As societies undergo digital transformation, organizations face the challenge of actively shaping it. Ethical concerns need to be embedded in the process of digital strategy development itself to be effective. This paper explores not only ethics through strategy but also strategy through ethics. How is ethics perceived within a digital strategy process? In what ways can ethics contribute to the development of a more effective strategy? To address these questions, we conducted a qualitative case study at a German public university. Sixteen employees involved in IT strategy, implementation, and administration across all hierarchical levels were interviewed. While “ethics” was rarely mentioned explicitly – mostly as an individual concern – the analysis revealed that “balancing power and participation” constitutes a central tension. We argue that typical decision-making challenges, such as IT project prioritization and resource allocation, are inherently ethical. A discourse-ethical approach, with agile methods, can support such decisions in a structured, value-sensitive way. Our transdisciplinary study draws on three fields: (1) emergent strategy and Open Strategy in digitalization contexts; (2) integration of ethics into IT governance; and (3) political-philosophical theories on power and participation. The study offers practical guidance for decision-makers, developers, and staff engaged in complex implementation processes during digital transformation.