I bought a prepaid phone card this week from a convenience store.  In very big, bold letters on the front of the card it reads, “1.9 cents per minute” and “No Maintenance Fee”. So I’m impressed with the value and, and proceed to make calls. But then I realize that my remaining minutes seem to be declining much faster than I am using them, and I wonder why.  I am sure I have not used up as many minutes as the digital voice suggests to me. I check the card again, and notice that written on the card in tiny letters, much too small for a man of my age to read, are the words, “79 cents Connection Fee”. Ah! Now I understand why my balance is declining so quickly.  I will never be able to use 1,000 minutes for $20.00 as advertised, no matter how hard I try. And if I make 10 calls, I’ll use up half the value of the card in “connection fees” alone.

The reputation of phone companies, or perhaps we should say their notoriety, is driven by this kind of slippery marketing which destroys the trust with customers upon which business growth depends. Regulators, unions, suppliers and competitors all take their cues from behavior like this. Inside the company, employees look to their leaders for signals as to how they are expected to behave themselves. Leaders who cheat customers send a silent signal that cheating is acceptable behavior and many employees will measure their own behavior against this standard. When this behavior becomes the way we behave towards each other inside the organization, we should not be surprised—the tone has been set.

Leadership is about setting examples for those being led. Therefore as leaders, it is imperative that we set an inspiring example for others that they strive to reach up to, not one that they stoop down to. Truthtelling with customers is a perfect place to start.