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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William could do better with his communication skills. He left John in the dark. Also, he should’ve been more transparent instead of making decisions on his own. Karen let her emotions get in the way which is unethical.
Skillset used: teamwork and collaboration between John and Karen, critical thinking, calculated risk taking, resilience, initiative, problem-solving and decision making under uncertainty.
There was a big gap in their communication.
Issues of professional conduct
The following are the couple of issues related to professional conduct.
1. Conflict of interest
2. Lack of communication skills
3. Internal dissolution
4. Transparency and honesty
Integrity and Transparency:
William’s approach to bypassing the agreed engagement process and relying on pre-prepared data raises concerns about transparency and the authenticity of stakeholder feedback. It compromises the project’s credibility and risks overlooking critical hurdles.
Accountability and Professional Judgment:
Karen’s hesitation to critique the report due to concerns about workplace harmony and job security highlights the challenge of balancing personal and professional responsibilities. Delayed action could have jeopardized the project’s success.
THE SKILLS USED TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM
Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving:
Karen and John assessed the risks of proceeding with flawed data and also challenging it. By analyzing potential outcomes, risks that they might face if the data isn’t well looked into. they prioritized long-term organizational integrity over short-term convenience.
Collaboration and Effective Communication:
Open dialogue between Karen and John enabled them to acknowledge the issue and brainstorm solutions. John’s willingness to consider Karen’s input encouraged trust and teamwork.
involvement of the community people
Karen’s initiative to involve the community members in other to get to their opinions through communications and questionnaire really helped a long way for them to be able to actualize their goals in the project
Proactive Research and Innovation:
Karen’s initiative in researching and involving a credible global firm to validate the data demonstrated resourcefulness and a commitment to ethical project management.
This scenario demonstrates several instances of professional conduct and decision-making skills that integrate ethical considerations. Here’s a breakdown of these key moments and the skills involved:
1. Ethical Diligence in Stakeholder Engagement
Professional Conduct: Karen and William express concern about the thoroughness of the opinion research and engagement programme. They recognize the risks of using incomplete or insufficiently validated data for decision-making.
Skills:
Critical thinking: Questioning the reliability of the initial engagement process.
Ethical responsibility: Prioritizing the project’s integrity over personal convenience or avoiding conflict.
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2. Open Communication and Constructive Feedback
Professional Conduct: Karen hesitates to critique John’s work but ultimately provides honest feedback when prompted. She frames her concerns in a way that seeks to improve outcomes without undermining John personally.
Skills:
Diplomacy: Balancing constructive criticism with maintaining a positive workplace dynamic.
Courage: Sharing a candid opinion despite potential personal risks during her probation period.
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3. Collaborative Problem-Solving
Professional Conduct: Karen, John, and William collaborate to address the identified issues in the engagement report. They brainstorm alternative solutions and seek additional support to ensure the project’s success.
Skills:
Teamwork: Leveraging diverse perspectives to solve complex problems.
Initiative: Karen’s independent research and proactive suggestion to partner with a global firm.
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4. Ethical Leadership and Risk Management
Professional Conduct: John acknowledges and responds to Karen’s concerns rather than dismissing them, demonstrating leadership by fostering an environment where ethical dilemmas can be openly addressed.
Skills:
Leadership: Encouraging transparency and supporting the team in resolving challenges.
Risk analysis: Mapping potential consequences of relying on flawed data and deciding on a safer course of action.
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5. Commitment to Quality and Long-Term Vision
Professional Conduct: The team prioritizes the accuracy and validity of the engagement process over short-term convenience or immediate client approval.
Skills:
Strategic thinking: Considering the broader implications of their actions on the firm’s reputation and future contracts.
Integrity: Upholding professional standards to ensure reliable outcomes for stakeholders.
These examples reflect how ethical considerations, effective communication, teamwork, and leadership intertwine in professional conduct, fostering both project success and long-term organizational credibility.
Integrity and Transparency:
William’s approach to bypassing the agreed engagement process and relying on pre-prepared data raises concerns about transparency and the authenticity of stakeholder feedback. It compromises the project’s credibility and risks overlooking critical hurdles.
Accountability and Professional Judgment:
Karen’s hesitation to critique the report due to concerns about workplace harmony and job security highlights the challenge of balancing personal and professional responsibilities. Delayed action could have jeopardized the project’s success.
THE SKILLS USED TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM
Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving:
Karen and John assessed the risks of proceeding with flawed data versus challenging it. By analyzing potential outcomes, they prioritized long-term organizational integrity over short-term convenience.
Collaboration and Effective Communication:
Open dialogue between Karen and John enabled them to acknowledge the issue and brainstorm solutions. John’s willingness to consider Karen’s input encouraged trust and teamwork.
Proactive Research and Innovation:
Karen’s initiative in researching and involving a credible global firm to validate the data demonstrated resourcefulness and a commitment to ethical project management.
