It comes because of a session that IBE held with companies throughout the nation this yr after a ballot discovered that only one in three Britons imagine corporations function ethically.
The new steering encourages boards to contemplate moral behaviour in appointments and promotions in addition to present board members, senior management and the workforce with coaching to embed the corporate’s objective and values.
It additionally requires boards to guide by instance and be certain that moral dangers are considered in main operational and strategic choices.
Ian Peters, IBE director, stated: “A positive ethical culture supports good decision-making and allows a business to show it is committed to doing the right thing for the right reasons.
“That’s fundamental if you’re going to retain staff, maintain a positive workplace environment, and ensure customer loyalty.
“Research we conducted earlier this year shows the public is unconvinced that many companies operate ethically.
“The guidance we’ve published, working with some of the country’s most experienced business leaders, is intended to help boards with one of their most challenging responsibilities – how to set and embed an ethical culture.”
Simon Thompson, chairman of the advisory group, stated: “An ethical culture is a source of competitive advantage, promoting high standards of business conduct and integrity and building trust and loyalty with customers, staff and other stakeholders.
“Companies face increasingly complex and varied ethical challenges as expectations about the role of business in society continue to evolve.
“All the contributors to this guidance have had to manage a significant ethical issue at some point in their board careers.
“The guidance is based on that experience and intended to support other board members as they seek to promote an ethical business culture within their own companies.”
Mark Babington, govt director of regulatory requirements on the Financial Reporting Council , stated: “Boards can show real leadership in embedding a positive ethical culture across their company.
“This is welcome guidance that underlines the importance of culture being at the top of every boardroom agenda.”
In May, the IBE discovered that just one in two FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 firms have publicly accessible codes of ethics, of which two-thirds have been judged to be of fine high quality.
Half of the FTSE 100 codes of ethics have been additionally discovered to not embody written assurances of safety for employees elevating issues about moral behaviour.
