Professor Fugate argues that leaders at all levels and in all industries need to focus on ethical responsibilities that go beyond legal responsibilities to themselves and their organizations. Ethical responsibility tests the true character of a leader and determines the character and quality of organizational culture. He illustrates this point in the context of higher education, where he believes a lack of accountability has led to a leadership and culture crisis. Fugate uses scandals in college sports as common examples of a widespread and larger problem of university leadership (at all levels) failing to meet its ethical responsibilities. He outlines a number of possible causes for the patterns of unethical behavior in higher education and also offers some suggestions on how to overcome the challenges of this crisis.

Mel Fugate is an Associate Professor of Management and Organizations at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. His research and consulting work aims to improve the performance of individuals and organizations through the use of a variety of practical, research-based tools related to leadership development, organizational change, performance management, organizational culture, and employee engagement. His research and consulting work spans many industries (e.g., law, energy, healthcare, information technology, and financial services) and often includes organizational assessments to measure the health of organizations' human resources. He has published and been refereed in a number of leading management and applied psychology journals and is co-author of a new book – Organizational Behavior: A Practical, Problem Solving Approach. Professor Fugate is an award-winning teacher who has taught in both the United States and France.

This talk was delivered at a TEDx event that used the TED conference format but was independently organized by a local community. For more information, visit http://ted.com/tedx

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