ETH 2200 Module 6 Final Project Part 4: Personal Ethical Leadership Philosophy Example

Reviewed by Edgar Pennington, MBA Thomas Edison State University Updated October 2026

This ETH 2200 Module 6 example is the leadership philosophy that closes the Leading the Way project for TESU bachelor's students, including the BSBA. ETH-2200 builds toward this part throughout the term: after a reflection, an interview and a timeline of leadership experiences, students write the personal ethical leadership philosophy that the project is named for. Written during Module 6, Ethical Leadership in Action, this philosophy belongs to a composite New Jersey township road crew leader. It states five principles, explains the ethical frameworks and research behind them, turns each into practices the crew can see and ends with how the writer will hold himself accountable and what he still needs to learn.

CourseETH-2200 Leading the Way A Path Towards Ethical Leadership
ModuleModule 6
Paper typeFinal project part 4: personal ethical leadership philosophy
LengthAbout 833 words, 6 pages
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolThomas Edison State University
ProgramBachelor of Science in Business Administration
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for ETH 2200 Module 6

1

Honest Records, Fair Lists and Safe Crews: My Ethical Leadership Philosophy

Student Name

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Thomas Edison State University

ETH-2200: Leading the Way: A Path Towards Ethical Leadership

Mentor Name

Month Day, Year

What this page is doingThe title lists three of the five principles the philosophy sets out. The writer is a composite carried through the course.
2

Honest Records, Fair Lists and Safe Crews: My Ethical Leadership Philosophy

Introduction

When I began this course, my idea of leadership was getting the work done safely. My reflection traced my values to a foreman who would not sign a false report. My interview with our superintendent showed me how values survive pressure when they are built into systems. My decision paper on stolen asphalt taught me how easily good people talk themselves out of acting. This philosophy pulls those lessons into principles I can state, follow and be judged by. Treviño et al. (2000) found that leaders earn a reputation for ethics only when people see them both as moral persons and as moral managers who talk about ethics, the double standard this philosophy sets for me.

The Foundations

Two ethical traditions underlie my philosophy. From virtue ethics I take the idea that leadership is a matter of character shown in habits, not only in big decisions. From duty-based ethics I take the idea that some obligations, honesty in records and protecting people from harm, hold even when breaking them would be convenient. I use consequences as a check, asking what each choice will teach the crew, but I do not let a good result justify a dishonest means.

From leadership research I take Brown et al.'s (2005) two-part definition: an ethical leader is both a moral person and someone who promotes ethical conduct through communication, reinforcement and decisions. My weakness, identified in my reflection, is the second part. Treviño et al. (2000) showed that people learn a leader's ethics only when the leader makes them visible, so most of my principles are about visibility.

My Five Principles

1. Our records match our work.

Every timesheet, repair log and material count I sign will describe what happened, and I will not ask anyone to sign anything else. Practice: I review the crew's daily log each afternoon with whoever wrote it, so the log is written while memory is fresh and checked by two people. Why: Public trust in our work depends on records nobody needs to second-guess, as Walt's refusal taught me.

2. Fairness is visible.

Overtime, assignments and discipline follow rules everyone can see. Practice: The overtime rotation is posted in the garage; when I depart from it, I write the reason on the sheet. Why: The superintendent's published repair list showed me that a system protects fairness better than good intentions, and it protects me from suspicion.

3. Safety comes before speed.

No deadline justifies a fatigued driver or an unprotected work zone. Practice: I send drivers home at 16 hours on duty during storms, and I tell the director before the shift starts that this limit applies. Why: keeping people safe outranks finishing fast, the conclusion of my Part 1 reflection.

4. Small tests count.

I will treat small lapses, a few bags of material, a padded hour, a borrowed tool, as real ethical issues. Practice: We keep a sign-out sheet for bagged materials and tools, and I address small lapses privately and promptly. Why: Jones (1991) found that people overlook issues that seem minor, and Kish-Gephart et al. (2010) found that a culture tolerating small wrongs makes larger ones more likely.

5. Decisions are explained.

When I make a decision that affects the crew, I explain the reasoning, and I invite disagreement. Practice: A five-minute talk at the start of each week covers any decision made the week before and the reason for it. Why: This is the "moral manager" half of ethical leadership, and the part I most need to develop.

What this page is doingPairing each principle with an observable practice and a reason traced to an earlier part of the project shows the philosophy built from the course, which is what the Part 4 rubric is designed to reward.
3

Applying the Philosophy Under Pressure

A philosophy is tested when principles conflict or cost something. If the director asks me to report a road as treated when it is not, principle 1 settles it: I will report the truth and explain the delay. If a respected veteran breaks a rule, principles 2 and 4 require me to address it the same way I would with anyone else, as I did with the asphalt case, while treating the person with respect. If following principle 3 delays work and draws complaints from residents, I will accept the complaints and explain the reason publicly through the superintendent.

