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The purpose of this paper is to examine the means by which one UK local authority obtained certification of its Bereavement Service against ISO9001, ISO14001, and ISO27001. It aims to explain the processes that were followed, highlight the problems that were encountered, and show how these were overcome.

The paper adopts a case study approach. The case study emerged from a broader grounded theory study which is outside the scope of this paper.

This paper demonstrates that ISO27001 can be fully integrated into a single management system with ISO9001 and ISO14001, and also illustrates that the various standards can be applied more flexibly than is often thought.

This study will be of significant benefit to bereavement professionals because it offers advice and guidance on addressing pitfalls that may be encountered when bereavement services wish to seek certification against international standards. It will also benefit quality, environmental, and information security professionals because it shows, in a practical way, how the three standards can be fully integrated.

The integration of ISO27001 into a comprehensive management system is an area which has previously been under‐researched. Furthermore, this paper takes an original perspective to information security, arguing that ISO27001 can be applied beyond an ICT environment, and this is demonstrated by considering the standard in the context of bereavement services.

In the post‐Enron/WorldCom/Tyco environment of public distrust and tightening regulation, corporations must proactively work to regain public trust. In this skeptical environment, they must do more to reflect the fact that corporate legitimacy depends on public acceptance. The new wave of legislation and regulation can achieve only limited results. What is needed is a more radical rethinking, by corporations themselves, of their true role and purpose in society. Restating corporate purpose in terms of social needs rather than solely of maximizing profit is the surest way to be distinguished from the competition, to regain public trust, and to ultimately increase stakeholder (not merely shareowner) value. To ensure the success of this reformation the agenda for executive action must address five key points: (1) develop consensus on a revised statement of corporate purpose and values; (2) clarify the role of profit in the business equation; (3) articulate and communicate the distinctions between the old purpose, values and behaviors and the new; (4) set a strong personal example; and (5) revise the management measurement and reward system.

Frances Frei and Anne Morriss, the authors of Unleashed: The Unapologetic Leader’s Guide to Empowering Everyone Around You, are interviewed by veteran Strategy & Leadership contributor, Brian Leavy.

In this book, the authors propose that leadership, at its core, is about how effective you are at empowering other people and unleashing their full potential. Unleashing others is the fundamental mandate of leadership.

Trust is the coin of the leader’s realm. The basic formula for building trust: people tend to trust leaders when they think they are interacting with the real person (authenticity), when they have faith in the leader’s judgment and competence (logic), and when they believe that the leader cares about them (empathy).

Strategy is a primary way that leaders embed who they are, their core values and beliefs, into their organization’s behavior.

The authors’ advice to to executives: Your job as a leader is to create the conditions for the people around you to become increasingly effective, to help them fully realize their own capacity and power. They explain how to effectively and authentically manage the leader/follower relationship.

Over the last two decades Bill George has been researching the basic ingredients of authentic leadership through one of the most extensive empirical studies of leadership ever undertaken. He and his team have extended their research to include both international and rising generation leaders and parlayed their findings into a development process aimed at helping current and aspiring leaders to become both more authentic and effective. His latest book, True North: Leading Authentically in Today’s Workplace (Emerging Leader Edition), is co-authored with Zach Clayton.

Interview with authors Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic, and Zach Clayton, CEO of Three Ships, conducted by Brian Leavy, Emeritus Professor of Strategy at Dublin City University Business School, a Strategy &Leadership contributing editor and author of the S&L masterclass, “ Effective leadership today – character, not just competence.

Authentic leaders engender trust and develop genuine connections, which enables them to motivate people to achieve high levels of performance.

“I believe the hardest person you will ever have to lead is yourself.” -- Bill George

“The authors interviewed hundreds of CEOs and found that the self-awareness that they develop in the process of self-discovery is the most essential determinant of their effectiveness as a leader.”

This interview covers research published in three major books by Bill George. The first was in response to a massive governance crisis as high-flyers like Enron, WorldCom and Tyco crashed. George’s first book, offered an alternative to self-serving leadership, was “Authentic Leadership” in 2003. Having been a highly successful CEO, he watched with grave concern as the stock market and media mistakenly venerated CEOs like Bob Nardelli at Home Depot and Hewlett-Packard’s Carly Fiorina for their charisma, style and image rather than their character and substance.

In 2005-2006 he created a research team at Harvard Business School to determine how to develop authentic leaders. This project still stands as the largest, in-depth research of leaders ever undertaken. The result was his second book, True North, published in 2007.

A third book, Discover Your True North, the result of a second Harvard study displays the dramatic changes for the better in leadership in the past decade.

The best of today’s corporate leaders are less hierarchical and bureaucratic than their predecessors. They focus primarily on gaining alignment around their organization’s mission and values, and empowering their employees to step up and lead rather than merely following rules and processes. They operate less in their self-interest, and more in service to others and pursuit of greater societal good on a global scale. The new leaders are authentic and open, rather than focused on leadership style and charisma.