In the ethics case study, the main issues of professional conduct are:
Conflict of Interest: The project manager’s personal connection with a supplier raises concerns about impartiality.
Transparency and Honesty: Failing to disclose the personal relationship undermines trust.
The skills used to address these ethical concerns include:
Critical Thinking: Recognizing the conflict of interest and its impact.
Effective Communication: Openly discussing the issue to ensure fairness.
Ethical Awareness: Proactively addressing ethical concerns.
Integrity: Ensuring actions align with professional standards.
These skills help make informed decisions and maintain the project’s credibility and trust.
After reviewing the ethics case study, I’ve identified a couple of issues related to professional conduct:
1. Conflict of interest: The project manager’s personal relationship with the supplier raises concerns about impartiality and fairness in decision-making.
2. Transparency and honesty: The project manager’s failure to disclose the personal relationship and the supplier’s potential biases undermines trust and credibility.
The skills used to bring ethics into decisions in this scenario include:
1. Critical thinking: Recognizing the potential conflict of interest and considering the implications of the project manager’s personal relationship.
2. Effective communication: Openly discussing concerns and biases to ensure transparency and fairness.
3. Ethical awareness: Identifying and addressing potential ethical issues to maintain the integrity of the project.
By applying these skills, the individuals involved can make informed, ethical decisions that uphold professional standards and promote trust.
Issue of professional conduct:
1) Ineffective communication: Thus far we have learnt that communication is the pivot to a successful project. but in the case of John, Williams and kareen, kareen wasn’t at ease airing her opinion or counsel due to the fear of offending John or jeopardizing her probation. Williams on the other hand wasn’t open to relay his discussion and plans with John as well. Which is unethical professionally.
2)internal dissolution.
SKILLED EMPLOYED TO INTEGRATE ETHICAL CONSIDERATION IN TO THE DECISIONS:
Communication: After they have noticed the gap, over a coffee table, John and kareen figured away to break through their communication barriers and talk through the solution to the problems perceived in the engagement report. Communication with other colleagues gave kareen a Notion or idea about teamwork. This little relaxation helped her to bounce back better with her research, which paved a way to solve the puzzle.
Collaboration: The team work between kareen and John helped them map out the risk of running the project with the report Williams generated from a local firm, deliberating with the big firm and convince to approach the local firm directly and also identify some material hurdles for the stage of the project.
Critical thinking: Kareen was very analytical in her approach in solving problems, she brainstormed with john to map out the risk and also thought through reaching out to the big global firm to approach the local firm directly which eventually became the excellent way that yielded the most excellent result.
Research: This is one the powerful skill kareen employed in fixing the bottle neck. Through her intensive research she was able to identify a big global firm that the local firm once partnered with.
Integrity: John was head bent on doing things the right way, it was his persistence that birthed the deliberations, mapping, critical thinking and research that unravelled the hidden risk in the documents Williams extracted from the local firm which would have jeopardized the success of the project in the future.
Receptivity: Despite John been kareen, he welcomed her ideas and allowed her opinion when he perceived it was the best and would yield good results. This helped foster collaboration and aides quick decision making.
ISSUES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT:
Compromise and itransparency: There is a clear issue of internal driven adversity. William boycotted the planned forum and resorted to importing the research opinion of a local firm thereby jeopardizing the essence of the engagement which is to discover hurdles and gather insights to prepare for the next big stage of the project.
Ineffective Communication: kareen was not at ease airing her opinion due to insecurities and fear of offending John or jeopardizing her probation. Williams was not open to discuss his plans with John which is prove that they don’t have a good communication relationship.
SKILLED EMPLOYED TO INTEGRATE ETHICAL CONSIDERATION IN TO THE DECISIONS:
Communication: over a coffee table, John and kareen figured away to break through their communication barriers and talk through the solution to the problems perceived in the engagement report. Communication with other colleagues gave kareen a Brian wave ( ease off stress and fatigue) This little relaxation helped her to bounce back better with her research, which paved a way to solve the puzzle.
Collaboration: The team work between kareen and John helped them map out the risk of running the project with the report Williams generated from a local firm, deliberating with the big firm and convince to approach the local firm directly and also identify some material hurdles for the stage of the project.
Critical thinking: Kareen was very analytical in her approach in solving problems, she brainstormed with john to map out the risk and also thought through reaching out to the big global firm to approach the local firm directly which eventually became the excellent way that yielded the most excellent result.
Research: This is one the powerful skill kareen employed in fixing the bottle neck. Through her intensive research she was able to identify a big global firm that the local firm once partnered with.
Integrity: John was head bent on doing things the right way, it was his persistence that birthed the deliberations, mapping, critical thinking and research that unravelled the hidden risk in the documents Williams extracted from the local firm which would have jeopardized the success of the project in the future.
Receptivity: Despite John been kareen, he welcomed her ideas and allowed her opinion when he perceived it was the best and would yield good results. This helped foster collaboration and aides quick decision making.