CPCU Society President Challenges Businesses to Establish Codes of Ethics.

Business Editors

INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 13, 2000

"Infusing ethical behavior into our organizations has always been important, and is even more important in the 21st century," said Marsha Egan, CPCU, API, CPIW. Egan addressed an audience at an All-Industry Day ethics seminar co-sponsored by the Central Indiana Chapter of the CPCU Society and Gerling Global Reinsurance Corporation of America.

She is assistant vice president of CNA Personal Insurance, Reading, PA, and is also the 1999-2000 president of the CPCU Society.

Egan cited survey results indicating that CEOs in the property/casualty industry place high value on the personal ethics of employees. "But 30,000 Society members account for only a very small percentage of all employed in the industry," Egan noted, and stressed that all businesses must demand ethical behavior.

With business moving at a rapid pace, ethical dilemmas will arise at a faster rate, and in new ways. Offering such examples as insider trading and the able-bodied obtaining handicapped signs to park where they want, Egan remarked on a general relaxing of moral standards.

To stop this apparent erosion, Egan advocates a "be prepared" approach for businesses.

1. Define ethical behavior--values such as honesty, loyalty,

fairness, respect for others, and accountability. 2. Recognize the benefits--enhanced reputation, enhanced leadership

ability, and increased morale. 3. Create a code of ethics and insist that all employees adhere to

the code. 4. Make ethical values an integral part of the corporate culture.

Egan noted that companies usually handle ethics in one of three ways: 1) neglect--companies do not communicate expectations to employees; 2) compliance-based--companies post a set of rules; 3) value-based--companies focus on ethical values. "When we embrace the values of loyalty, fairness, honesty, and accountability, it follows that our actions will be ethical. When we face a challenging situation, we have an inner compass that points us toward ethical behavior," she stated.

Egan challenged the audience to make a commitment to ethical behavior as a lifetime process and to make sure their business has a code of ethics. "Whether you are a company president or the head of a household, you are CEO of something. Be a leader--set an example," Egan urged, offering a quote from Peter Drucker: " . . . nothing is noticed more quickly--and considered more significant--than the discrepancy between what executives preach and what they expect their associates to practice."

She left the audience with this thought, which is expressed on a plaque hanging in her office. "The price of being ethical is high; but the price of being unethical is much higher."

The CPCU Society is a community of credentialed insurance professionals who promote excellence through ethical behavior and continuing education. The Society's 30,000 members hold the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation, which includes passing 10 rigorous national examinations, meeting experience requirements, and agreeing to be bound to a strict code of professional ethics.