Page 188 - leadership-experience-2008

CikguOnline
CikguOnline
CHAPTER 6: COURAGE AND MORAL LEADERSHIP 169

Exhibit 6.3 Trans World Entertainment Corporation Code of Ethics

General Statement of Policy
• Honesty and candor in our activities, including observance of the spirit, as well as
the letter of the law;
• Avoidance of conflicts between personal interests and the interests of the
Company, or even the appearance of such conflicts;
• Avoidance of Company payments to candidates running for government posts, or
government officials;
• Compliance with generally accepted accounting principles and controls;
• Maintenance of our reputation and avoidance of activities which might reflect
adversely on the Company; and
• Integrity in dealing with the Company’s assets.

Source: Trans World Entertainment Corporation Code of Ethics. n.d. Retrieved February 7, 2007, from http://
www.twec.com/corpsite/corporate/code.cfm.

the rules when they think they won’t get caught, they and their organizations will
ultimately suffer the consequences.
Moreover, leaders realize that what they do in their personal lives carries over
to the professional arena. Leaders are a model for the organization twenty-four
hours a day, seven days a week. Consider Mike Price, who was fi red as the Univer-
sity of Alabama’s football coach before he ever coached a game. While in Florida
participating in a golf tournament, Price spent hundreds of dollars on drinks and
tips for exotic dancers, spent the night with a woman other than his wife, and ran

up a $1,000 room-service bill. The university administration fired Price as a clear
signal that the “boys-will-be-boys” mindset in the athletic department would no
longer be tolerated. A visible leadership position entails the responsibility for con-
ducting both one’s personal and professional life in an ethical manner. Leaders
build ethical organizations by demonstrating the importance of serving people
and society, as well as winning football games or increasing business profi ts. Con-
sider how capitalism and service go hand-in-hand for Jeffrey Swartz, CEO of
Timberland.

IN THE LEAD Jeffrey Swartz, Timberland Co.
Jeffrey Swartz, the third-generation CEO whose grandfather founded the Timber-
land Co. in 1952, says he is “desperately” proud of the high-quality boots, shoes,
and other outdoor gear his company makes. But what keeps him going is the larger
purpose of helping to solve the world’s problems. Swartz has built a culture of ser-
vice at Timberland that is unparalleled in the corporate world.
Timberland employees get 40 paid hours of leave annually to pursue volunteer
activities, which can be projects the company supports or those of their own choos-
ing. The local offi ces of City Year, a non-profit organization that puts young people

into public service for a year, is housed entirely at Timberland’s headquarters. And
each year, Timberland holds a day-long “Serv-a-palooza,” when the company shuts
down and employees around the world participate in volunteer work. In 2005, Serv-
a-palooza hosted 170 service projects in 27 countries, representing about 45,000
volunteer hours.
In 1995, when Timberland was facing a fi nancial crisis, a banker told Swartz he
needed to “cut the country-club crap out.” Instead of heeding that advice, Swartz