Some companies just don’t get it. That’s what Millard MacAdam discovered during 20 years of advising businesses in implementing total quality management and strategic planning.

“I found that if a company didn’t establish integrity as a base, as soon as crisis came, bad things happened,” says MacAdam, author of Intentional Integrity (Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996).

In companies without core operating values and codes of ethics, people will lie, cheat and steal to protect profits. It’s not always easy to spot such companies in advance.

Even MacAdam had a failed partnership because his partner had different core values. They worked in different cities, and finally, the partner tried to sell the business without telling MacAdam. He finally accepted a below-market settlement in order to end the partnership.

Employers often have a tough time spotting a dishonest employee in job interviews. One survey found that 26 percent of employees lied to their supervisors, 19 percent stole an employer’s property and 18 percent falsified records or lied on reports.

If an employee is dishonest, he’s likely to lie during job interviews about past brushes with the law. Former employers often won’t discuss an individual’s work record for fear of lawsuits. However, an increasing number of businesses, even small ones, have resorted to giving job applicants integrity tests, such as the one developed by Reid Psychological Systems.

To help uncover red flags when firms are considering strategic partners or new customers, some small companies now do background checks on potential clients. They look to see whether a client has sued or been sued by previous partners or vendors for breach of contract. Such lawsuits don’t necessary kill a business relationship, but they need to be explained before any contracts are signed.