Best Code of Conduct Examples

In February 2022, CNN president Jeff Zucker was forced to resign when the network discovered he had
been hiding a romantic relationship with another employee. While office romances are not prohibited at
CNN, employees are required to disclose them.
Though this incident ousted a top figure in the company, CNN did the right thing by enforcing their policy
as soon as they discovered an infraction.
Your organization's code of conduct should be clear in both its rules and consequences, as well as applied
consistently, regardless of the person's position. A strong code of conduct can also reduce your company's
risk of embarrassing public scandals and protect your employees from harm.
For example, a zero-tolerance approach to harassment could deter a manager from yelling at their
employees. Or, explaining your company's conflict of interest policy might keep an employee from
unwittingly committing fraud.
Encouraging an ethical culture with your code of conduct creates a safer, more productive workplace while
helping you prevent internal incidents.
Not sure where to start when writing yours? These simple code of conduct examples from honorees
on Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies list show how to create a document that's thorough,
engaging, on-brand, and helpful.

What Makes a Great Code of Conduct?

Writing a strong code of conduct requires a thorough understanding of your company, including its culture,
mission, values, and vision.
A great code of conduct is:
• Written for the reader (your employees). It is easy to understand and doesn't include any
technical or legal jargon.
• Comprehensive. It covers all important details that may impact the daily lives of employees and
answers common questions that may arise.
• Supported by leadership. It has been acknowledged and approved by the company's senior
management team. This is often demonstrated in the form of a foreword written by the CEO or
President.
• Accessible. It is available to all employees, current investors, and potential investors.
• Visually appealing. It follows a style that is clean and reflective of your organization's brand.

Below are 18 outstanding code of conduct examples that you can use as inspiration to update or write your
own.

AT&T
AT&T's Code of Business Conduct is readily available online. It's published under the policies section of
the "About AT&T" portion of its website for current and future stakeholders to review.
AT&T emphasizes the values it maintains and employees' responsibilities to the company, shareholders,
customers, and each other. The document also includes other relevant policies the reader can reference
within each section.
Each section of the code includes its own frequently asked questions box, with real workplace examples of
confusing scenarios. Finally, a visual decision-making model helps employees decide how to approach a
situation and, if they still aren't sure, offers contact information for further help.

A code of conduct is just the beginning.

Enforcing a code of conduct for employees is the key to a functional, ethical ace. See how Case IQ can help
you manage your workplace investigations with ease. Book your demo now.

Hanes Brands
A quick glance at the Hanes Brands Global Code of Conduct reveals a clear, unifying theme: excellence.
This theme acts as the foundation for every component of the code of conduct, including rules about the
use of company assets, interacting with coworkers, conflicts of interests, and workplace safety. By
embedding one of its core values into its code of conduct, Hanes Brands is able to demonstrate its strong
commitment to the business standards it has developed.
The company's code of conduct also includes addenda that outline necessary definitions, explanations
behind the rules, and links to other relevant policies. This code of conduct is well organized and designed,
easy to understand, and comprehensive.

Kellogg Company
The Kellogg Company's Code of Ethics serves the same purpose as a Code of Conduct, but bases the
document around the company's core values and ethical standards.
The policy is attractive and appealing, drawing inspiration from the grain farms that gave us the company's
first cereal products. Beyond its visual appeal, however, this code of conduct is extremely well written and
organized. The code is divided into employee responsibilities, complete with how and why each one is key
to the Kellogg's way of conducting business.
The Kellogg Company also has training on code of conduct by including several quizzes, definitions, and
question and answer boxes. These are designed to help employees make decisions when confronting
problems that range from personal social media use to conflicts of interest. This code of conduct does an
excellent job of promoting the company's culture while clearly indicating how employees should act.
_____________________________________________________________________
Starbucks
The Starbucks Standards of Business Conduct begins by outlining the mission and values that Starbucks
aims to uphold as a company.
The document then dives into detailed descriptions of organizational expectations with respect to the work
environment, business practices, intellectual property, and community involvement. In many instances, the
company indicates where or who employees can refer to for assistance or more information.
Starbucks' code of conduct also answers several questions that employees can reference when facing
uncertainty. These short Q&A sections help readers understand how they should act in certain situations
and why that behavior reflects the standards created by Starbucks.
Additionally, Starbucks has included a unique ethical decision-making framework to assist employees when
they are faced with ethical dilemmas in the workplace.

