Carl Oxholm on Why Ethical Leadership Begins with Inner Alignment

November 12, 2025

Carl Oxholm will be delivering a keynote session at CPA Ontario’s Ethics Conference: Leadership, AI and Accountability on December 4. Registrations for the CPA Ontario Ethics Conference are still open.

In a profession defined by trust, ethical leadership isn’t a slogan – it’s a daily practice.

For Carl Oxholm, FCPA, FCA, ethical leadership for CPAs and other professionals “begins with inner alignment.”

Carl is the Founder and CEO of Virtue Compass Inc., which helps individuals and organizations optimize the quality of their energy, intentions and leadership practices, using a blend of scientific and psychological approaches. He is also the author of “The Biology of Leadership: Embrace Your Human Nature and Become a Better Leader.” and has previously held senior leadership roles at PwC.

Carl asks a deceptively simple question: Do you know your top two or three personal values? Most professionals can agree values aren’t optional, he notes, yet many struggle to name them. That gap can create a workplace culture that is built “more by chance than by design.”

The fix that Carl proposes is practical: know your personal values, know your organization’s values, and use both as a filter for what you do and say. Then do that a little more every day.

CPAs work across the economy, but ethics don’t change with context. “How we express a value may differ, but the underlying values - honesty, fairness, responsibility - remain,” Carl says. Ethical leadership asks a straightforward question: are we acting in ways that can benefit everyone involved, or are we creating a win-lose dynamic? That litmus test applies in public practice, industry, government and not-for-profit alike.

“Leadership is influence,” Carl reminds us, “and it starts with how effectively you influence yourself.” If leaders don’t model what they are asking for, people won’t believe them. Without belief, trust erodes and collaboration falters. The remedy is providing consistent examples and immediate positive reinforcement: notice and celebrate the behaviors you want to see more of so that “yesterday’s best becomes today’s baseline.”

Ethical leadership asks a straightforward question: are we acting in ways that can benefit everyone involved, or are we creating a win-lose dynamic?

A common theme among leaders is the desire to “be more vulnerable.” Carl reframes that goal: be honest with yourself and with others. When leaders show up truthfully, others often label it courage. But the point isn’t performance; it’s demonstrating authenticity to sustain trust.

Furthermore, ethics grows in a community. “Be mindful of the company you keep,” Carl advises. Surround yourself with possibility thinkers - people who care enough to check in, offer perspective and “allow the best version of you to be present.” Culture is, at its core, a habit. Choosing relationships and rituals reinforce ethical habits at all levels.

Another factor that is testing our ethical limits is artificial intelligence, which is evolving from tools to “agents,” capable of learning from our inputs and from themselves – which makes ethical leadership even more important. We must ensure programs are trained on honesty, transparency, inclusion and constructive intent.

Asking more pointed questions pressure-testing assumptions and demanding accuracy over appeasement are all ways to ensure AI stays on track.

“We want the outcomes to be beneficial, not harmful,” Carl says, just as we expect from human colleagues.

Ethical leadership isn’t abstract. It is our inner alignment made visible. Values used as a real-time filter, example before instruction, honesty over performance and communities that elevate our best.

For CPAs stewarding ethics in a fast-changing world, that practice is not only possible – it’s essential.