It is now time to review a case study that focuses on ethical behavior.
Access the Open APM’s ethics case study resource provided below to read a scenario concerning ethics in projects.
Can you pinpoint a few instances of professional conduct highlighted in this scenario? Reflect on the skills employed to integrate ethical considerations into the decisions made by the individuals involved. Can you recognize them?
Share your responses in the discussion section below.
After posting your comment, proceed to the next step, where you will find some potential answers provided by APM for these questions.
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From the scenario, there is lack of team work, effective communication transparency, compromising standards. The bone of contention is Williams who is not diligent with his work as well as John who had to accept a report that’s substandard. Karen was intelligent enough to find a way around the challenge.
I think there was no teamwork and collaboration, and there was lack of communication with other stakeholders and external group. There was no critical thinking and objectives in the team. There was no ability to respect other’s opinion and work together .
The issues here was XYZ reputation it had built overey the years was at stake and it was going to cost them other jobs if they went along with John plan and the project hit hurdles.
William lacked transparency as he was willing to blindside his colleagues with a report that was obtained without their knowledge and might not have covered all necessary factors. He didn’t understand John’s standing.
John although conflicted did not open up to Karen till she asked him about the report. He and Karen were able to resolve the issue through communication and critical thinking out of the box. John as PM was able to recognize he needed the help Karen extended. With this they turned the tide of the project positive end. They therefore maintained their company ethics and withstood the pressure to drop the ball by going the unetical way planned by William
Issues identified in the case study include lack of transparency and team work by William who did not follow the plan earlier agreed on. William wanted to play to the gallery and please certain clients whether or not the work was genuine or faked.
Skills used to bring ethics into the discussion include critical appraisal, open discussion and communicate and collaboration with other stakeholders and external groups to help resolve the issues and put the focus back on achieving the goal.
Let’s explore the APM’s ethics case study resource1. Where we focus on XYZ, a small project consultancy formed by a team that broke away from a larger firm to specialize in a particular market niche. Here are the key points:
Issues of Professional Conduct:
Honesty and Transparency: XYZ faces a situation where they must decide whether to give an honest quote, even if it means losing out to less honest competitors. This highlights the ethical dilemma of maintaining integrity in pricing and competition.
Client Relations: When a client asks XYZ to do something unethical, the team must decide how to handle the situation. Upholding ethical standards while maintaining client relationships is challenging.
Skills Used to Bring Ethics into Decisions:
Integrity: The team demonstrates integrity by considering honesty in their quotes and standing up against unethical requests.
Communication and Assertiveness: They communicate openly with clients, expressing their concerns and asserting their ethical boundaries.
Critical Thinking: The team evaluates the impact of their decisions on stakeholders, including the wider community.
Adaptability: As a new consultancy, XYZ adapts its ethical approach to build trust and reputation.
In summary, XYZ’s ethical acumen involves honesty, client relations, and critical thinking. Their decisions impact not only their business but also society at large. By Discussion In the APM ethics case study, XYZ faces dilemmas related to honesty, transparency, and client relations. Their skills in integrity, communication, critical thinking, and adaptability play a crucial role in navigating ethical decisions. Maintaining high ethical standards benefits both the profession and society1.
From the scenario, I can see that there was no teamwork among them, hence effective communication should have been a good tool adopted by them. Also, Mr. John is not firm and assertive to have accepted a substandard report. Mr. Williams on his own part is not diligent. While Karen lacks honesty and compromises standards.
In this scenario, there were a few issues of professional conduct that John, William, and Karen faced:
1. Lack of Transparency and Communication:
John was surprised to learn that the engagement program had already been carried out without his knowledge. There was a lack of transparency in communicating the progress and results of the program.
William didn’t share the information with John, which led to confusion and misalignment of expectations.
2. Confirmation Bias and Overconfidence:
Karen reviewed the opinion research and felt that the results were too perfect and aligned with expectations. She feared confirmation bias, where the findings were interpreted to fit preconceived notions.
Overconfidence in the positive results could lead to complacency and overlooking potential risks or challenges.
To address these issues, the following were the skills used:
1. Transparency and Open Communication:
Effective communication, there should be regular updates, progress reports, and sharing of critical information that is essential to the project.
John and William should have communicated openly about the engagement program’s status, findings, and next steps.
2. Critical Thinking and Objectivity:
Karen’s suspicion of overly positive results demonstrates critical thinking. She recognized the need to question the findings and consider potential biases.
Objectivity is crucial when evaluating research or reports. Karen objectively assesses the data, and challenges the status quo.
3. Ethical Decision-Making:
John, William, and Karen collaborate to ensure that decisions align with ethical standards and project goals.
As a team, it’s essential to maintain ethical conduct in professional settings to build trust, maintain credibility, and achieve successful outcomes. Open communication, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making contribute to a positive work environment and effective project management.
As a team, there is a need to work together effectively, there is a need to carry each member of the team along in every progress. This was what Williams lacked. He didn’t carry John along, he has his own clear plan of how the project will run but he is not considering other team members plans too and this doesn’t go down well with John. This can/ will lead to bad communication among the team members (Karen made mention of it in her reports). However Karen had deep conversations with John and they looked into the project critically and they were able to come up with clear plan. This is what communication does, good communication makes works easier and faster.
Therefore skills used to integrate ethical considerations in this project were;
1. Communication
2. Well structured plans
3. Integrity
4. Respect
5. Ability to consider other team members ideas more than yours if it’s better.
A PM must never be rigid, he can never know it all, so he must be ready to listen and take into consideration other people’s opinion and ideas
Williams is that team member that know no boundary and decided to take on another persons job because he feel he can do it better, Williams lack value, they didn’t work as a team instead they all made the project about themselves. Lack of proper plan, communication, structure and Value are professional conduct are the issue.
I like the way Karen handle it by not pointing fingers in her report this help them so much because if she has done it would have created bad blood even though she didn’t point finger because she didn’t want anyone to hate her but its still the right decision. Communication between John and Karen is why they were able to find solution to the problem, this is why right communication is important. Karen research and desire to find solution help them at the end.
The few issues of professional conduct in this scenario are; Williams left John behind who was meant to bring a report to enhance the project but William felt he can’t wait so long for the report to be brought for inclusion in which John’s report also left Karen to be doubtful of John’s report because it was too perfect to be accepted but lack of communication resulted in the misunderstanding amongst all involved and led to slow execution of the project.
The skills used to help bring ethics into decisions were; responsibility, conscience, integrity, respect, motivation, standards, communication and collaboration which made Karen and John to finally find a solution by meeting a global firm for review the works towards the project.
A few instances of professional conduct include a focused culture on values around their chosen market niche for the company.
Also noticed was a need for clearer commitment to the overall goal leading to miscommunication and slowing the collaboration between the colleagues.
A few skills employed by these individuals to incorporate ethical considerations into their decisions include:
Observation; Creating a balanced environment for workers while focusing on the goal and the company’s values; Team Involvement and Communication; Collaboration to overcome the initial barriers caused by miscommunication and non-collaboration.