Explain what is ethics and what is professionalism?

Ethics consists of acceptable standards of behavior and maintaining integrity in the workplace
(especially when no one is looking). Our values drive our behavior and influence our attitudes. As
such, our attitudes influence our behavior. Ethical behavior is good for business and involves
demonstrating respect for key moral principles that include honesty, fairness, equality, dignity,
diversity and individual rights.

The full definition of professionalism is the conduct, aims or qualities that characterize or mark a
profession or professional person. It implies there is a quality of workmanship or service. But in
reality, its more about ethical behavior in the workplace. Every organization knows that a
professional and ethical reputation is the difference between success and failure, and they seek to
keep those staff who are the most professional. Professionalism is all about ethical success and
influence; having a reputation for excellence and being thought of as someone who exhibits
professionalism under any circumstance can open doors for you either in the workplace or in your
personal ambition.

What are similarities and differences between these two

Ethics refers to the guidelines that state the dos and donts in a specific context whereas
professionalism refers to the specific traits that are expected of a professional.

Ethics are usually stated whereas professionalism is cultivated by the individual personally.
Ethics vs Professionalism

Though the terms professionalism and ethics are used interchangeably by some people, there are a
lot of difference between the two. These terms are widely used in the corporate sector referring to
the conduct of employees and employers. Ethics can be understood as guidelines that are imposed
on a particular set of individuals. An ethical code assists the employee to work transparently within
the corporate setting. But the term professionalism is a bit different to ethics. It is true that
maintaining ethics is also considered as one of the features of professionalism, but this is only a
single feature. This article attempts to highlight the difference between ethics and professionalism
through an understanding of the two terms.

What are Ethics?

Ethics are guidelines for individuals, which clearly state the dos and donts. Ethics exists in many
contexts. Especially in the industrial setting, ethics are considered as vital. In this context, a work
ethic is imposed on all employees. This guides the employees to be ethically correct in all their
actions. Ethics include a number of features such as confidentiality, respect, honesty, transparency,
competency, etc. This can be understood through an example. Counseling is a profession where the
significance of the ethical code is very high. A counselor is expected to be ethical throughout his or
her practice so that it is beneficial for the counselor and counselee, the society at large and also the
counseling profession. Let us take the case of competency. It is expected that all counselors should
be competent in practicing counseling. If the counselor is not competent, he will not be able to assist
the client and can even cause damage to the client. This is why in any profession ethics is
established.

What is Professionalism?

Professionalism can be defined as the skills, competence and the conduct displayed by an individual
of a certain profession. It is also expected that such a person cultivate a polite demeanor when
dealing with clients and fellow professionals. Professionalism encompasses a variety of dimensions.
It is not only polite behavior or else academic competence; on the contrary, it is a mixture of a
number of qualities that contribute to professionalism. A professional needs to have specialized
knowledge in his particular field. This is one of the main characteristics of a true professional. If the
individual has gaps in his knowledge, the contribution, that he can make, is minimal. Being
competent is also important. If an individual has all the academic certificates but, still fails to work
competently, then it is also disruptive to the individual as well as organizational performance. Other
traits such as honesty, integrity, politeness are also important for a professional. This can be
considered as one of the great assets of the corporate sector as it allows the individual to perform
well.