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The Dark Side of Corporate Leadership: Integrity vs. Profit.
Episode 196 • 19th December 2024 • TonyTidbit: A Black Executive Perspective • TonyTidbit ™
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Episode Audio Link: https://podcast.ablackexec.com/episode/The Dark Side of Corporate Leadership: Integrity vs. Profit.

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In this episode of Need to Know, award-winning Dr. Nsenga Burton discusses the importance of integrity in the workplace, analyzing how legal actions by corporations aren't always ethical. She connects this to recent events, including the assassination of UnitedHealthcare's CEO, and highlights the need for humane, moral leadership in corporate policies, especially in the healthcare industry. Dr. Burton emphasizes the value of leadership that prioritizes humanity, provides measurable outcomes, and adapts to changing times. Tune in to understand how to navigate these challenges and promote a compassionate professional environment.

▶︎ In This Episode

00:00: Introduction to Need to Know with Dr. Nsenga Burton

00:19: Integrity in the Workplace

00:35: Case Study: UnitedHealthcare CEO Assassination

01:11: Corporate Policies and Ethical Dilemmas

02:15: The Human Cost of Inhumane Policies

03:06: Leadership and Ethical Responsibility

05:50: Changing Times and Expectations

07:54: Practical Advice for Leaders

09:56: Conclusion and Final Thoughts

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Transcripts

BEP Narrator:

A Black Executive Perspective now presents Need to Know

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with the award winning hyphenated Dr.

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Nsenga Burton.

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Dr.

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Burton.

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What do we need to know?

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Dr. Nsenga Burton: Good afternoon

and welcome to Need to Know with Dr.

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Nsenga Burton.

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I am she.

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I hope all is well in your world.

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Today we're going to talk about integrity

in the workplace and how sometimes

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practices that just because they are legal

doesn't mean that they're ethical and that

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can lead to some devastating consequences.

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Um, I You know, even unintended so before

I even start on this, I know everyone

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is caught up in enthralled with the, um,

United healthcare CEOs assassination.

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I would say it was an execution and

that the culprit has been picked up.

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Um, so this is no way, shape

or form has to do, um, wants to

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make light of what happened to,

uh, Brian Thompson is terrible.

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What happened to him and

his family, his colleagues.

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It's terrible that people are in fear

for their lives and all of the things.

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Um, and it's terrible that that happened

to him as he was just going to work.

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Right.

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Um, so having said that, um, What I'm

talking about today is related, uh, not

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to UnitedHealthcare per se, but it's

corporations in general and how, uh, you

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have to navigate these kind of spaces

and I have to change with the times.

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So, um, you know, there's another

company that I won't name, but following

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the execution of Mr Thompson, they

changed their policies on anesthesia.

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You know, how they cover it,

so they will only cover it for

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a certain number of minutes.

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And then after that, it was minutes past,

the patient would be required to pay if

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they indeed continued receiving anesthesia

and, you know, anesthesia is given

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typically when you're having some type of.

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Surgery.

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So we were a little bit shocked.

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Some people know this because

they have medical issues.

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I have medical issues.

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Thankfully, I haven't been on

anesthesia in a long time, so

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I didn't even know about this.

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But, um, you know, I was, you know, people

were shocked when they learned this.

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Um, and even though that's something

that you can legally do, that is really

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a terrible policy and it shouldn't take,

uh, because it's inhumane, it's inhumane.

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Like, you know, if you're,

you, a doctor has said that

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you need this service, right?

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A surgeon has said that I have to do this.

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The surgeon has said you need to be

put under, uh, if it goes longer than

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it's supposed to, or you run into

some kind of issue or complication,

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you, uh, you shouldn't have the burden

of having to either suffer through

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it, because we're learning, um.

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with these laws that are impacting women's

bodies that, you know, some doctors are

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really afraid of the insurance companies.

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They're afraid of the law.

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Uh, and so they're letting women bleed

out in cars and parking lots, um,

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or, you know, letting them sit for

hours and in some cases days, um, and

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either, you know, die or what have you.

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So we have to, what I think We should come

out of this case, uh, or this issue, uh,

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is that we as leaders in our professions

have to think in a humane and ethical way.

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Is it humane to deny people services

that have been prescribed by a doctor?

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Is that humane?

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You know, I mean, it

has, it happens a lot.

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And when I think about this boy,

I'm just trying to figure out,

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I mean, I know he's 26, but you

know, I'm old, so he's a boy to me.

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Um, but when I think about this young

person who didn't have enough sense

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to pack a sandwich, Right, didn't have

enough sense to pack a sandwich, didn't

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have enough sense to be in Pennsylvania

and go to Amish country where he could

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have just lived forever, and nobody

would have known he was there, except

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if there was a basketball tournament

or something happened and then he

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might be spotted, but that was like,

gonna be later in the year, summer.

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Um, but you know, in Pennsylvania, doesn't

have enough sense to go there if he's

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gonna stay in the, in the, uh, in the

country or starve his way to Canada.

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Right, the nearest crossing border

crossing, but, um, I'm trying to figure

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out and I'm looking forward to finding

out if this is indeed the person what

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it was that motivated this person to do

this to commit this heinous crime because

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those of us who have been dealing with.

