The University of Wyoming College of Business and the Center for Cowboy Ethics and Leadership have developed a workshop teaching students how to be ethical.
This statewide initiative, “Standing Tall in an Upside-Down World,” was started in order to help business executives serve as leaders in their industries, companies, and communities. Though it was originally formed with Wyoming businesses in mind, the program has had an impact on leaders outside of the state as well.
These learning opportunities, called Standing Tall sessions, are largely based on the sharing of ideas and opinions. Participants are encouraged to share their thoughts on issues within their industries and communities. Discussions of the principles identified in the Code of the West also take place at each session in order to realize that everyone needs a code to live by.
These sessions are organized around author James P. Owen’s code in his book “Cowboy Ethics: What Wall Street Can Learn from the Code of the West.”
The Code of the West is as follows: Live each day with courage; take pride in your work; always finish what you start; do what has to be done; be tough, but fair; when you make a promise, keep it; ride for the brand; talk less and say more; remember that some things aren’t for sale; know where to draw the line.
“This is hands down the best program I have attended on personal accountability,” Justin Grider of Los Alamos, N.M. Fire Department said in a participant testimony. “My new code is displayed alongside my degree because these two pieces of paper signify personal conquests I could not be more proud of accomplishing.
Business executives and community leaders are not the only ones benefiting from these programs. In fact, college students also have become involved with the Standing Tall ethics sessions.
“I was inspired to create a personal code by the Standing Tall session,” Josi Wambach, a recent University of Wyoming MBA graduate, said. “The workshop caused me to reflect on my past and challenged me to create a better version of myself.”
According to Kent Noble, assistant of external relations for the College of Business, the students that have been exposed to the program have responded very favorably. These include College of Business MBA students, business ethics students, campus recreation student employees, Residence Life and Dining student workers, and the men’s and women’s golf teams.
Almost 50 Standing Tall sessions have taken place for countless community organizations. Graduates of the program come from approximately 40 Wyoming communities, 20 states and 7 countries. And the program is just beginning.
Future workshops have been planned across the country to spread the Standing Tall initiative to leaders in various corporations and communities.
