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Why and how can we practise ethical and responsible management?

Published on 25 September 2025
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Ethical management is emerging as a concrete response to the challenges of demotivation, loss of meaning and absenteeism in the workplace. By placing values, setting an example and listening to others at the heart of management practices, it helps to strengthen employee commitment and breathe new life into the team. But how do you go about it? Where do you start? And how do you embed this new managerial approach over the long term? Azziz Akroum, consultant and trainer, explains.

Illustration of the article on ethical and responsible management

Why do we need to rethink management today?

According to Gallup's latest State of the Global Workplace 2025 study, employee engagement worldwide fell by 2 % in 2024. As a result, only one in five employees say they are engaged at work (21 %). In 15 years, this is the 2e This is the first time engagement has fallen since 2020. The decline in commitment is particularly marked among managers, falling from 30 % to 27 %, with a more significant decline among the under-35s and women.

Employee engagement is highest in the Americas, led by the USA and Canada (31 %). At global level, Europe is at the bottom of the league, with only 13 % of 'engaged' employees. As for France, it is a poor performer. In second-to-last place out of 38 European countries (tied with Luxembourg, Poland and Switzerland), it has just 8 % of engaged employees. Only Croatia does worse (7 %).

In France, 9 out of 10 employees are demotivated.

Day after day, managers are faced with a lack of motivation and absenteeism among their staff. Productivity falls, customer relations become strained and business opportunities dwindle. And it's the company's overall performance that suffers.

What are the causes of declining employee commitment and loss of motivation?

The Gallup study points to numerous disruptions within organisations in the last 5 years :

  • Retirements and staff turnover post-pandemic
  • Hiring boom then slowdown
  • Rapid reorganisation of teams and departments
  • Budget cuts with the end of stimulus programmes
  • Supply chains disrupted
  • New customer expectations
  • Digital transformation: emergence and then widespread professional use of the Internetartificial intelligence
  • New employee aspirations in terms of flexibility and teleworking

Ethical management as a lever for remobilisation

In recent years, ethical management has emerged as an effective way of motivating employees.

What is ethical management?

Ethical management refers to a way of leading based on respect for human values, fairness, responsibility and transparency, in order to reconcile performance and meaning in the workplace.

Ethical management is therefore based on simple idea: giving meaning to work. Indeed, when employees perceive a usefulness and value in their missions, their commitment is strengthened. This approach is particularly appealing to the younger generation. Over 70 % of 18-30 year olds are looking for a job that is in line with their convictions, particularly environmental convictions. For them, the alignment between personal values and corporate culture is becoming an essential criterion of choice.

Traditional managementEthical management
PurposeProductivity, resultsMeaning, sustainable performance
Hierarchical relationshipVertical, descendingHorizontal, based on dialogue
CommunicationDirectiveParticipatory
Managerial stanceControlSupport
Impact on the teamStress, disengagementMotivation, commitment

Le the employer's role is therefore central. It must embody a clear and structured ethical policy.

This enables employees to become part of a a coherent organisation where everyone has their place.

Creating a shared ethical framework encourages collective involvement.

However, when the company does not have this dynamic itself, the manager can initiate an ethical approach within his or her team. This is a more difficult situation, but it is not impossible. It requires a strong commitment from the manager, both in terms of posture and action.

Ideally, corporate governance should provide the impetus for this approach, and then pass it on to all levels of the hierarchy. This is how ethical management can fully bear fruit.

How can you implement ethical management on a day-to-day basis?

The role of the organisation in implementing ethical management

So that managers can practice ethical management on a daily basis, two preliminary stages :

1/ Implementing ethical management starts with an inventory.

The aim is to assess employees' real involvement and commitment to the company. To do this, the company can use several complementary tools and methods :

  • Firstly, an internal survey in the form of an annual barometer or QVCT satisfaction questionnaire, or anonymous online surveys.
  • This is followed by individual and group interviews to gather qualitative feedback face-to-face (e.g. professional appraisal interviews).
  • But also HR indicators to detect weak signals or trends in figures. For example: absenteeism rate, turnover rate, number of early terminations of probationary periods, number of unwanted departures, participation in internal training/meetings/events, etc.
  • Or continuous feedback, particularly via digital tools: instant feedback applications (e.g. Supermood, Officevibe), expression walls or suggestion boxes (physical or digital), etc.
  • Finally, managerial observation enables us to identify the day-to-day behaviour that reflects commitment. Positive signs: taking initiative, collaborative spirit, punctuality, quality of exchanges. Signs of disengagement: withdrawal, recurrent lateness, drop in quality or participation.

This inventory enables us to identify the levers for action.

2/ Ideally, the company then develops a a clear ethical charter, shared and supported by management. This approach provides a common framework for everyone.

However, in the absence of a strong company policy, managers can take action at their own level. In this case, they play a dual role: initiator and facilitator of an ethical dynamic within their team.

In both cases, they must be attentive to their colleagues and set an example.

The day-to-day involvement of managers

In practical terms, what are the day-to-day actions that enable ethical management, the embodiment of our values and the commitment of our team?

1/ Setting an example

It means respecting rules and schedules. It also involves clear communication (active listening, reformulation, NVC, feedback, etc.). Managers must also honour their commitments and acknowledge their mistakes.

2/ Encouraging listening and dialogue

Ethical managers make themselves available to their staff, organise regular meetings (formal or informal) to take the pulse of the team and encourage the expression of opinions, even critical ones.

3/ Giving meaning to work

It also explains the objectives and their usefulness for the team and the organisation. It links each person's tasks to the company's values. It values individual and collective contributions.

4/ Making the right decisions

Not only do they have to apply the rules without favouritism, but they also have to explain their decisions.

5/ Cultivating a climate of trust and respect

First and foremost, it means refraining from any discriminatory or degrading behaviour. It also means knowing how to prevent and manage conflicts fairly. The manager must also respect the private life and limits of each individual.

6/ Supporting skills development

To achieve this, the manager identifies training needs, encourages autonomy and initiative-taking, and recognises effort (not just results).

7/ Ensure a good work/life balance

Finally, ethical managers do not encourage presenteeism or impose a culture of permanent urgency. They respect rest periods, holidays and time off. They are attentive to signs of fatigue or discomfort.

These everyday gestures, some of them simple, build a managerial culture based on consistency, respect and recognition. These are the pillars of sustainable ethical management.

The more ethics are embraced collectively, the greater their impact. Involving as many people as possible will have a lasting impact on employees.

In a context of growing demotivation, ethical management is emerging as a concrete and sustainable response. By restoring meaning to work, it acts as a driving force for individual and collective commitment. Led by senior executives or initiated by managers, it requires consistency, exemplarity and clarity of values. To be effective, it cannot stand alone. It must be part of a shared culture, serving a corporate project that is responsible, motivating and unifying.

Our expert

Azziz Akroum

Management

Former parliamentary attaché to a leading member of the French National Assembly [...].

field of training

associated training