Signature Assignment: (Reflection Journal or Treatise): "I am an ethical leader" Overview and Rationale
Writing a treatise provides you with an opportunity to critically assess your leadership capability through introspection and self-analysis - it makes you aware of who you are as both an individual and a leader. This assignment serves as a reflective exercise and a self-assessment to help you learn more about yourself as an ethical leader. It will also serve as your final project.
Assignment Objectives
• Students will be able to connect personal experiences with the information learned to date, citing course readings, lectures, and discussions.
• Students will be able to analyze their personal progress as ethical leaders by reflecting on the content and activities learned during the first half of the course.
o Students will have an opportunity to recognize obstacles and strengths to their own development as ethical leaders, and to identify solutions or plans on how to overcome those obstacles or develop those strengths.
This assignment focuses on your personal level of ethical leadership. You will work on understanding. analyzing and implementing choices related to ethics-related situations. In doing this, you are expected to demonstrate an understanding of the theoretical foundations of ethical thoughts when you reflect on your personal challenges, apply course frameworks in analyzing your choices and dilemmas, and move to the level of defining a direction for personal growth as an ethical leader. Using lecture materials, readings, and the various discussions you have had with classmates and the instructor, you will incorporate leadership theories to create an ethical leadership model and definition.
Essential Components
Using the prompt provided below, and after reading the article (located in Blackboard) titled, "The Ethical Mind: A Conversation with Psychologist Howard Gardner," provide a clear, concise, and well written journal that will be reflective in nature and effectively showcase your thoughts and perspectives on ethical leadership Gardner argues that:
"A person with an ethical mind asks herself, 'What kind of a person, worker, and citizen do I want to be? If all workers in my profession adopted the mind-set I have, or if everyone did what I do, what would the world be like?'... Whistle-blowers display ethical minds. Many people might see a top manager doing something unethical, but they won't do anything about it because they want to keep their jobs, and they feel that they must respect the boss. A whistle-blower steps back from those concerns and considers the nature of work and the community in a larger way. He takes a mental leap past daily doings; his allegiance is to the workplace or the profession. He acts ethically even though it may cost him his respectful relation to his supervisor and, ultimately, his job and relation to his colleagues. He is able to do this because his own momentary well-being is less important than the broader mission he has endorsed."
Final Reflection Journal Guiding Question: What is your philosophy of proper leadership ethics in your industry or career path? Develop at least five different points or arguments that support your thinking. Use your experience, your organizational research, textbook analysis and our course as a resource. Students have freedom to develop and write this philosophical piece as a vision of their own practice for the future. It must, though, address the question above with adequate support and demonstrate wisdom gained from the course.
Consider the following when writing your piece:
• Do you have an ethical mind? If so, explain your thoughts and provide one or more specific examples. If not, how would you define your ethical thinking?
• How have our readings or discussions, during the first half of this course, changed or reinforced the opinions you previously held about yourself as an ethical leader?
• What connections can you make between your ethical thinking and your personal and professional leadership style?
• What leadership models do you value and identify with and how do they support an ethical mindset?
• What strengths do you have that will help facilitate your development as an ethical leader?
• How do you model ethical leadership in your personal and professional life?
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.