One in four companies has failed to put in place an internal strategy for communicating ethics, values and culture, according to a survey.
The findings come from the Institute of Business Ethics in their triennial Corporate Ethics Policies and Programmes: 2016 UK and Continental Europe survey.
However, the survey, which looks at trends in the FTSE 350, also found that that 86% of respondents said that ethics, values and culture are regularly discussed in board meetings. This is a 30% increase on findings in the 2013 survey.
However, less than half of companies have a formal approach to monitoring systems for protecting whistleblowers from retaliation. This was despite findings that 97% of companies with whistleblowing procedures also had policies in place to protect those who speak up.
Simon Webley, the IBE’s research director, said: “Any member of staff at any level should feel free to raise an issue. Fear of retaliation has a significant impact on whether an employee speaks up about their concerns.”
The survey found that the most frequently measured indicators for an ethics programme are the number of employees receiving training, data about speaking up and the result of staff surveys.
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