THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES

ST. AUGUSTINE

ASSIGNMENT 2.

The central challenge of the ethical debate is not so much what we must

do in a particular circumstance but the reasons and principles that must

guide our action in all situations. Discuss.

PRMG6016

ETHICS FOR THE PROJECT MANAGER

LECTURER: PROFESSOR WINSTON H. E. SUITE

COURSE LECTURER: PROF. WINSTON H. E. SUITE

STUDENT NAME: IRWIN ARCHER

STUDENT ID: 02737073

DATE: MONDAY 7TH

DECEMBER, 2015

FACULTY OF

ENGINEERING

Introduction

Ethics is the activity of determining right and wrong and applying moral judgment in exercising and

enjoining appropriate behaviour in all situations. It is an old discipline, appearing in writings about

Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Ethics is primarily concerned with the

establishment and maintenance of a just and equitable society. It is anthropocentric in that it aims to

guide human relationships with other humans, animals and the environment toward the well-being of

human beings, present and future.

A common misconception is that ethics is a standalone discipline. In reality, it must be adapted and

incorporated into various professions and into everyday life. In project management for example, ethics

must be foremost in thought in all knowledge areas and project phases. Negligent or willful ethical

breaches can have grave consequences such as damage to personal and organizational reputations, loss

of current or potential clientele, increase in the cost of projects, decreased quality of project outcomes,

and decreased efficiency in the execution of projects. In today’s highly competitive globalized market,

project managers are under constant pressure to achieve high standards of quality, fast delivery time

and low cost in the delivery of project outcomes. Project managers may commit ethical breaches in

pursuit of unrealistic goals set by organizations seeking competitive advantage. Ethics is often trivialized

until the harsh consequences of these ethical breaches are felt. Some ethical breaches ultimately lead to

organizational failure or billions of dollars in compensation and punitive legal ramifications. The cost of

ethical breaches proves that it should be a primary concern within organizations and societies.

Ethical situations present themselves frequently in business. Project Managers are often faced with

opportunities to choose among mutually exclusive strategic options or to do nothing at all. In such

situations, every action or inaction has consequences. In some ethical situations, the available strategic

options do not resolve the ethical issue in a manner that is beneficial to all parties. Such situations are

deemed to be ethical dilemmas. In such situations, one cannot rely solely on codes of ethics for an

amicable resolution and the discerning of right and wrong is difficult. These ethical dilemmas reveal that

codes of ethics are not universal laws that must be adhered to dogmatically. Codes of ethics are simply

guides; human beings have the ultimate responsibility to assess ethical situations and apply their

judgment accordingly. The reasons and principles that guide human decisions in ethical situations will

be discussed in the next section.

Discussion

Ethics must be considered when making decisions in a wide range of situations. It is not feasible to

define every possible ethical situation and prescribe appropriate actions and resolutions for these

situations. The complexity of some ethical situations further compounds the difficulty of decision

making. Not every ethical situation is the ideal one in which there is a clear binary choice between right

and wrong. In some situations, individuals are often faced with a myriad of choices, each of which

cannot be categorized as absolutely right or wrong but rather they exist along a continuum; shades of

grey as it were. The goal of ethics is therefore to establish universal principles that provide guidance to

persons tasked with exercising moral judgment in all situations they may encounter. These universal

principles aim to establish justice.

Justice however is not an easily definable concept. Socrates concluded that Justice is wisdom and virtue

while injustice is ignorance and vice (Plato 2002). It is closely linked to fairness since it basically involves

ensuring that people get what they deserve. This may entail ensuring that punishments for crimes are

commensurate with crimes committed and that each similar violation is treated similarly, regardless of

the person committing it. Accordingly, justice should also ensure that rewards are earned by those who

deserve them in a fair manner. Justice has the ultimate goal of reinforcing appropriate behavior and

discouraging inappropriate behavior.

In the discussion of the driving principles and reasons utilized in ethical decision making, two schools of

thought exist. Deontological ethics involves the adherence to universal truths and principles while

teleological ethics focuses on the results that are being sought.

Immanuel Kant is the most popular philosopher associated with the absolutism that is deontological

ethics. He proposed the categorical imperative which calls for the emphasis of duty and principles over

all other factors (Kliem 2012). He argued that as rational beings, humans had a duty to subordinate

personal interests such as happiness to universal ideals. This categorical imperative applies the following

universal law:

“Act only on that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal

law (Kant 2010)”

According to this law, it is unethical to steal because one would not reasonably say that everyone should

steal. It causes individuals to question themselves: Am I willing to mandate that the entire society/

world should act in this way? This honest introspection is the result of the application of the Kantian

ethics and is a prime example of the deontological perspective. The motives behind actions determine

whether they can be considered as goodwill or not.