Bill George’s research has defined an effective alternative to self-serving leadership, one that can be a model for 21st Century leaders facing the demands of a rapid change, continuous innovation global marketplace. Authentic leaders make good strategists.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) of 1977 and its amendment – the Trade and Competitive Act of 1988 – are unique not only in the history of the accounting and auditing profession, but also in international law. The Acts raised awareness of the need for efficient and adequate internal control systems to prevent illegal acts such as the bribery of foreign officials, political parties and governments to secure or maintain contracts overseas. Its uniqueness is also due to the fact that the USA is the first country to pioneer such a legislation that impacted foreign trade, international law and codes of ethics. The research traces the history of the FCPA before and after its enactment, the role played by the various branches of the United States Government – Congress, Department of Justice, Securities Exchange commission (SEC), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); the contributions made by professional associations such as the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICFA), the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), the American Bar Association (ABA); and, finally, the role played by various international organizations such as the United Nations (UN), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). A cultural, ethical and legalistic background will give a better understanding of the FCPA as wll as the rationale for its controversy.

The second reading of the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Bill (Lords) came before the House of Commons on April 19th. The measure has passed through all stages in the House of Lords. Mr. Guinness (Minister of Agriculture) said the object of the Bill was to lay the foundation for a better system of marketing home produce by developing arrangements for grading and marking. Anyone who took the trouble to look at the produce now offered for sale must be convinced that very much home produce of excellent quality was spoilt by its unattractive presentment. Foreign supplies, benefiting by their reliability and uniformity, were often far ahead in the appearance they made in our markets. The remedy was to grade home produce so that the poor quality did not depress the value of the better quality. The Ministry of Agriculture had carried out practical experiments on a commercial scale, and demonstrations during the last couple of years at agricultural shows. These demonstrations had taken place with eggs and poultry, fruit, potatoes, pigs, pork and bacon, and farmers had been quick to take up the new idea. In the big centres of population markets were coming more and more to demand bulk supplies and uniform quality. Foreign competition had taught the advantage which was to be found in the condition and reliability of supplies if they were packed in standardised non‐returnable containers. The home producer could no longer afford to stand aside from this movement, and must take steps to comply with modern developments in the markets. If the Bill was passed, the Ministry proposed at once to deal with two branches of production. Already the Ministry had prepared schemes for the grading of eggs which had been developed by the Poultry Advisory Committee of the Ministry upon which producers and distributors were represented. The schemes had been approved by the various interests concerned. Grades had also been worked out for fruit and schemes for applying them provisionally agreed upon with the National Farmers' Union. Clause I. enabled the Ministry to define by regulation grade designations. It would be entirely voluntary, and nobody would need to use the grades, but if they were used, then they would constitute a warranty under which the purchaser would have a remedy if the goods were not up to standard. Under Clause II. the Minister was empowered to prescribe grade designation marks and authorise any person or body of persons to use such marks. The same mark would be used on all standard productions, and would only be authorised in the case of goods of defined standard and quality. To build up this reputation and goodwill of the mark, its use would be safeguarded by being limited to those who would conform to certain conditions. The use of the national mark would be controlled by a National Mark Committee, which would be advised by trade committees representing the various commodity interests. Clauses 3 and 4 dealt with preserved eggs and the cold and chemical storage of eggs, and were for the protection of producers and consumers of new‐laid eggs. The operation of these clauses would be dependent on an order being in force for marking foreign eggs under the Merchandise Marks Act. As Clause 4 stood it was proposed that the eggs should be marked before being moved into the store. He had, however, received representations from the cold storage trade, and proposed to move an amendment in committee to provide that eggs need not necessarily be marked before being placed in these stores, but must be marked before they were moved out. He hoped the Bill would receive support in all quarters of the House. The World Economic Conference which met at Geneva last year stated that the improvement of agriculture must, in the first place, be the work of agriculturists themselves. Amongst the methods suggested at the conference was the standardisation of agricultural produce in the interests both of the producers and the consumers. The three political parties in this country in their published programmes had recently stressed the importance of grading and standardisation. He did not suggest that marking alone could restore the agricultural industry to prosperity, but the proposed reforms must be of great assistance. The Bill was not brought forward as an emergency cure, but the proposed developments were absolutely necessary if the producer was to secure a fair return. Mr. A. V. Alexander moved: That, whilst this House is in favour of a proper system of grading and marking agricultural produce and is prepared to consider proposals to this end, it objects to the second reading of a Bill containing provisions relating to the marking of imported eggs contrary to the findings of the standing committee of inquiry appointed under the Merchandise Marks Act.— Speaking on behalf of the co‐operative movement, he said it was impossible to buy level grades of home produce in sufficiently large quantities and with a sufficient guarantee of continued supply to fill the distributing centres. But he doubted whether the proposals of the Bill were adequate to meet the situation. In the Dominions the grading was carried out by Government officials. Regarding eggs, he believed the Government had adopted an entirely wrong procedure. It had tried deliberately to get behind the findings of the committee set up to deal with the application for the marking of eggs.—Mr. Macquisten, speaking as an egg consumer, asked what right Mr. Alexander had to prevent him knowing where his breakfast egg was laid. There was far too much deceit of customers all through the retail trade.—Sir J. Simon asked if the Bill was not put forward in flat defiance of the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Eggs set up by the Ministry of Agriculture. That Committee said that if the best imported eggs were marked they would derive more advantage than home‐produced eggs, unless a substantial improvement were first effected in the home methods of grading and marketing. He did not imagine that the British barn‐door fowl was not as capable of doing her duty as the corresponding lady in other parts of the world, but were the facts as these experts stated?—Mr. Macquisten: Were these gentlemen egg‐growers? Mere evidence is no guarantee because the Leader of the Opposition did not know whether a hen cackled before or after laying an egg.— Sir J. Simon: This report in very straightforward terms asserts that to mark the best imported eggs in the present state of affairs is not going to produce the good results desired by this Bill. The Committee say as their principal recommendation: “An Order in Council (Marking Order) in respect of eggs should only be made when sufficient improvement has been made in the collecting, grading, packing and marketing of British eggs to remove, or at least mitigate, the danger of the best imported egg obtaining a better market in the United Kingdom than the home‐produced egg.” It is no good to say that we want to help the poultry farmer when there is this report warning us that if we adopt this very natural course we may be doing a very foolish thing. I want to know what the Government says in face of that report in justification of what they are doing.—Mr. Lloyd George regarded the Bill as a very important step towards marketing produce. Unless they had improvement in marketing, every scheme to assist the agricultural industry must prove a failure. At present we were importing £327,000,000 worth of produce of the very kind which the climate of this country would enable us to produce. Marketing was the first essential in solving the problems of the agricultural industry. The next thing was grading. With better grading better prices would be secured. He was very glad the Minister of Agriculture had introduced the Bill, and he hoped it would be passed.—Mr. Guinness, in reply, pointed out that the Bill did not lay down any regulation as to the marking of foreign eggs or any other produce. Its purpose was to enable us to get better grading, packing and standardisation of our own produce. Whether foreign eggs were marked or not the Bill would enable British eggs to be properly graded, but long before eggs were graded under the Bill he hoped to see the grading of this year's apple crop, with the same excellent result on prices as was found last year in the case of the experiment that was tried. He could also reassure Sir J. Simon that, far from upsetting the recommendations of the Committee, the Bill aimed at carrying them out. The debate had suggested that there had been a nefarious plot to get behind the Committee, and that his action in trying to carry out the recommendations of the Committee was a menace to the purity of English public life. No attempt had been made to interfere with the discretion of the Committee.—On a division the amendment was defeated by 237 votes to 97, and the Bill was read a second time.

