7 Innovative Ways to Motivate Employees to Do the Right Thing

Positive company culture drives business outcomes like productivity, revenue, and profits, and improves the employee experience by increasing engagement, creativity and innovation, morale, and reducing turnover.

A company culture where employees are motivated to do the right thing isn’t just a competitive edge; it’s also one you can influence all on your own! Clear company values and corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies are necessary and good, but company culture ultimately comes down to the day-to-day.

How you treat your employees, how they treat one another, and how employees, customers, and vendors perceive your business is the real measure of how well your company lives its values.

Have you created company values to help promote a great culture at your company? “Do the right thing” is one of our company values at BambooHR.

BambooHR’s software solutions could help you take tangible steps toward an engaged employee community. Centralized communication helps to break down silos and keep everyone aligned to the same goals.

In this article, we’ll explore the foundations of great workplace ethics. In other words, how to foster a culture where employees do the right thing…just because.

Why Does Company Culture Matter?

The bottom line? Employee engagement drives growth. And employees are more likely to be engaged at work when the environment is a positive one. Fail to foster ethics and core values at your company, and you could find yourself with a bad company culture and declining performance across your teams as a result.

Why? Engaged employees are simply more likely to do the right thing. But strong workplace ethics are set from above.

So, what's company culture all about? It's like the character of your workplace, made up of the things everyone believes in, the way they act, and what they value. But if your company values aren’t lived out at the top, they’re not likely to trickle down.

1. Define Clear Company Values

What does ethical practice mean in your workplace? How do you know when your employees have the right attitude and do the right thing?

Without a clear definition, it can be hard to know.

​​When crafting your company's core values, keep the language simple and steer clear of corporate-speak and buzzwords. Go the extra mile to explain these values in a way that helps your people live them out, day in and day out.

And choose principles over a laundry list of do's and don'ts—it's the best way to make sure everyone's on board. Don't let your values gather dust, though. Check in regularly to make sure they're still speaking to where your company is. If you need to make slight changes, keep the essence the same—you want them to stick!

Gather Employee Perspectives

Before you get started, take stock of the principles your organization already lives by. How do your employees work together? The best company values reflect the realities of your teams. There’s little value in abstract ideas that don’t relate to what your employees do.

Fight Bias

Your company values should take everyone along for the ride—not just a certain demographic. Make inclusion a matter of policy. That said, bias can be implicit, and it can creep in undetected. Prioritize a culture of inclusivity and diversity, and work toward building psychological safety at work.

2. Ensure Leaders Practice Workplace Ethics

Your employees are always watching what leaders are doing.

Running a project, team or organization comes with responsibility beyond your day-to-day role. Why? Managers set an example every time they open a laptop or enter the office.

So, what standards are your leaders setting?

Level The Playing Field

In the past decade, there’s been a trend toward leaders trying their best to do right by their employees.

Remember the Gravity CEO who learned about an employee who was barely making ends meet? He raised everyone’s salary to at least $70,000 a year. That was in 2015, and we’re still talking about it. It made that kind of impression.

Then, in 2023, Japanese car manufacturing giants Toyota and Honda both opted for above-inflation pay raises. The reason? To create an environment that enables employees to flourish and succeed.

When employees see their leaders trying to do the right thing, they’ll follow suit.

Be Consistent and Accountable

Of course, a big raise isn’t the only way for leaders to bring their teams with them. Sometimes, you should sweat the small things. Leaders who show up, meet deadlines, and communicate with respect can set a high bar.

In times of change, this can be a challenge for firms and leaders. Yet workplace ethics, culture, and reputation go hand-in-hand.

3. Apologize When You Don’t Meet Company Values

We’re all human, and that means we’re not perfect. This is true of everyone from your company’s CEO right down to the junior intern. Good leaders recognize their faults and admit to their mistakes.

With that in mind, there are bound to be times when we don’t do as well as we would have liked. You can still do the right thing by admitting your mistakes or missteps, and being clear in how you will do better going forward.

Keep Communications Honest

When you miss the mark, your teams will often know. Early and open communication can help to reassure people that your company values haven’t changed. The aim is to clarify that the same standards of workplace ethics are in place. This may help to prevent a downward spiral in standards.

You might host a meeting to address the mistake head-on. The best leaders will have no problem apologizing for their part in the error.

During difficult conversations with employees, it’s best to stay professional. This, too, reflects on your organization’s ethical framework.

Set Things Right

When something goes wrong, don’t just say you’re sorry; take action to make it right.

When you act early, your apology can land with greater integrity. Keep a paper trail of your intentions by making this an action item.

4. Invest in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

True workplace ethics may go beyond your office walls. To demonstrate your commitment to doing good, it can help to your organization’s impact on the wider world, and role in driving social change.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects may be especially beneficial if you’re wondering how to effectively manage Gen Z. According to the Bentley-Gallup’s Force for Good study, Americans aged 18 to 29 demand a solid moral compass from their employers.

In fact, most (77%) adults under 30 believe it’s “extremely important” that businesses prioritize sustainability and environmental conscientiousness, compared to just 52% of those aged 45 to 59.

What is Corporate Social Responsibility?

