
- Conduct a risk assessment for each category. Develop open communication and training where necessary.
- Audit, monitor, and adapt as necessary.
A very important consideration is information, such as intellectual capital, personal ID, patient info, customer data
GDPR is an important consideration — though knowing the specifics of this would not be on the exam due to the need to make the exam universal. Same or EEOC.
Significant emphasis on coaching and ethics in the BoK. An ethical thing to do sometimes is terminate the relationships (one not-so-obvious nugget of info).
Key >>
Use of testing in hiring, promotion, or retention is an established and accepted practice. However, there can be a potential legal problem if a measure used for a significant employment decision is discriminatory. The question decided by federal courts is how much a procedure has an “adverse impact on the hiring, promotion, or other employment or membership opportunities of members of any race, sex, or ethnic groups will be considered to be discriminatory . . . unless the procedure has been validated” (29 CFR § 1607.3).
Keep in mind the various challenges of remote workers who might be governed by multiple sets of laws, regulations, and so on.
IT compliance is important
Adapting to ethical differences across cultures requires learning (go figure!)