A small group of pioneering founders led the creation and early evolution of the service research field. Decades later, this article shares timeless service wisdom from ten of those pioneering founders.

Bowen and Fisk specified three criteria by which to identify a pioneering founder. In total, 11 founders met the criteria (Bateson, Berry, Bitner, Brown, Chase, Edvardsson, Grönroos, Gummesson, Parasuraman, Schneider and Zeithaml) and were invited to join Bowen and Fisk – founders that also met the criteria as coauthors. Ten founders then answered a set of questions regarding their careers as service scholars and the state of the field.

Insightful reflections were provided by each of the ten pioneering founders. In addition, based on their synthesis of the reflections, Bowen and Fisk developed nine wisdom themes for service researchers to consider and to possibly act upon.

The service research field is in its fifth decade. This article offers a unique way to learn directly from the pioneering founders about the still-relevant history of the field, the founders' lives and contributions as service scholars and the founders' hopes and concerns for the service research field.

Three recent publications by noted authors offer valuable insights into the new directions that leadership development thinking and practice now need to take, with all of three books placing particular emphasis on the importance of character, identity and values, not just competence.

Organizational psychologist Fred Kiel’s book, Return On Character sets out to show that the strength of a leader’s character is an important driver of business success and to examine the implications for leadership development. Discover Your True North by Harvard professor and former CEO of Medtronic Bill George examines why the self-development process of discovering one’s core values and passion (authenticity) to lead is essential to becoming an engaging and empowering leader. The theme of leadership as a life-long developmental challenge is Robert Kaplan’s primary focus in What You Really Need to Lead.

Kiel’s data revealed a clear relationship between the strength of a leader’s character and demonstrated mastery of these key skills, with virtuosos “consistently” outperforming their more self-focused peers.

One of the reasons that character matters is that leaders who more consciously and persistently search for greater self-awareness over the course of their careers tend to become ever more capable of questioning “not only the ideas of others” but even their “own most cherished beliefs,” and as a result, their understanding of their life, their business, their marketplace, and the global forces that shape them “enters a state of continual growth and development.”