RT Article
T1 The Leader as Chief Truth Officer: The Ethical Responsibility of “Managing the Truth” in Organizations
JF Journal of business ethics
VO 157
IS 1
SP 1
OP 13
A1 Bouilloud, Jean-Philippe
A1 Deslandes, Ghislain 1970-
A1 Mercier, Guillaume
LA English
PB Springer Science + Business Media B. V
YR 2019
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1785669192
AB Our aim is to analyze the position of the leader in relation to the ethical dimension of truth-telling within the organization under his/her control. Based on Michel Foucault’s study of truth-telling, we demonstrate that the role of the leader toward the corporation and the imperative of organizational performance place the leader in an ambiguous position: he/she is obliged to take the lead in “telling the truth” internally and externally, but also to bear the consequences of this “truth-telling” for the organization and for himself/herself. In this process of construction and implementing the truth, the leader is organizer and figurehead of the corporation’s truth-telling practices: determining the frontiers between truth that can be said and that which should remain hidden, both inside and outside the corporation; establishing a dialogue based on truth (i.e., an authentic, sincere relationship with all partners); guaranteeing that the rules of truth-telling are respected; and offering a truth which is compatible with the firm’s economic and ethical interest. Invested with the authority—the office—of managing truth within the corporation, the leader can be considered to be the “Chief Truth Officer.” From this perspective, we demonstrate that this role requires specific skills, like courage and practical wisdom.
K1 Truthfulness
K1 Truth-telling
K1 Secrecy
K1 Parrhesia
K1 Foucault
K1 Aletheia
DO 10.1007/s10551-017-3678-0