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Hospitals and doctors for an inordinated

amount of time, you know, it could

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be us, it could be your parents,

it could be friends, whatever,

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know that there are many, many

challenges with the insurance agency.

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So I can't even imagine what

at twenty six he has endured

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that would make him do this.

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Relative to all the horror stories that

we hear about as full functioning adults,

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um, you know, and all the go fund me's

we see, um, that are related to people's

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medical issues because they're bankrupting

them, um, you know, and a lot of issues

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and these people who have insurance.

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So, uh, I think it's an opportunity for

us to really think about as leaders.

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What does it look like to operate

with a very specific ethos?

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And that is elevating people's humanity

to the very top, particularly when you

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are in such close proximity to it, right?

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When you have, um, the tools and

resources to either help someone live or

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to make sure that they succumb, right?

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If they don't have access

to those tools or resources.

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So what does leadership look like?

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When you have the opportunity to impact

people's lives on such a specific level.

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Right?

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And I would just want to say that we

need to know that times are changing.

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People are not going to accept and

deal with what they were accepting

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and dealing with previously.

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You're going to see this

in this next election.

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You know, there is fear that they're

going to get away with so much stuff.

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People are not going to accept what

they accepted in twenty twenty.

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All right.

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Um, you're going to see

this in your workplaces.

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You know, um, if we have another

pandemic, people are not going

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to accept what they accepted

previously, this next election, U.

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S.

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presidential election, Democrats are

not going to accept what they accept.

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Uh, Previously, it's not going to happen.

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So at some point you have to change

and you have to, uh, change with the

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times and you can either lead, be a real

leader and say, listen, we've been doing

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this long enough and no longer serves

us no longer serves our population.

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We need to change our policies or

the way we deal with this, or we need

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to have, you know, uh, uh, something

in place to deal with these types of

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issues because it is no longer serving

our, our, uh, patients or clients.

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Or you can be dragged there.

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Because of a P.

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R.

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crisis crisis communications

is what we call it.

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So a P.

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R.

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crisis where you're like, oh,

my God, this is happening.

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What are our policies?

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Oh, my goodness.

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Look at all this stuff on social

media about how terrible we are.

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Let's start to clean this up.

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That should not be the driver.

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The driver should start from the top.

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It should be with the company and

people should be made aware of

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not only what you're trying to do,

um, but with what you're What the

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measurable outcomes will be right?

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So, if we make this policy change,

we hope to save, you know, hope to

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increase the number of lives that

we save by 10 percent next year.

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Right?

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So that's also like, not only being

ethical, but also being accountable

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and really making yourself when

you have measurable outcomes.

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It makes you really think about.

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What really needs to happen in order

to create the change that you seek.

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So on need to know today It's

there's value in packing a lunch

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When you need to get somewhere quickly

and you don't have time to stop and

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go into a fast food restaurant And

then I'm like, why are you mad at

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the health care company when you eat

McDonald's, but that's another story

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So need to know is pack a lunch

that's number one number two Um

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Know your environment and where

you are at all times, right?

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And then number three to really lead

and think from a perspective of how

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do I help the most people possible?

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When you are making billions

in profits, you can afford to

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help the most people possible.

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You're not going to always get it right.

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You can't save everyone.

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But when people are going through hard

times and medical issues are hard,

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especially when you're looking at

something that can be critical or that

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is critical or could be fatal, it's hard.

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It's hard to stress on your

families or what have you.

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The last thing that people should be

having to think about is, Lord, I hope

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this surgeon finishes this surgery on time

so I don't wake up in the middle of it

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or, oh my gosh, If they don't

finish on time, I'm going to have

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this big, uh, balloon payment

waiting for me after I heal.

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So if I, if, if the surgery, if I survived

the surgery, the stress of having to

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pay this bill or having it hanging

over my head, uh, will kill me instead.

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Right?

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Um, we should not be doing that in 2024.

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We should be better than that.

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And I do believe that

we are better than that.

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I know 50 percent of us are not, but the

other 50 percent of us are, so we need the

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other 50 percent to use your influence.

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And, uh, to really ask our leaders,

particularly our leaders of multi billion

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dollar corporations, um, to do better and

to be better and to make better decisions.

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Um, you know, so that we

can avoid tragedies, further

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tragedies, uh, and just.

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Just violence that is unnecessary.

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Violence is never necessary,

but certainly in this instance.

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Um, so I just wanted

to put that out there.

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Uh, I think it's terrible again.

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Don't chop this up and pretend

like I said that it was okay.

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It's not.

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It's horrible.

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We should not be out here

assassinating, executing people.

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Period.

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Period.

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And it includes the incoming president.

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Period.

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Uh, but we also have to learn how

to treat people, um, with empathy,

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with kindness and with integrity.

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Uh, so that we can avoid, uh, these

types of instances, um, in the future.

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And that is Need to Know with Dr.

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Nsenga and tune in to A Black

Executive Perspective Podcast next

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week, where we'll have more for you.

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All right.

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Have a wonderful day.

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BEP Narrator: A Black

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