Ethical Dilemma at Alcon - Case Study Example

Ethical Dilemma - A Real Life Situation Introduction and Key Question Joseph started his career in sales in a company called Cala Industrial. After six months of rigorous hard work and learning in the company, Joseph shifted to Alcon in Omaha as the sales manager. Joseph had been doing well in his role as the sales manager and was recognized in the company as an employee with dedication. Joseph led a team of ten sales people under him and he started to spend long working hours in driving the sales of his team. The income level started to rise and Joseph bought a new home which was furnished and maintained by his fiancee, Ellen. Ellen also undertook the occupation in the area of providing brokerage services to big industries in Omaha. Ellen started to handle some large accounts to whom she provided her services and as a result of this, Ellen started to make a name for herself among the wealthy class of people in Omaha. Joseph and Ellen had plans to get married. With the passage of time, the expenditures planned by them for meeting the expenses of their wedding were falling short of the actual estimations. Apart from this, the maintenance cost of the new home bought by Joseph was also increasing. The cost of commuting by Ellen from her apartment to the new house and to the place of her work was also increasing. However, Ellen assured Joseph that the rising costs would be met with the steadying of their income levels. According to the plan, Joseph was able to keep producing high sales volume with his team of ten salespeople. Joseph found that Carl, who was one of the prominent members of the sales team in terms of his contribution of sales volume, was involved in the process of kickback with the existing clients. Carl was also the son-in-law of the vice-president of the company. It was found by Joseph that a total of three members of his sales team including Carl were involved in the kickback with existing customers. Joseph reviewed the policies of the organization and found that the company intends to do every aspect of its business in the right sense and direction and intends of the best products at best prices to its customers. The vice-president of the company, Katherine has a track record of terminating employees who conveys the news of unethical practices and is also responsible for conducting the unethical practices. While Joseph was pondering whether to discuss the matter with his vice-president or to state openly in the meeting with the sales team that such unethical matters are against the policies of the organization, Joseph was called by his fiancee and told that she has been hired as the broker to the vice-president of his company. Thus Joseph was in a situation of ethical dilemma whether to discuss the matter with the vice-president that might affect his and his fiancee’s career aspirations or to state the right things to be done in the right way which is in line with the policies of Alcon. The key question to be addressed in this scenario is, “How would Joseph deal with the situation of ethical dilemma in balancing the personal needs and adhering to the ethical demands in the workplace?” Possible Options The possible options that could be adopted by Joseph in order to address the situation of ethical dilemma are explained as follows. The first option could be that Joseph could call for a team meeting and discuss the instances of kickback with the existing customers that have been undertaken by the three employees of his sales team including Carl who has been around in Alcon sales team for considerable time. Despite the practices of kickback in the past during bad times, the importance of adhering to the policies and ethical practices in the organization should be explained. The various consequences of kickback including its effect of fair competition, reduced quality and increased prices, effects on long term business prospects, brand image, employee accountability and action could be explained to Carl and the other team members. The advantage of this option is that the unethical issue in the business would be settled in the closed door with no interference from the higher authority. The disadvantage of this method is that the employees may again indulge into unethical practices in absence of tracking of their actions. This has been observed in real time business experience where the sales people have failed to meet the demands of ethical work culture under the pressure to achieve target sales volumes. The next possible option for Joseph is to approach the vice-president and clearly states the unethical practices identified in the team which are against the policies of the organization. Joseph could also explain his efforts on trying to rectify the behavior of his sales people but in vain. This would bring about the necessary intervention of the higher authority and reduce the chances of his accountability in a major share due to the instances of his efforts. The advantage of this option is that there would be transparency in the organization and the higher authority would be kept informed of the prevailing practices at different levels in the organization. The disadvantage of this option is that the sales manager could be found unfit to drive his sales team towards ethical behavior as recommended in the organizational policies. The third possible option for Joseph is that he could explain his fiancee of the prevailing unethical work culture in the organization and the possible dangers on her career aspirations. The advantage of this option is that it would provide Ellen with a prior clue of the work culture in the company and would lead her to find an organization that best suits her values and career goals. The disadvantage of this option is that it might create a misimpression in Ellen that Joseph has been trying to avoid the path of ethical practice and comprising on his principles. Justification of decision taken The decision making format helped in the decision making over choosing one of the probable options to solve the situation of ethical dilemma. The option has been chosen according to the logic of the decision making format which helped in deriving an edge for choosing the option over the other possible