Holding Myself Accountable

Principles mean little without checks. I will ask two crew members each quarter, privately, whether they have seen me act against any of the five principles, and I will ask the superintendent to review a sample of my logs twice a year. I will keep a short journal of decisions that tested the principles, and reread it before my annual evaluation.

What I Still Need to Learn

Two areas remain. I need to become more comfortable disagreeing with superiors in the moment rather than afterward, and I need to learn how to coach crew members through their own ethical decisions instead of making them myself. Both mark the step from behaving well myself to helping a crew behave well, and that step is what this philosophy commits me to.

References

Jones, T. M. (1991). Ethical decision making by individuals in organizations: An issue-contingent model. Academy of Management Review, 16(2), 366-395. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1991.4278958

Kish-Gephart, J. J., Harrison, D. A., & Treviño, L. K. (2010). Bad apples, bad cases, and bad barrels: Meta-analytic evidence about sources of unethical decisions at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(1), 1-31. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017103

Treviño, L. K., Hartman, L. P., & Brown, M. (2000). Moral person and moral manager: How executives develop a reputation for ethical leadership. California Management Review, 42(4), 128-142. https://doi.org/10.2307/41166057

ETH 2200 Module 6 instructions, in plain terms

Part 4, your own ethical leadership philosophy, is the heart of the project and carries 9 percent. It draws on the reflection, interview and leadership experience timeline completed earlier, and is followed by Part 5, practical and inspirational guidelines shared in a discussion. Module 6, Ethical Leadership in Action, is where this sample places it. Expect to state your core values and principles, ground them in ethical frameworks and leadership models, show how you will apply them and explain how you will stay accountable. The writer here is a composite. The philosophy should draw on the earlier parts of the project, so reread your reflection, interview report and case analyses before writing.

How this ETH 2200 Module 6 example is built

The philosophy opens by tracing its lessons to the earlier parts of the project, then names the ethical traditions and leadership research it rests on. Five numbered principles follow, each written as a plain statement with a practice the crew can observe and a reason drawn from the course or the writer's own experience. A section tests the principles against three pressures the writer is likely to face. The accountability section sets out specific checks, and the paper closes with two areas the writer still needs to develop. Each principle in the philosophy is tied to a specific experience or theory from earlier in the course.

Where the marks sit in the ETH 2200 Module 6 rubric

Part 4 carries 9 percent of the ETH-2200 grade, the largest share of the five final project parts, and is marked with its rubric. Mentors look for a philosophy that is personal, coherent and grounded in the course's ethical frameworks and models of ethical leadership. Principles should be specific enough to guide action, connected to evidence from the earlier project parts and tested against real pressures. A concrete way to be held to account, and candor about weak spots, show the self-knowledge the course aims for. Mentors look for a philosophy that is personal, coherent and grounded in course theories, with a plan for living by it. Philosophies that show how each principle would have changed a past decision read as practical rather than aspirational.

Common ETH 2200 Module 6 mistakes, and how to avoid them

Marks slip when a philosophy names values like "integrity" without showing them in action, forgets Parts 1 to 3, or never says which principle wins when two collide. Write each principle as a sentence you could be held to. Attach a practice others can see. Trace each to a framework, a reading or an experience from your reflection or interview. Test the principles against a hard case. Say how you will check yourself. A free first sample of your own ETH-2200 personal ethical leadership philosophy is available on request. Keep the principles few and concrete, and give an example of how each would guide a real decision.

Write yours, or have the desk draft it

This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Thomas Edison State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.

Request this one custom, free All ETH-2200 module samples

More ETH 2200 and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration sample papers

ETH 2200 Module 6 questions, answered

Where can I find a free ETH 2200 Module 6 sample paper?

The road crew leader's philosophy above sets out five principles with practices, reasons, a test under pressure and an accountability plan.

What should a personal ethical leadership philosophy include?

Core values stated as principles, the ethical frameworks and leadership models behind them, practices for applying them and a way to stay accountable.

How much is the ETH-2200 Part 4 philosophy worth?

Nine percent of the course grade, the largest of the five final project parts.

What comes after the philosophy in the ETH-2200 final project?

Part 5, practical and inspirational guidelines for ethical leadership, graded with the discussion forum rubric.

How do you make leadership principles specific?

Write each as a sentence you can be held to and pair it with a practice that others can observe.