Above the Board: How Ethical CEOs Create Honest Corporations - Book Review

Above the Board: How Ethical CEOs Create Honest Corporations by Patrizia Porrini, Lorene Hiris, and Gina Poncini seeks to tell the stories of corporate CEO who lead their companies with honesty and integrity in a time where most executives in the news are making headlines because of financial scandals or ethical lapses. The book contains a number of useful guidelines and anecdotes for establishing an honest corporation and playing the role of a genuinely ethical CEO. The testimonies of leaders like Christopher Begley of Hospira Inc. and Xerox's Anne Mulcahey are able to rise above trite clichés and gave valuable, specific insight into allowing ethical behavior to permeate corporate culture.

While these particular examples hit the mark, in large part Above the Board as a whole does not. My biggest qualm with the authors' topics is that their depiction of ethical behavior is largely out-dated, stale, and irrelevant. I can't deny that there is value in promoting practices like using stories to keep company history alive or harnessing difficulty to create a learning experience, but a glance at today's headlines will show that these are not the most pressing issues for a modern CEO. Emphasis must be placed on environmental responsibility (which the book only briefly touches on), human rights issues, and promoting justice within all aspects of business. At multiple points within Above the Board, the authors bring up the over-used example of corporations not accepting bribes, despite what the generally accepted practices of foreign countries may be. I won't dispute that this is an ethical dilemma, but CEOs leading the multi-national corporations included in the book must be concerned about far more pressing matters; counteracting systemic poverty within their countries of operation, fairly distributing profits throughout the corporation, and more. I fear that CEOs reading literature like Above the Board will believe that implementing a code of conduct or posting environmental initiatives is enough effort to keep their company ethically afloat.

Additionally, I was not pleased with the authors' selection of CEOs to be included in Above the Board. Most prominently, the book featured Rex Tillerson, Chairman and CEO of ExxonMobil Corporation. Twenty years after the ethical disaster of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the corporation was still recently rated the worst corporation in the world when judged on environmental responsibility, social justice, human rights, animal protection, and community involvement. Utilizing CEOs who represent this type of corporation, especially when they are proudly reporting their work in areas they have come under heavy criticism for, taints the authors' message and extinguishes much of their credibility.

My last objection to Above the Board is that the anecdotes and testaments are given by the CEOs themselves. I've yet to meet a business leader who didn't say they were ethical or weren't quick to talk about something their company is doing right. I believe the book's message would have carried much more weight if those around the CEOs narrated it; managers, employees, rivals, community members in areas the corporation operates. Instead of providing true shining examples of ethical behavior, the book serves only as a retelling of corporate promotional material, an apparent amalgam of various success stories from annual reports or company websites. Ethical behavior isn't something that should be bragged about, but exemplified and observed by those around the people who exhibit it.

I don't believe that any advice within Above the Board is incorrect. Its teachings may all be useful within various contexts of corporate operations. I do believe, however, that it makes the mistake of simply becoming an outlet for CEOs to showcase neatly wrapped anecdotes about their company. By ignoring issues relevant to the modern corporate climate, featuring CEOs with a less-than-stellar ethical track record, and not relying on multiple perspectives to truly depict ethical behavior, the book ultimately misses the point and doesn't have the ability to really empower CEOs with renewed ethical energy.