About Philippe Johnson:

Philippe Johnson is a retired United States Air Force officer and advocate for principled and ethical leadership in public service. The son of a language teacher and career United States Army officer, he was raised in the United States, France, and Germany. During his 24 years on active duty, Lieutenant Colonel Johnson served as a fixed- and rotary-wing pilot, intelligence officer, and diplomat (military attaché), and was honored with the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, and the Air Medal with one oak leaf cluster. He also served on the staffs of two Air Force major commands as his final two assignments. Philippe received a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Florida and earned his master’s degree in public policy from the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

In this episode, Dean Newlund and Philippe Johnson discuss:

• Defining ethical leadership across diverse perspectives
• Navigating unprincipled loyalty in power dynamics
• Rebuilding trust in a post-COVID, virtual workplace
• Combating disinformation and the collapse of shared facts
• Aligning values and ethics within polarized environments

Key Takeaways:

• Ethical leadership must be embedded in leadership training from the start of one’s career, or organizations risk producing senior leaders who cause significant harm.
• Self-interest and personality disorders (e.g., narcissism) are major contributors to non-compliance with ethical standards, both in military and corporate settings.
• Philippe’s book uses recent political leadership as a case study to highlight the consequences of unethical, incompetent, and self-serving leadership behaviors.
• The normalization of disinformation undermines democracy, as without agreed-upon facts, there’s no foundation for holding power accountable.

“If you’re lacking that ethical foundation from the very beginning… you’re going to end up with senior leaders who, unfortunately, are not setting the example.” — Philippe Johnson

Connect with Philippe Johnson:  

Website: http://www.philippejohnson.com/

Book: What Hangs in the Balance: The Case for Principled, Ethical, Competent, and Courageously Selfless Leadership: https://www.amazon.com/What-Hangs-Balance-Principled-Courageously/dp/1637633491

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/formulaphil/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philippe.johnson.52

See Dean’s TedTalk “Why Business Needs Intuition” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEq9IYvgV7I

Connect with Dean:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgqRK8GC8jBIFYPmECUCMkw

Website: https://www.mfileadership.com/

The Mission Statement E-Newsletter: https://www.mfileadership.com/blog/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deannewlund/

X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/deannewlund

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MissionFacilitators/

Email: dean.newlund@mfileadership.com

Phone: 1-800-926-7370

Show notes by Podcastologist: Hanz Jimuel Alvarez

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You’re the expert. Your podcast will prove it.