Ethics is every single person's responsibility, but it starts with the CEO and the board of directors, setting the right tone at the top, and works down through the organization, including setting the tone in the middle. A company's culture and ethical standards start at the top, not the bottom. Employees will almost always behave the way they think management expects them to, and it is foolish of management to pretend otherwise (Scudder). One of the most important tasks of the CEO is to create, promote and communicate the culture of the organization. Mistakes or improper behavior rarely occur in a vacuum, leaders typically know when someone is compromising the company