Integrity in the Workplace: Definition, importance, and examples

A reputable workplace looks for jobseekers with several qualities. Integrity is at the top of the list for many employers. Whether you're a new or long-standing employee, you should always have integrity. Here's what this guide will cover: 

• What is integrity in the workplace? 
• Why is workplace integrity important? 
• How to demonstrate integrity in the workplace 
• Examples of workplace integrity 
• Examples of poor workplace integrity 
• Promoting workplace integrity 
• Conclusion 
• FAQs 

What is integrity in the workplace? 

Integrity is the practice of having strong moral principles and ethical values. It means being honest, reliable, transparent, accountable, and disciplined. If you're a job seeker looking for your next opportunity, showing integrity in your interviews can go a long way. This is a quality employers desire in the workplace. A workplace with integrity fosters a positive workplace and company culture and enhances teamwork and collaboration. 

Here are some common traits of someone demonstrating integrity in the workplace:  

Responsible 

If you've integrity, you feel responsible for your actions. If you do something wrong, you immediately take accountability and own up to your mistakes. This shows the employer that you have a sense of ownership. This is a necessary trait to have, as employers often look for responsible job seekers when hiring for a new position. 

Helpful 

It's always good to offer a helping hand whenever needed. You also set an excellent example for others to follow. Employers might see this as an ideal trait as it shows you value teamwork and want to see others succeed. It also helps everyone in the team to work towards a common goal.  

Trustworthy 

If you've integrity, you may be someone everyone can rely on. You follow up on your commitments and complete all your tasks within their deadlines. People around you also feel more comfortable sharing their concerns or personal information when you're trustworthy.  

Hardworking 

A workplace may prefer to hire someone who believes in hard and honest work. If you're a hardworking person, you come to work on time and strive to meet all your goals for the day before you check out. This is a great quality as it assures employers that you can take on challenging tasks and complete them on time.  

Patient 

It's always important to be patient in the workplace, as you may have to face challenges or obstacles unexpectedly. You need to take a step back, breathe, and work towards addressing them one after another. You can also try approaching the problem as multiple small problems you need to solve. This is less stress-inducing, and the progress becomes easier to measure.  

Why is workplace integrity important? 

Integrity in the workplace can be beneficial for everyone. Everyone wants to feel at peace at their workplace. Here's why demonstrating professional integrity is important: 

Positive work culture 

Integrity in the workplace improves teamwork and collaboration, which promotes a positive work culture. When the team succeeds, everyone succeeds. It fosters trust between the employees and the management and builds a strong sense of community at work.  

High retention rate 

Workplaces that don't have integrity may suffer from a low retention rate. This is due to trust issues between employees and a lack of togetherness. In contrast, employees with integrity often work together with patience and perseverance to get the work done. They enjoy the challenging work environment and prefer to be around people who share the same core values as they do. 

Ethical work environment 

Employees with high levels of integrity are more likely to make ethical decisions, follow company policies, and maintain confidentiality. They respect their company values and do their best to follow the code of conduct. An ethical work environment can develop with the help of employees who ​practise​​​ integrity and are disciplined.  

Dedicated team 

A workplace with integrity promotes dedication among the employees. The success in such an environment is that of the team and not limited to an individual. This also helps foster a sense of belonging and motivates employees to work towards a common goal. The core principle in such a workplace is that of collaboration and not competition.  

How to demonstrate integrity in the workplace  

Whether you're working in a small business or a large corporation, the way you exhibit your integrity can impact the entire workplace. Here are some steps you can take to demonstrate integrity in the workplace and help develop a positive company culture: 

Acknowledge your colleagues 

If you see someone working hard, you should acknowledge their effort. This can boost their morale and make them feel seen. You can also provide constructive feedback to help them improve in certain areas. This will also encourage other team members to do the same.  

