English

Raising Ethical Awareness and Promoting Ethical Change

The INCAE Oath Club is the oldest and largest club at INCAE Business School

We are a Business Ethics Club

We raise ethical awareness and promote ethical change

by means of the INCAE Oath.

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Where We Came From

The Club began on May 24th 2011 as the INCAE MBA Oath Club. The Club was formed as a reaction to the call by Dean Nitin Norhia of Harvard Business School and the Young Global Leaders at the World Economic Forum, after the financial crash of 2008-9, for MBA’s to take a professional oath similar to that taken by other professionals such as doctors and lawyers.

Nitin Norhia - Former Dean Harvard Business School

Young Global Leaders

In January 2022, the Club changed its formal name to INCAE Oath Club as INCAE extended the opportunity to take a voluntary professional oath for all students who earned a Masters degree in any subject offered by INCAE Business School.

What Is The INCAE OATH

It's Five Standards - The INCAE Oath is a set of five ethical standards designed to help guide the professional behavior of graduates with Master's degrees who voluntarily sign the Oath upon graduation.
It's a Tool - The INCAE Oath Club encourages the signing of the Oath and uses the Oath as a tool to help raise ethical awareness and promote ethical change.

INCAE OATH

As a leader who has obtained a Master's degree, I recognize the importance of my role in society:

My purpose is to lead people and manage resources to create sustainable value by balancing economic, social, and environmental factors.
My leadership and my decisions will impact the well-being of individuals, organizations, communities, and society as a whole.

Therefore, I commit to upholding the following standards

PROFESSIONALISM: I will manage my organization with loyalty and conscience, and I will not prioritize my personal interests above those of my organization or society.

INTEGRITY: I will refuse to engage in acts of corruption, unfair competition, or business practices that harm society.

TRUTHFULNESS: I will refuse to make fraudulent or misleading statements about my products or services, and I will report my organization's performance and risks accurately and honestly.

RESPECT: I will protect the human rights and dignity of all persons affected by my organization, and I will oppose all forms of discrimination and exploitation.

SUSTAINABILITY: I will protect the right of future generations to enjoy a healthy planet.

I take this oath freely and upon my honor.

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INCAE OATH BEING READ AT 2022 GRADUATION CEREMONY BY THE INCAE OATH CLUB PRESIDENT

1. THE CLUB'S MESSAGES

To promote and support the ethical standards contained in the Incae Oath, the Club utilizes the following combination of messages:

Message Nº1 - THE DOUBLE SLOGANS

ETHICS IS AWARENESS

Personal

Improving your personal ability to make better ethical decisions through increased ethical awareness.

The Club does not teach ethical solutions, instead it promotes ethical awareness. Ethical awareness is defined as the ability to recognize ethical issues in real-life situations and form a mental framework for addressing the issue.

ETHICS IS CHANGE

Organizational and Societal

Increasing your desire and ability to contribute to improving the ethical environment or infrastructure around you.

The Club promotes learning about attitudes, approaches and techniques for making successful ethical change in your group, organization and society throughout your life.

Message Nº2 - CORE VOCABULARY

ETHICS

SELF-ABSORPTION

CORRUPTION

GREED

Doing the correct thing.

An ethically negative personality trait that makes it difficult to properly consider the impact of your decisions on others.

The abuse of power entrusted to you for the benefit of others to make financial gain for yourself.

Attempting to make profits in a way that harms your society.

Message Nº3 - TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE

The three questions you should always ask yourself as a professional

when you are making a management or business decision.

1. Is it good for me?

2. Is it good for my organization?

3. Is it good for my society?

If you only ask the first question you are self absorbed,

and it will be difficult to make ethically correct decisions.

Message Nº4 - ETHICAL LEADERSHIP LIST

Be a leader.
Live a life of values.
Find a place where your values are aligned with the company/organization’s values OR a place where you have a credible belief you can influence those values .
Be a role model.

Message Nº5 - MY SQUARE METER

The amount of territory you control may change many times in your life, but your responsibility to attempt to make ethical change inside that territory does not. In other words, your territory can expand or contract at different periods as a result of multiple variables and circumstances, but your obligation to attempt to make ethical change in that space remains constant. Accordingly, your ethical responsibility is territorial—not just situational—and it is lifelong—as long as you control even a single square meter.

2. CLUB' S THREE LEVELS OF IMPACT

PERSONAL

Increase your ability to ethically influence your family, friends and groups.

ORGANIZATIONAL

Increase your ability to ethically

lead, manage and impact your

organization.

SOCIETAL

Increase your ability to fight for and promote higher ethical standards in business and government.

3. BECOMING A CLUB MEMBER

The club has had over 1,500 members and is still growing

Any Masters student can become a Member of the Club by affirming the Basic Statement of Belief.
The Basic Statement of Belief contains three fundamental beliefs that unite all members of the Club.

BASIC STATEMENT OF BELIEF

1. Sustainability: I believe the purpose of the a Masters Degree is to manage enterprises to create and maximize sustainable value for society by balancing the economic, social and environmental factors.

2. Stakeholder Capitalism: I believe the purpose of an organization is to maximize value for all of the stakeholders not only for the owners and the shareholders.

3. Anticorruption: I believe that graduates with a Masters degree must take a leadership role in addressing the culture of corruption in Latin America.

Each club member receives a Membership Number and a Membership card

Front

Back

4. JUNTA DIRECTIVA OF THE CLUB

The Club is run by a student Junta Directiva, which is advised by past Presidents of the Club who have already graduated.
Each Club President selects her or his successor and then serves as an advisor to the new Junta Directiva for a minimum of one year after graduating.