John Stanko

"The merchant uses dishonest scales and loves to defraud. Ephraim boasts, 'I am very rich; I have become wealthy. With all my wealth they will not find in me any iniquity or sin'" - Hosea 12:7-8.

Today's passage contains a description of business people who have prospered because of fraudulent and dubious business practices. They have even boasted about their unethical behavior, claiming that being good business people (by at least employing 'unsinful' but ethically dubious practices) has brought them success. The interesting thing is that God was watching them and of course condemned their practices, proving that God is interested in values-based behavior in the business world. Leaders would do well to remember this so they can develop and be guided by honesty and integrity when they are dealing with employees, suppliers, customers, and the public in general.

LEADERSHIP STEP: Your Step today is to examine your business practices. Look for areas where your talk and your walk aren't quite in sync. First of all, do you encourage discussion around decisions so you can get various perspectives on their ethical impact? Do you have a set of values and standards for customer service, pricing, environmental impact, and product or service quality? How often and how effectively do you audit the application and consistency of those values?