PepsiCo
PepsiCo's Global Code of Conduct is an extensive document that covers a variety of topics including
responsibilities of individual employees, respect in the workplace, and responsibilities of the company to
its shareholders.
As a massive global entity, PepsiCo has ensured that its code of conduct is easy to understand (in several
languages) and very clear in its expectations for employees.
As with any strong code of conduct, PepsiCo's code has rooted its expectations in one of the key behaviors
of "The PepsiCo Way": "Acting with Integrity." The company has also dedicated an entire section of the
code to explaining how the code will be administered. This includes information on investigations related
to misconduct and disciplinary actions the company may take.
PepsiCo's code of conduct also encourages employees to report bribery, violence, or other misconduct by
contacting the company's hotline.

Your code of conduct should outline how to behave not just in the office, but online too.
Use this social media policy checklist to set expectations for appropriate online behavior.

Sony Corporation
Sony's Code of Conduct, opens with the company's purpose, followed by its core values. The policy is
concise, yet comprehensive. It covers topics such as harassment, product safety, intellectual property, and
corruption.
The document also includes opening messages from Sony's President/CEO and Executive Vice President.
These put a face to the rules, encouraging employees to hold themselves to the company's high standards
in the workplace.
Finally, the code of conduct explains how to report concerns on Sony's ethics hotline and what actions and
what actions the company takes after receiving a report.

Mastercard
Mastercard's Code of Conduct starts by naming the company's purpose and explaining how it is applied to
work in a purpose manifesto. The policy also includes a visual aid called "The Mastercard Way" that
illustrates core values and responsibilities.
The code of conduct's design is not only attractive, but also makes the document easier to understand.
Images and visual decision-making models make the content more engaging and help separate sections and
lists.
This document explains where and to whom employees can turn with questions and reports of misconduct.
It also links to further resources, such as the company's Compliance Corner for employees.

Microsoft
Microsoft's Standards of Business Conduct have been drafted around one central theme: trust.
The company emphasizes that trust is an important aspect of its operations, including with customers,
governments, fellow employees, investors, and representatives. The code of conduct also offers a process
to help employees make difficult decisions that reflect Microsoft's values and standards.
Microsoft provides its employees with a visually appealing and easy-to-read document that is reflective of
the organization's values. The company highlights that the responsibilities covered in the code of conduct
apply to all employees of the company, including managers, executives, and members of the Board of
Directors.
Allstate
Allstate has a detailed and easy-to-follow Global Code of Business Conduct for employees. The code
outlines the expectations that employees must meet, each with rules and procedures explaining how to
achieve ethical business practices.
Additionally, the company's code of conduct provides definitions and examples of potentially unfamiliar
terms. The policy also uses question and answer boxes to provide real-life situations when a rule could
apply.
Allstate's comprehensive code of conduct includes information on cross-border business, diversity,
protecting company information, community involvement, and much more.

Royal Caribbean Group

Royal Caribbean Group's Code of Business Conduct and Ethics starts by naming the company's core
values, then explains why the policy exists and who must follow it. Each section includes multiple question
and answer boxes and "practical tips" to illustrate how the rules will look in practice.
The document also includes a decision-making flowchart to help employees in ethically confusing
scenarios. This form of workplace ethics training is easy to understand and sticks to the company's
branding.
The code covers a variety of topics related to Royal Caribbean's operations, including health and safety,
choosing responsible suppliers, protecting the environment, and fair competition.
✓ Well Organized
✓ Great Situational Examples