options. The advantages of the chosen option have exceeded the advantages available from the other options. The disadvantages of this option are also less than the disadvantages of the other options. Based on these points of the decision making format, Joseph has taken the decision to discuss the matter openly with the vice-president and state the true findings on the prevailing business practices among the sales people in the team which included her son-in-law, Carl. Before the joining of his fiancee as his vice-president’s broker, Joseph informed the unethical kickbacks performed by Carl and other members of the sales team to the vice-president, Katherine. Joseph also explained his efforts in trying to rectify the unethical behavior by suggesting the right course of action in the sales meeting which the salespeople failed to adhere by saying that kickback is a normal practice in the organization. The decision taken by Joseph is justified due to the fact that he is not afraid to choose the right path irrespective of the consequences on his career. By looking at the efforts of Joseph, Katherine the Vice-president should re3cognize Joseph for his integrity. Joseph is also likely to be encouraged for his initiative to bring things to the knowledge of the higher authority that are not in line with the policies of the organization. The steps taken by the vice-president would also provide an insight of the career opportunities to Ellen and the work culture of Alcon would be restored. Ethical perspective The perspectives of Johnson 2012 were considered in the decision making for addressing the situation of ethical dilemma. The underlying theories of work ethics have been used to select the favorable option for addressing the situation of ethical dilemma. The normative theories on ethics have been used to reach a decision on the possible course of action. The normative theories prescribed what ought to be done by the individual in order to move in the right direction. The ethical theories guide the process of personal ethical development. The components of personal ethical development like the personal virtues, recognition of the shadow side of the personality helped in the decision making to address the ethical dilemma. The personal virtues are the underlying principle of integrity, honesty, etc. There is also said to be a show part of personality that influences the thoughts and guides the person towards the right direction. The identification and importance to the shadow part of the personality is important in determining the differences between the right and wrong course of action (Johnson 56). The judicious decision that has been made in this situation of dilemma has been influence by these underlying principles and the stimulation of the components of personal ethical development. Thus, Joseph was able to take a decision by removing the dilemma occurring due to requirement of safekeeping the personal career aspiration. The importance of ethics was realized and its importance was established as an integral part of the organization policy for which he could gather the courage of informing the matter to the vice-president. Assumptions The various assumptions that were taken in order to reach the decision on the right course of action have been explained as follows. The past events when the vice-presented, Katherine has terminated the bearer of news on unethical practices in the organization have not been able to influence Joseph’s decision. Joseph assumed that the vice-president and the company would fully the support the initiatives that are aimed at safekeeping the organizational policies which is the foundation for long term sustainability. Joseph was confident that top management would support the employees who are active in endorsing ethical practices in the organization and bring unethical practices to the knowledge of the higher authority. Joseph also assumed that the vice-president, Katherine would not give importance to personal relations in the work place. The underlying concept behind this assumption is that all the employees would treated fairly and equally in the eyes of the organization. It was assumed that Alcon would reward the employees who would act in enhancing the mission, vision and goals of the organization in line with the policies. At the same time, it was also assumed that the organization would safeguard honest employees and punish the people who engage in unfair practices under any circumstance. Consequences of decision taken The most probable consequences or outcome for the decision being taken in order to address the situation of ethical dilemma has been presented as follows. The most likely consequence of this decision is that Katherine, the vice-president of Alcon would listen carefully of the instances of kickback as an unethical practice adopted by the three employees in his sales team including her son-in-law Carl. The efforts of Joseph in advising his team to avoid kickback sales and their denial mentioning the activity of Kickback as normal would be heard patiently by the vice-president. Unlike the past occurrences, Joseph would be appreciated by the authority for his integrity, knowledge and efforts of identifying the people conducting the unethical practices. The consultation of the policy handbook of the organization by Joseph would also be encouraged. At the same time, Alcon would not like to spoil the organization culture because of the unethical practices of certain employees. Alcon is supposed to give priorities to the ethical practices and the policies framed by the higher authority apart from the growth of its business. In its mission to conduct business in the right way, it is expected that Carl and other identified employees in the kickback would be asked to look for alternate employment and would be terminated. This is likely to set an example for the workforce in adhering to ethical practices. The ethical dilemma would also be removed as the vice-president would have a positive impression about Joseph and his acquaintances that include Ellen, his fiancee who has been considered for hire by the vice-president as her broker. Work Cited Johnson, Craig. Organizational Ethics: A Practical Approach. USA: SAGE Publications, 2011. Print. Read More