Deanette Sisson, Director, Kettering Network Home Care 
“Because of the nature of our business, we must achieve an uncompromising adherence to ethical principles,” according to Deanette Sisson, Director of the Kettering Network Home Care organization.  Sisson firmly believes that integrity begins by setting expectations during the very first job interview.  Because the clients of your organization are “in a fragile situation,

we must hire and develop employees with an unflagging adherence to compassion, trust and honesty,” said Sisson. Sisson also believes that “trust starts at the top of the organization and then flows through the entire organization – who we are, how we treat our clients and our employees, how we compete in the market.”She also added that   “Integrity does not always make decision-making easy.  The real test happens every day. Can I leave my job knowing I’ve made the right decision? If the answer is yes, then I’ve maintained the highest possible standards of integrity.”

Allen Begley, Vice President, Messer Construction Company
“Messer Construction focuses on the ethics of the entire supply chain,” according to Allen Begley, Vice President.   The general contracting company works with over 1,000 vendors and sub-contractors along with its full-time management team to deliver high-quality and highly complex construction projects – such as the Dayton region’s Schuster Performing Arts Center.  

Constant communication, principles of lean management, and a team environment are some of the fundamental ways the company ensures integrity and quality in all that its full-time employees and sub-contractors do. “Trust and honesty must be the foundation by which our employees and sub-contractors deliver value to our customers,” said Begley.  The company also interviews potential employees for a career, not just a project and focuses on decisive onsite management and effectiveness.  Most of the firm’s business is from repeat customers and referrals.  “We live by the maxim that team work is essential and that the entire project depends on each and every employee performing at their best.   It may be a cliché that a rising tide raises all boats, but this is the approach we take to get the job down, on time, within budget and with the best possible quality,” said Begley.  Messer Construction also promotes community service among its employees who have contributed to over 25 local organizations with a 50 per cent match from the company. 

Greg McAfee, Owner, McAfee Heating & Air Conditioning Company
Greg McAfee set out to create a company based on the same admirable principles he learned in the U.S Marine Corps.   Integrity to McAfee, means “having the courage to be transparent and real even when it’s not popular to do so.”  McAfee also believes strongly that his and every employee’s “words and actions must match.”    

In leading his company, McAfee focuses on “inviting necessary and constructive criticism” because he believes that this kind of leadership and work environment invites and supports accountability.  He also stresses throughout his company, that there are no shortcuts to success.  Even when faced with a tough decision, McAfee emphasizes that making the ethical choice will stand the test of time and achieve lasting results, not just short term gains. McAfee’s firm also uses an extensive employee screening and interview process.  “Not every applicant is for us and our company is not for every applicant,” said McAfee.  He stresses to his employees that integrity is less about “who we are and more about what we do and how we accomplish what we do.”   His firm also encourages and fosters extensive community volunteerism and service. 

Bill Hardy, Executive Director, AIDS Resource Center Ohio, Inc.
The  employees of the AIDS Resource Center Ohio teach their clients to” live with integrity in every aspect of their lives - their health, their relationships, their most private and personal aspects of their lives,” according to Bill Hardy, Executive Director.  As the director of a non-profit organization “founded out of necessity”,

Hardy emphasizes that the service to his clients “depends on the kindness of strangers.”  Hardy notes that the AIDS Resource Center does not have anything to sell, but “must convince ‘you’ that our services are of value to the community.” The AIDS Resource Center uses an extensive interview process in staff recruitment looking for specific qualities and values, not just credentials.   In serving over 2,200 persons, confidentiality, respect, privacy and integrity are essential qualities that everyone in the organization must possess.