Take responsibility for your actions 

It's not often that you see someone owing up to their mistakes. You should take responsibility for your actions, as this shows that you have integrity. The hard part is admitting that you did something wrong. Being accountable shows the employer that you own up instead of making excuses or blaming others for a mistake.  

Communicate openly and honestly 

Communication is the key to success in any workplace. Employees who communicate honestly and employers who are transparent with their team often make up a positive work culture. Everyone benefits equally from employees who communicate openly with each other. 

Respect the moral and ethical code 

When you enter your workplace, it's crucial that you follow the code set by the company. Listen carefully to what your seniors or supervisors have to say, as they're much more experienced. Also, make sure not to mix up your personal and professional life. This makes you more productive and efficient.  

Be a positive team player 

No one likes a person who wants to boss everyone around instead of helping them. A person with integrity is a team player who leads by example and works with their team members to ensure everyone succeeds. 

Respect others' opinions 

Respect the opinions of your coworkers even if they don't relate to your own. You must help them feel heard and that their views are valid, even if you disagree. Be respectful to the chain of command. This helps create a respectful workplace.  

Care for company property 

People can be liable for property damage if they don't care for their workplace's property. It's important to care for company property as you would care for your own. Respecting your workplace is a sign of your high integrity. 

Be ready to work 

To demonstrate integrity in your working environment and lead your team by example. Be ready to take on challenging problems in the workplace. If you're in a mid-level or senior position, learn to delegate tasks and resources optimally. Work along with your team to make the project a success. If you're at a junior level, practise active listening and follow your seniors' guidance at every step of the project. Be ready to put in the effort required to finish your tasks on or before time.  

Examples of workplace integrity  

Here are examples of workplace integrity to better understand how you can work on demonstrating integrity at work: 

Protecting confidentiality 

If someone trusts you with their personal information, keep it to yourself instead of spreading it around. Inform your supervisors if you come across confidential information, such as documents or data. This shows your colleagues and employers that you have integrity. 

For example, your supervisor leaves their performance reviews on their desk, and you happen to look at them as you're searching for another document they asked for. Rather than sharing this confidential information with your colleagues and discussing its contents, you should keep the information to yourself. You may also alert them so they can file it in their desk or cabinet.  

Taking responsibility 

One of the hardest things to do is owning up to your mistakes and taking responsibility for your actions. Owning up to your mistakes can improve how others perceive you. Your colleagues are likely to appreciate your honesty and transparency. 

Let's look at an example of this situation. Let's say your senior assigns you the task of handling sensitive data. Say, while you're working on it, you end up writing code that accidentally deletes some critical records. Rather than make excuses for the same, take responsibility and assure them that you'll be extra careful the next time.  

Acknowledging coworkers 

In a busy workplace, it may be hard for employers to track every employee and acknowledge their efforts during the day. If you see someone working hard but not receiving appreciation, help them feel seen and heard. This is especially important when you're at a senior level.  

Let's say you're having a busy week at work where everyone has specific tasks and deadlines to meet. You notice that the interns are putting in additional effort to complete the tasks, so you let them know that they're doing a really good job. This keeps them motivated throughout the day and encourages them to work towards completing their tasks on time.  

Facing challenges 

You're bound to face obstacles and challenges in ​ some way at your workplace. Face​​​ these challenges headfirst to set a good example and show that you have integrity in the workplace. This can improve your image in front of your coworkers as well. 

For example, you're leading a development project client. The client has strict timelines, and you have a resource crunch. The challenge now is to complete all the tasks on time without compromising on quality. You can show integrity in this instance by communicating the project's challenges to the client and explaining why a specific component might take additional time to develop. You can also mention that you'd provide daily updates on the task at hand so they know the progress.  

Examples of poor workplace integrity  

Let's look at some examples of poor workplace integrity better to understand how to avoid presenting your values in a bad light: 

Blaming team members 

Blaming your teammates for a mistake you committed is always seen poorly. Blame can also foster a hostile work culture for the entire team. Let's say the previous example where the team lead had assigned you the task of handling client data. However, you made a mistake in the code and that resulted in data loss. Instead of taking responsibility, you blame another team member for their part of the code. This not only results in a loss of trust but also sets a bad ​precedent​​​ for the team.  