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a type of business model under which a business aims to self-regulate and align with various philanthropic aims. These might be environmental or social campaigns—for instance, shouldering responsibility for carbon emissions or tackling racism.

There are four main types of Corporate Social Responsibility. These include:

• Financial: This kind of CSR policy aims to ensure that businesses are ethical in what they do with their finances—in terms of how it impacts their environment, communities, employees, and customers, not just their bottom line.
• Ethical: An ethics-focused CSR policy focuses an organization’s efforts on doing what’s morally right, even when it’s difficult. Endangered Species Chocolate, for example, isn’t just intent on giving a portion of their profits to support endangered species (as their name suggests). They’re also committed to ethically sourcing their chocolate and building better communities.
• Philanthropic: A focus on philanthropy means putting your money and time where your mouth is, and showing your support for a cause by donating money or time (volunteering). Some companies like Apple match employees’ charitable giving—dollar for dollar or $25 per hour volunteered—up to $10,000. Now that’s rewarding employees for doing the right thing.
• Environmental: Focusing on environmental social responsibility means keeping the environment top of mind when operating your business, even when it’s difficult. Toy company LEGO aims to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from producing, shipping, and selling their toys by 2032.

5. Optimize Your Processes for Workplace Ethics

Your company processes could be creating ripe conditions for a negative company culture.

Are your company guidelines and rules so rigid staff can’t deviate from them? Are managers so inflexible they don’t leave room for individuals to shine? Is your employee handbook disorganized, difficult to understand, or unrealistic?

The result? Loose workplace ethics, and employees who aren’t engaged in a core set of values.

Onboard with Purpose

You have an average of 44 days to convince your new hires that the offer they accepted is the right fit for them. Onboarding is key to making sure they get off on the right foot, right away.

Often, the right onboarding time investment can be missing. Most HR experts agree that onboarding should take anywhere from six months to a year. An in-depth, focused onboarding experience not only makes new hires feel welcome, but makes them more likely (69%) to stay with your company for the next three years. Considering the cost of recruiting and hiring, the time it takes to onboard is well worth it.

Encourage Ethical Thinking

An ethical company culture starts from an employee’s very first day. Your organization’s culture and values should be a core focus of the onboarding process.

Employees want to know their employer is invested in the causes they care about. In fact, according to our research, almost all (96%) new hires expect an introduction to the company’s mission and values during their onboarding experience.

Take this a step further by including example scenarios in your training materials. Encourage your staff to think about how they might do the right thing—by service users, clients, coworkers, and the business.

Make sure it’s not your processes that are holding people back from doing the right thing. This can be easier to assess when you effectively measure onboarding success.

6. Measure Workplace Ethics Successes

When people start adhering to the value of always trying to do what’s right, you’ll feel it in everything you do. From the way people communicate to the energy they bring to work. But that doesn’t mean the work stops there.

Clearly defined workplace values are incredibly important. But routinely measuring organizational and culture successes is also key to ensuring you know what’s working and how. That starts with SMART, stated goals.

Goals should be:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

Still, sometimes that’s easier said than done.

Survey Your Teams

Figures can help to keep your journey to better workplace culture and ethics grounded in facts.

If your company culture is suffering some problems, data could help you to understand the scale of the challenge. When things improve, a graph can help you to show off your successes.

The trick? Run surveys early and repeat them regularly. You’ll want to ask things like:

• How do employees feel about the organization?
• How much pride do employees take in their work?
• Do employees feel like they can share concerns without fear of retaliation?

Don’t Forget Pulse Checks

There are lots of soft signals to stay aware of, too. Combined with surveys, these can provide a more comprehensive picture of your workplace ethics.

You might record things like:

• Customer complaints
• Delays
• Regulation breaches
• Employee grievances
• Industry awards
• Positive reviews
• Employee office attendance
• Social event engagement

When things go well, you’ll see happier people who are trying to help each other. You’ll see a positive and inspiring culture. You’ll have fewer complaints and issues between coworkers. And you’ll probably notice improved retention, too.

The right HR analytics software could help you to begin.

7. Recognize Employees When They Do the Right Thing

Rewarding and recognizing employees helps to draw them in to your company values. If you’re rewarding people when you notice an act of integrity or observe them doing the right thing, it sends a message loud and clear to the rest.

Listen and Learn

Of course, noticing ethical workplace practices requires you to be in the trenches. Know what’s going on with your people so you can reward specific actions and behaviors.

With an open ear, you might be surprised by what you can learn.

For example, you might discover an unsung hero with valuable operational insights. That team leader with a big voice in your department’s meetings? They might be hiding less-than-perfect practices behind their speeches.

Immersing yourself daily helps you to know your corporate culture as it really is. You might be able to come up with creative employee recognition ideas, too.

Customize Recognition

Remember, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to employee recognition. Attitudes toward compensation may differ by personality, circumstance, and even generation. In some situations, words of gratitude might be enough.

Great workplace data insights help you customize recognition.

8. Adopt An Ethics-First Mindset

Doing the right thing isn’t limited to your workplace, of course. It can start with one action and permeate throughout your people.

Sometimes, life and work can feel much more manageable when we get back to the basics. Acts of kindness, integrity, and purpose can help your employees perform. But they work best when they’re part of their non-working lives, too.