March is Ethics Awareness Month!

Cecilia Sepp, CAE, ACNP, LPEC

Author’s note: This article was originally published on the blog of the Institute of Organization Management (IOM) of the US Chamber of Commerce in October 2025.

Navigating a decade referred to as the “Turbulent Twenties” presents multiple challenges. In an era of rapidly changing social, economic, and political tides, keeping your footing as you lead a Chamber of Commerce – or any organization – seems overwhelming on the best days and impossible on the worst days. 

We will question ourselves: am I being sensitive to the individuals around me? Am I making the best strategic choices to support my Chamber and the people it serves? Am I choosing the leadership decision and not the self-serving one? Am I paying enough attention to the environmental factors impacting our community? Am I correctly analyzing these factors? 

With all the distractions and nerve-wracking worries, we may forget that ethics can help us make our decisions. Using an ethical mindset to guide us in turbulent times can offer a calming influence as we navigate days where the world looks like it is coming apart at the seams. 

Why do I believe this? For the very sound reason that it is accurate. 

When we use an ethical mindset, and thus an understanding of the meaning of ethics, we have a compass for guiding us to the best decisions. Ethics are our “true north” as we move through a world where the maps are not as clear as they once were. 

The meaning of ethics is more than about right and wrong, or values and morals. It is about what kind of people we are and what kind of people we want to be. How we behave and make decisions is a reflection of us, and that is what the world sees – we need to ask ourselves what we want that view to be. Are we a person of integrity that says what we mean and means what we say? Or do we talk a lot about “doing the right thing” but then behave differently? No one likes it when someone says “do what I say, not what I do.” 

As leaders, we set the tone for our organizations and we set the example for the behavior we would like to see. Leaders are the representatives of our organizations; how other people perceive our organizations is greatly influenced by the behavior of leaders. 

You might be thinking, “this is all well and good but how does this help me in turbulent times?” Excellent question and the answer is this: using ethics to inform our decisions gives us a clearer view when times are tough. Knowing we will do the right thing for the right reason provides focus and clarity no matter how difficult the decision may be. Ethics makes us better leaders. 

Create an ethical mindset and you will walk into the future knowing you are going the right direction.