A code of conduct is a document that outlines the expectations and principles of a company, ensuring employees adhere to them while adhering to legal requirements. Employees must abide by the code while on the job, which can significantly impact the company’s culture. Developing a comprehensive code of conduct is essential when creating policies and procedures for payroll systems, as it provides employees with crucial information and strengthens the organisation’s culture. This article explains the purpose, elements, and content of a code of conduct, enabling individuals to plan and build their own.
What is the Code of Conduct?
A workplace code of conduct is a set of guidelines for a company’s behaviour to prevent inappropriate conduct. It can be used as evidence in court cases involving disagreements between employers and employees.
A good code of conduct can encourage employee retention and loyalty by fostering a sense of commitment and shared values within the company. It guides ethical business decisions, communicates company values to stakeholders, and provides job seekers with insight into potential employer treatment. It also serves as a tool for communicating with employees and customers.
Why Is Having a Code of Conduct Important?
A code of conduct is important in the workplace because it tells people how to behave while doing their everyday jobs. Because of these things, it’s essential:
#1. Describes the Beliefs and Values of a Company
When a business puts its code of conduct on its website, it helps clients and people looking for work learn more about its goals, principles, and beliefs. This helps a worker determine if they agree with the company’s ideals and how it works.
#2. Sets Rules for How Employees Should Behave
As soon as you start working for a new company, you’ll have a set of rules to follow. It lowers the chances of problems because you will always act the right way. Additionally, a code clarifies what conduct is acceptable and not acceptable, which helps you get along better with your coworkers.
#3. Speeds up Job Growth
Problems and tough decisions at work only happen sometimes when you know what to do and what not to do. You might not know it’s unfair to ask other workers to punch for you or give business information to people outside the company. But you won’t do those things without a code of conduct. This can help your job grow faster because you use your energy for valuable things.
#4. Boosts Mood among Workers
When everyone on the team treats each other with respect, it builds strong relationships and boosts happiness for everyone. People like working for companies that boost morale because they feel recognised and valued. It also helps you reach your full ability and work together to achieve a business goal.
#5. Makes Sure That the Law Is Followed
A code covers things like abuse and discrimination at work. It ensures you follow the rules set by the company and the laws of the country and state. Following the law makes your business look more trustworthy and helps build its brand.
#6. Makes People Follow the Rules
People want to work for companies with strict and detailed codes of conduct because it helps them understand how to solve problems at work. Also, these rules make reporting someone breaking the rules at work much easier. It’s easier to ensure obedience when the process is streamlined.
What Your Code of Conduct Should Include
The employee code of conduct should include:
- Your Business and Brand Voice Tone
Your code of conduct is an integral part of your business, so it should be written and designed to fit your brand and style. It needs brand colours and pictures to make it more interesting. No one wants to read a wall of text.
Additionally, your words should be crystal clear and simple for everyone in your company to understand, from the lawyers to the marketing interns. Don’t use jargon. Instead, get to the point of what you want your workers to know in a way that fits your brand.
- A Message From the People in Charge of the Company
Your HR or people team may have written your code of conduct, but the message behind it should come from the top. That’s why it’s important to have your founder or CEO send a message. This not only makes your code of conduct more personal and human, but it also gives the enclosed rules more weight and shows that values and standards are set from the top down.
To be clear, it’s important to say who the code of conduct applies to. Is it only employees, certain team members, independent contractors, or others? Everyone in the company should follow the code of conduct, from the CEO to the newest employee. This will help build a strong culture. For implementation to work, beliefs and behaviours must be taught from the top down. Your employees will be more likely to follow the rules if they know their bosses are also held to the same standards.
- Mission, Vision, and Values of the Company
Next, list your company’s core values, goal statement, and vision. This gives your workers important background information about how you expect them to behave and act while working for you. Your values are a big part of your company’s operations, so your workers must remember them as they read the rest of the document. Give some examples of what your values mean in real life, along with your values. One example from Omnipresent is this: “Humble: We look at the bigger picture and don’t act based on what’s best for ourselves.” We watch out for each other and work together to get things done.
- Expectations for Behavior in Person and Online
After setting the scene, it’s time to spell out what actions are expected based on those values. What you expect from team members may include how they take care of each other, talk to your coworkers, work with outsiders, talk to people outside of you, talk about dating situations with coworkers and how to behave when you’re not at work, like at events and social gatherings.
You must change these standards based on how your workplace is set up. For instance, do you expect your workers who work from home to be at home? Can they work from a beach or a coffee shop? Do they have the freedom to work somewhere else? What does it mean to have open hours? People who work for you can choose when to work. Or should they stick to core hours? Make sure you give cases to back up all of these points.
These standards should include diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), especially if you have a team that works with people from around the world. Stress how vital DEI is for your company and how that affects what you expect from your coworkers. What kind of words should they stay away from? How can they make everyone feel welcome and valued? Should they talk about politics or social issues at work? If so, how should they do it?
It’s not a quick fix for DEI problems, but your code of conduct is an excellent place to make clear what you expect and show that you mean what you say.
- How to Use Company Property
It is essential to keep company property safe to stop data breaches, avoid extra costs, and protect intellectual property (IP). Because of this, it’s important to have a section in your code of conduct that tells workers how they should and shouldn’t use company property. This is especially important if your workers work from home or take company property when leaving the office.
Any hardware, like computers, cell phones, printers, and so on; software, tools, and information, like client data and strategic business plans. Make sure there is a note about confidential information that tells workers what it is and how they should handle it. This, along with more detailed IT security policies, can help ensure that your workers manage company property safely and adequately.
- Process for Reporting and Punishment
There are two significant benefits to writing down your reporting and punishment procedures: setting limits, which helps you be in charge so bad behaviour doesn’t happen and giving your workers confidence that you’ll do the right thing if something goes wrong.
If you want your reporting and punishment processes to be as straightforward as possible, it can help to show them with real-life examples. For example, what would happen if a worker said something offensive to a coworker? How should the employee or other harmed coworkers contact you, and what will you do once you know? Most importantly, show your coworkers you care about these problems and will keep their secrets.
- Person to Talk To
Your code of conduct will contain a lot of important and serious information, so your coworkers may have questions. At the end, ensure there is a section that lists a person that employees can talk to about questions or issues and how they can do so.
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References
- Omnipresent
- Indeed
- Flair
