Making the Tough Calls: The Role of Ethics in Leadership

One of the most important tenets of leadership is decision-making. At times, these decisions may not be pleasant and require sound judgment. A leader grounded in ethics and committed to doing the right thing will find that even tough calls lead to better outcomes. This principle holds true not only in law enforcement but across all professions.

I recently observed this firsthand from someone I consider an exceptional leader who made an ethics-based decision.

STORY

It was a fine day, and I was attending a Division One college baseball game at the University of Maryland. I was seated just behind the home team's dugout. Maryland was trailing by seven runs in the fifth inning. One of Maryland’s top hitters was at the plate with a 2-2 count. The next pitch came—a strike. I heard profanity as he banged his bat on the plate and walked off, seemingly out of control. He stormed into the dugout, and I heard a loud crash. I later learned that he threw his helmet on a table, knocking things off and almost hitting the strength coach, all the while cursing loudly enough for me to hear. The whole team and the referee, from a distance, were watching. I am sure others seated near me saw and heard what I had witnessed; some looked at me in wonderment. Things quieted down quickly, and we watched as that top player left the dugout and walked toward the locker room. The head coach of the Maryland team had taken that player out of the game.

Later that evening, I spoke with the head coach. He told me that removing the player from the game was necessary. If he had done nothing, it would have sent the message to the whole team that the player’s behavior was acceptable. This ethically grounded leader could not sit silently and let the incident go unchallenged. The coach did the right thing by sending a clear message: this conduct is not acceptable, and there are consequences.

LESSON

Leaders set the culture in police work, just as the coach did in this story. If a sergeant or lieutenant sees or hears of a subordinate cursing at a member of the public, sleeping on duty, using excessive force, or engaging in acts of malfeasance or misconduct and takes no action, it sends the message that such behavior is acceptable. Conversely, if they do the right thing and take action, it sends the opposite message: do not engage in misconduct, because you will be held accountable.

POST SCRIPT

The Maryland team came back from being seven runs down in the fifth and won the game. The head coach of this team is Matt Swope, my son.