HOW UNDERSTANDING YOUR ROLE(S) HELPS WITH MAKING DIFFICULT DECISIONS

Abstract

AbstractThe author contends that the terms “job” and “role” are often used interchangeably, but these “are not simple synonyms. While a job consists of one or more tasks for which its holder accepts responsibility, a role goes further to encompass the broader context.” He discusses the recent ramifications of the term “stakeholder,” and how it has profound effects about how organizations are operated. This includes the Business Roundtable “Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation” in 2019. In considering your roles and role responsibilities, he asks questions such as “To whom you are obligated?” and “whose interests must you represent?” For understanding your core social identity, “How would you describe yourself to someone who didn’t know you?” and “What categories, communities, groups, social classes, do you see yourself as a part of?” In considering your role, some questions include “Are we part of the same social identity group?” and “Do your decisions reflect the integrity of what you have told or shown me about who you are?” Pliner concludes that “developing a deep understanding of your roles in all their complexity will help you to better align to – or frame misalignment with – your moral code and ethical context.”