Dean Institute makes national headlines
Chris Pepple |
Last month, more than 500 people came to the Lipscomb campus to celebrate the launch of the Dean Institute for Corporate Governance and Integrity and hear observations about the state of ethics in U.S. The Dean Institute examines the role of integrity in corporate decision making and encourages the best possible governance practices for both boards and management. Its programs offer an academic forum and executive education for public and private companies, not-for-profit organizations, and higher education students seeking a role in making the future better.
“This is an extremely difficult time in American history when people across the country are questioning the very nature of our corporate institutions and wondering where we go from here,” said Turney Stevens, dean of the College of Business at Lipscomb University. “Our nation needs an honest conversation around the issues of corporate governance and integrity, and the Dean Institute is proud to take part in that dialogue. Our goal is not to lay blame for today’s problems, but to seek out best practices that will help corporations move forward.”
Since being launched in December, the Dean Institute has already attracted the attention of local and national business leaders and business journalists. Lipscomb University, the College of Business and the Dean Institute were recently the subject of an online article published on Business Week's Small Biz web site. Karen Klein, the Smart Answers columnist, interviewed Stevens about the need to restore the study of business governance and the need to examine ethical choices facing today’s entrepreneurs. When asked about achieving a balance between doing the right things and being competitive in order to make the best profit, Stevens answered, “My feeling is if you behave honorably and ethically in your business, if you think about the greater good and sacrificing the short-term gain for the longer-term health of the company, you'll gain terrific confidence and loyalty, and you'll get abundant returns on your investment.”
The Associated Press weekly Business Insider podcast also featured an interview with Stevens and with Ben Heineman, author of High Performance with High Integrity, and speaker at the Dean Institute launch event in December. The two discussed the importance of ethics in today's stressed business world.
Instructions to find the podcast:
To hear this interview, go to the AP podcast page. Scroll down to the last listed podcast: "Business Beat." Click on "Listen Now," then click on the first "AP Business Beat" to see the topic discussed in the first available podcast. Stevens' and Heineman's interview is in the podcast labeled, "The AP's Greg Stec looks at the weak holiday shopping season, the end of Dow Chemical's joint venture with Kuwait and the place of ethics in business." As the weeks go by, the interview will move down in the list. The forward arrow will scroll through each of the 10 available podcasts showing you the topic of each.
Lunch Money on Tennessean.com also featured an interview with Stevens. Click here to view this 28 minute interview. Click on "On Demand" under the TV screen, and then click on Stevens’ picture when it comes up on the menu on the right side of the screen.