TRAINING

Ethics for adolescents

Ideally, this short training of half a day should follow a moral deliberation with the same group of adolescents (15-22 years).

This programme provides them with a concise theoretical background in the moral reasoning conducted in that moral deliberation.

They learn a number of workable basic concepts from the major Western ethical schools, so that they will be able to better express their previously expressed gut feeling in the future.

Together, they recognise a number of these concepts in current positions on social issues.

We reflect on values and norms, and what emotions have to do with them. And they learn how to do justice to emotions in their communication without blowing up bridges.

They learn a simple 4-step method for moral consideration.

Not rocket science, but a very practical approach.

MADE TO MEASURE

Moral deliberation

“A colleague asks me by e-mail in advance not to intervene in a meeting next week, I don’t know what to reply ….”

“Should I inform that customer about that risk?”

A moral deliberation is a joint investigation into such a very specific ethical issue. It can lead to a broad-based enrichment of working agreements or policies, or to the demining of morally tense situations through better dialogue. It takes about two hours and as a team you learn something about a real life problem, but also about each other.

A group of up to 12 people are guided in their research to find the best balance around a concrete ethical issue in your organisation.

The method may vary depending on the (emotional) involvement of the participants in the issue, the concrete subject of the issue (e.g. a dilemma), or the time you can devote to it. Typically, a moral deliberation takes one and a half to two hours.

You can start a moral deliberation from an issue raised by one of the participants, or you can search for a topic based on your organization’s core values at the beginning of the session. In the latter case, it helps you to concretize your core values. But in any case, it has to be about something that at least one of the participants is aware of, is very concrete, and has an ethical aspect.

A moral deliberation always touches on the personal value pattern of each of the participants. It is therefore always delicate and never just casual. A moral deliberation session is interesting to understand the moral issue and reducing the moral stress surrounding it.

But it is also very useful for mutual understanding in crisis situations, for cultivating the same language around difficult issues, for group dynamics, it is an exercise in listening and dialogue, in short, it has many positive side effects.

In stress prevention policies, there should always be room for moral deliberation: just as you foresee ergonomic measures to avoid physical discomfort, an organization needs moral deliberation to prevent moral stress. As an employee, it is useful to know that if faced with a dilemma or have experienced one, I can call on the wisdom of my colleagues to nip moral stress in the bud.

The structural offer of moral deliberation is a practical action that anchors the ethical culture in an organisation.

TAILOR MADE

Workshops

Workshops are practical, interactive consultation moments tailored to an organisation, e.g. about how to shape an ethical or integrity policy in your organisation.

The content and form of a workshop is always discussed first with the client.

It is always a practical, interactive work meeting, specifically tailored to an organisation. The working method depends on the goal (ethical awareness, crisis intervention, transfer of knowledge, brainstorming, moment of inspiration, team building, corporate culture assessment …), the participants (number, diversity, mutual relationships …), the prior knowledge and the time it is allowed.

The subjects can cover anything that is discussed in the training programmes.

For example, the workshop can deal with the implementation of your core values, the sharpening of your mission, policies or codes of conduct. But also, for example, about how to shape an ethical or integrity policy in your organisation, and how to choose what to start with.

The reason can also be a moment of crisis, or a reassessment of the corporate culture in the event of a merger. You can also start working with the results of a survey regarding the ethical motivations within your organisation.

Workshops on ethics can also be part of the action plan when implementing self-directed teams.

The possible methods range from a simple brainstorm, a 5-step InterVision, a world café, a fish bowl, to a metaplan session. In the end, a workshop can also take the form of a moral deliberation (see above).

If you are interested in this, you can contact us via the contact form or by e-mail.

TAILOR MADE

Advice

If you have a specific question within your organisation for assistance in an ethical matter, you can contact us via the contact form or by e-mail.

This can be about policy issues, raising awareness or training programmes, enriching the mission and vision, living up to codes of conduct, how to incorporate moral deliberation into your stress prevention plan, or how to live up to the core values of your organisation.

Zinnings can also provide advice in the event of organizational changes, such as a merger, reorganization, or restructuring. Then it is often useful and efficient to reassess the corporate culture and leadership and to start working with the results of a survey regarding the ethical motivations within your organization.

TAILOR MADE

Presentations

Zinnings can be used to enthuse employees or organisations about ethics via a keynote or a presentation.

If you would like an awareness-raising compelling presentation, we can organise it for you.

This can be about the whole story: why ethics is important but also complex, how you can learn and apply it in organisations, why it is better to start immediately and why it pays off. Or it can focus on one of these aspects.

But you can also get a short intriguing inspiration. So that everyone leaves the room (the zoom?) thinking how incredible it is that he or she has never known what “maximin” means.