An organization whose members are acculturated to behave morally according to specified principles practices "the organizational good." "The organizational good" is the soul of an organization and as such, it shouldn't change. If the Board of Directors, CEO and senior management reinforce ethical principles by modeling them, an organization can thrive; if not the organization may become ethically bankrupt. It is the premise of this article that the increasingly common errant behavior of some organizations and their CEOs today is the result of their failure to practice the ethic of "the organizational good." Several writers have described how the common good has been replaced by an ethic of individual rights where everyone does what they consider to be the right thing.  The decline of collective responsibility and civic engagement, and the rise of individual accountability are evidenced in the avoidance of trust and commitment, and the involvement in cynicism and apathy.

The common good raises the anté for everyone. Everyone doing the right thing raises the anté for oneself. The sociologist, M.P. Baumgartner, found a disturbing unwillingness of people to make moral claims on one another. Most people did not feel it was their place to express their convictions when someone did something that was wrong. Alan Wolfe found, in a recent survey of moral attitudes in eight communities in the U.S., that when a moral decision had to be made most people looked to themselves, at their own interests, needs, and inclinations. Those surveyed acknowledged the traditional values of honesty, loyalty, self-restraint, and forgiveness, but they were determined to decide for themselves what those values meant.

Today it is not important whether a decision or behavior is good or bad, or even whether it is legal or illegal, but what each individual considers to be the right thing to do. As a result there are many victims who are pointing the finger of blame for wrongdoing at other people or circumstances. Protecting one's personal good has become more important than promoting the common good.

Organizations are caught up in the effects of the societal collapse of the common good. A majority of the members of organizations in contemporary society are guided by the ethic of "what's in it for me." Carried to the extreme this would mean chaos in organizations. Everyone would do what they wanted to do. While organizations reflect the values and beliefs of larger society, they have unique cultures of their own. Many organizations have strong traditions and cultures, which are centered, around a common good, and some are determined to keep it so. These organizations believe that the ultimate measuring stick of success is not producing numbers or dollars alone, but adherence to such virtues as honesty, integrity, trust, loyalty, and giving back to the community, while providing quality service and products.

The premise of this article is that the increasingly common errant behavior of some organizations and their CEO's today is because they do not practice the ethic of "the organizational good." Rather, organizations and their leaders who engage in illegal and immoral acts do so, often with the complicity of their Boards of Directors, to enhance their self-interests and flippantly and sometimes arrogantly, dismiss their egregious behavior by stating, "everyone is doing it."