Carving Leaders from the Warped Wood of Humanity Essay - 34

Carving Leaders from the Warped Wood of Humanity - Essay Example A statement made by the author that was very interesting in regards to this discussion was, â€Å"We respect leaders who put the interest of the followers first, but most leaders don’t pay a price for doing that on a regular basis, nor do most circumstances require them to calculate their interest in relation to the interest of their followers† (Ciulla, 2001). I agree with the author that managers have to consider many factors and variables in their decision making the process that has nothing to do with altruism. The interest of the customers of a company and the community are important to consider, but managers are supposed to maximize shareholders wealth. For that to occur companies have to optimize the use of their economic resources to improve the sales and profits of the company. My personal opinion in regards to the topic of whether leadership and altruism are correlated concepts differs from the opinion of Joanne Ciulla. I think that altruism can enhance the perception of a company, thus the strategy can be beneficial for the profitability of the company. Altruism is a win-win proposition for all the parties involved. A company that has a true sense of the importance of ethics will make a concerted effort to help interest groups in need through altruism efforts. Altruism can enhance the public image of a corporation. The use of altruism reflects well on the leadership abilities of a manager. Altruism should not be visualized as a cost; instead, it should be viewed as a moral and socially responsible way to give back to the community that builds the brand value of a company. Despite my difference of opinion with the author in regards to the relation between these two concepts, I agree with the author in that it is possible to be ethically responsible withou t using altruism. There are lots of ethical decisions that managers must make that do not involve altruism.