Executive Summary

Honesty and Fair Dealing: The Best Business Partners

Stanley S. Hubbard

May 1999

I have been in business for a good many years, and during that time I have seen many changes in the business climate-most good, some not so good. One area which is especially interesting and troubling is the area of ethics and fair and honest dealing.

I began my business career in the early 1950s, and I worked in an atmosphere of trust. Almost all of those with whom I dealt understood the importance of integrity, i.e., when you give your word, you keep it. At our company, we entered into deals with nothing more than a handshake and others in our industry operated in the same manner. When I began in business, we paid our bills when due. We did not think we had the right to use other people’s money by delaying payment beyond the due date. Somehow, all too often, what seems "smart" but not necessarily the best thing to do to maintain an atmosphere of trust and integrity, has become the thing to do.

I believe that one of the smartest things an individual, or a company, can do is to do everything in such a way that people will trust you.

We are in the broadcasting business, and we go out of our way to try to deal honestly and fairly with the listening and viewing public, as well as with our suppliers and our customers. I could give you many examples of situations where we have had to make a choice between short-term profit or loss and which could have been positive on our profit/loss statement if we had "fudged" with integrity. For example, there are many suppliers who rely on us for the well-being of their business. We could use the "float" and not pay these companies on a timely basis and therefore improve our bottom line, but we do not. There have been times when we have committed some error through oversight or otherwise which we need not have told the FCC about, but we did tell them. There have been times when we have entered into agreements which turned out not to be so good for us and some lawyers have said to us, "You can get out of this by such and such a maneuver." We have kept our bargains and in the short run, it has cost us. In the long run, however, a career and a business will be better served if the highest possible standards of integrity are observed.

If people know they can trust you, they will then wish to do business with you; if your employees know that you are a truth teller, they will then trust you and will do more for you and for the company. If the government agencies with which you are involved know you to be honest and above board, they will then work with you whenever possible to try to make things work out in a way that will suit your best interest. I do not know where people have learned to take short cuts or to "fudge" the truth or to tell only partial truths rather then the whole truth, but I have seen this happen more often in recent years.

The one thing over which we all have control is our reputation. We can be known as reasonable or unreasonable. We can be known as extremely smart or not so smart; but, above all, it is important that we be known as people who keep our word-as people who can be trusted. I think there should be a movement in business and law schools and in business generally to promote the truism that honesty and fair dealing make good business partners.

In my opinion, there should be active instruction by way of example in business and law schools to teach people about the importance of integrity. Whenever I have been fortunate enough to be in a mentoring situation for students, I have gone out of my way to tell these young people that they know right from wrong and they should never, ever, no matter who asks them, no matter how important the deal or how much money is involved, do anything that could be interpreted by their conscience or by others as dishonest.

If the business community wants to be trusted by the voting public or by those with whom we deal, then we must renew our efforts to make sure that all of our dealings are "fair and square."

One way to do this is to never look the other way when we find someone involved in a deal that is not fair, square and above board. It seems to me that all too often people ignore what others do when we know that what they are doing is wrong. We must, through our legal institutions, our educational institutions, our business and charitable institutions and through our own behavior and interpersonal relations, make it clear that the only acceptable behavior is that which is above board, fair and honest. I hope we can all strive to reestablish a code of honor in the business world-a code of honor, which in my opinion, has in all too many instances been missing during the last two decades.

Meet the Executive

Stanley S. Hubbard is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. The son of a radio and television pioneer, Hubbard has been involved in broad-casting for his entire life. He became an employee of KSTP-TV in 1951, President in 1967 and Chairman, President and CEO in 1983. Hubbard also founded and built (in cooperation with DIRECTV) the first successful high-power Direct Broadcast Satellite Company, U. S. Satellite Broadcasting. In the spring of 1999, USSB merged with DIRECTV, a subsidiary of General Motors. Hubbard is a Director of numerous industry and charitable organizations.

Hubbard Broadcasting Inc. is a St. Paul Minnesota-based family owned and operated broadcasting company with operations including eight television stations in Minnesota, New Mexico and New York; two radio stations in Minnesota; CONUS Communications, the nation’s first and largest satellite newsgathering organization; and two Florida-based television production companies.

Center for Ethical Business Cultures

1000 LaSalle Avenue, TMH 331 ▪ Minneapolis, MN 55403-2005 ▪ USA

Phone: 651 962 4120 or 800 328 6819 Ext. 2-4120 ▪ Facsimile: 651 962 4042

Email: mail@cebcglobal.org

© 1978-2008 Center for Ethical Business Cultures. All Rights Reserved.

Business Partnering with the University of St. Thomas - Minnesota