Damaging company property 

If you damage company property, others may perceive you as someone without respect for the workplace. You may even lose your job or face a suspension without pay. For example, your manager told you to use the company computer only for work-related tasks. However, you decide to install third-party software to carry out your personal tasks. This ends up corrupting your system, and you lose sensitive information related to an important project.  

Rather than using company equipment for personal use, you can ask your supervisor for some time to attend to your personal tasks and then make up for that by working additional hours the next day to complete your assigned tasks.  

Participating in unethical practices 

Safety protocols exist for a reason, and ignoring them can have serious consequences. For example, you work on a production line that works around heavy machinery. Safety practices state to never reach past a certain point to grab materials and to wait instead for the materials to come down the line. You decide to reach past this point anyway, and a supervisor sees you do this. This can result in penalties like a warning or immediate termination. 

Rather than participating in this unethical practice, understand why the rules are there in the first place. Often, there is a good reason, even if it slows down a process. 

Promoting workplace integrity 

It's important to lead by example to ensure that your colleagues continue to have integrity in the workplace. Here are some ways that people in leadership positions can establish, improve, and encourage integrity in the workplace: 

Lead by example 

Leading by example is one of the best ways to promote integrity in the workplace. If you want your team to have integrity in the working environment, you must first have it yourself; the rest will follow ​your example. For example, arrive at the office on time every day. This sets a great example​​​ for others to follow.  

Implement training programs 

If your workplace employs a large number of people, setting up training programmes or workshops is the best way to train them and communicate the importance of integrity in the workplace. You can also have sessions that teach them other skills, such as communication, teamwork, discipline, and patience. Participate in these meetings yourself rather than sending out courses to your team to complete.  

Report unethical behaviour 

While people may not like a manager who reports on their team members, sometimes doing so can show employees that you're serious about integrity in the workplace. If someone from your team is constantly acting against company policies despite several warnings, it may be best to report them to higher management.  

Conclusion 

Integrity in the workplace can significantly benefit a company's policies by fostering a positive work environment and promoting open, honest communication and teamwork. This also leads to better trust and working relationships with supervisors and peers, and they're more likely to perform to the best of their abilities every day. 

​​Companies and managers are responsible for ensuring that training workshops are introduced and that everyone participates. Team leaders and managers should also demonstrate workplace integrity and lead​​​ by example for the other employees in the company. 

FAQs 

Here are some frequently asked questions about workplace integrity: 

1. How does workplace integrity contribute to employee morale and job satisfaction? 
   ⁠Workplace integrity fosters a positive work culture through open communication and teamwork. This helps boost employee morale and ​improve job satisfaction. Over time, it results in a more open and positive team​​​.  
2. What are some examples of unethical behaviour in the workplace? 
   ⁠Damaging company ⁠property, blaming other team members for your mistakes, revealing someone's personal information, not following company policy or disrespecting authority are some examples of unethical behaviour in the workplace. 
3. How can leaders and managers set an example for integrity in the workplace? 
   ⁠Leaders and managers should come to work on time and work transparently with their team members. They should respect company policies and ethical principles, such as the opinions of their colleagues in the workplace. This is especially impactful for juniors and new team members and encourages them to ​practise​​​ the same.  
4. How is a code of ethics or conduct typically enforced? 
   ⁠Companies typically enforce a code of ethics by adding it to the employee contract or conducting training programmes regularly. This approach ensures that employees understand and abide by the moral and ethical code of the company. 
5. How do employers handle employee misconduct?   
   ⁠There is a thorough inquiry process that is fair to both the company and the employee. If an employee is found guilty, employers usually downgrade the employee's position, suspend without pay, or terminate employment without notice. They can also file a police complaint depending on the extremity of the misconduct.