Teleological ethics calls on human beings to use the end purpose of actions as the justification for

actions. A popular application of the teleological perspective is the Utilitarian philosophy put forward by

Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mills (Kliem 2012). Utilitarianism calls for the consideration of the

consequences of actions with the aim of maximizing utility. This may be articulated as achieving the

greatest well-being for the greatest number of persons. Kant strongly objected to this philosophy as it

could allow individuals to act with evil intent under the guise of promoting a greater good. Furthermore,

the consequences of actions are not necessarily under the control of moral agents. This philosophy

could therefore lead to a moral agent harming people for a long term ‘good’ consequence that never

materializes.

In his book The Prince, Nicolo Machiavelli espoused teleological ideals that would be considered

downright unethical today. He justified harming people in pursuit of ‘good ends’, but the ends pursued

were all self-serving (Machiavelli 1515). Machiavelli taught people how to attain, safeguard and increase

political power at all costs. Tyrants and dictators could use the Machiavellian philosophy to justify their

methods of rule. It is a stark contrast to the philosophy of Utilitarianism in that it sought the greatest

good for oneself, no matter how many may be harmed in the process. It demonstrates the wide range of

application of teleological ethics. It also demonstrates the manipulative and nefarious purposes for

which the knowledge of ethics may be used.

Kantian ethics is not without criticism. The problem with this deontological approach is that no

consideration is given to the consequences of choices. It is easy to imagine scenarios in which adherence

to a universal principle can have horrific consequences. Consider the universal principle: one should not

lie. Swiss philosopher Benjamin Constant challenged that if a murderer inquired about the location of his

would be victim, one would be assisting in the murder if one were to be truthful about the location of

this potential victim. Kant responded to this challenge by maintaining his position that the principle on

lying must remain universal and it is therefore not permissible to tell lies with good intentions (Kant, On

the Supposed Right to Lie From Benevolent Motives 2012). Kant’s failure to provide exceptions to

universal principles causes many to question the rationality of Kantian ethics.

Far too often, people in positions of influence in Trinidad and Tobago choose to put personal interests

ahead of the rights and interests of others. The foundational principles of ethics hold that goodwill

should be the intention or consequence of actions. Altruism, integrity and honesty should be foremost

in thought when ethical situations arise. Professionals who fail to adhere to their codes of ethics are

guilty of ethical breaches and are likely to face punitive consequences. However, some professional

codes of ethics contain elements that are part of an ongoing debate as to their rationality.

Consider the issue of confidentiality between doctor and patient, lawyer and client or priest and

parishioner. These professions hold deontological views that confidentiality must be maintained despite

all other factors or considerations. But what if a murderer discloses his crime to one of these

professionals? What is the ethical thing for them to do? This scenario is similar to the one proposed by

Benjamin Constant to refute Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative. Rationality suggests that these

professionals should take action to bring the murderer to justice. However, confidentiality is a universal

principle in these professions and this means that many professionals are torn between rationality and

the duty to adhere to their codes of ethics. This is one example in which ethics fails to achieve its

intended goal of justice. In Trinidad and Tobago however, doctors have been mandated by law to

observe exceptions to the confidentiality principle. They are required by law to report all cases of

gunshot wounds and sexual or physical abuse of minors. A criminal lawyer in such a scenario is faces

perhaps an even greater dilemma because he would then be tasked with defending the murderer in

court. This would entail either trying to minimize the punitive sentencing or secure the murderer’s

freedom by ‘proving’ him innocent. This would go squarely against the principles of honesty, integrity

and justice upon which the discipline of ethics was founded. The ethical debate continues with regard to

the issue of confidentiality. One can only hope that rationality will prevail and exceptions to this

principle will be established in law for all professions.

Another important consideration in the ethical debate is the question of loyalty. Persons faced with

ethical situations must ask themselves: to whom do I owe the greatest loyalty? In the scenario above,

the criminal lawyer must decide if his paying client’s interests and rights supersede those of his victims.

If this is so, one may be inclined to ask: what factor caused the murderer’s interests to triumph? If this

factor is money then it seems as if the lofty ideal of loyalty can simply be purchased within the criminal

law profession.

In some professions however, individuals have made ethical decisions that were motivated by rationality

and altruism. Whistle-blowing is a very admirable act in the realm of ethics. Whistle-blowers go against

the status quo, often to their own detriment, for the sake of doing the right thing. Acts of whistle-

blowing demonstrate that the pursuit of justice and the desire to protect the public’s interest can

become primary factors in ethical decision making. This was highlighted in 2002 when three

whistleblowers were featured as Time Magazine’s personalities of the year.

One of these ‘whistle-blowers’ was Sherron Watkins, Vice President of Corporate Development at

Enron. She testified in court about improper accounting practices at the company that ultimately led to

its downfall. The former CEO of Enron eventually got sentenced to over 24 years in prison for fraud,

conspiracy and other charges as a result (History 2015). In her testimony, Ms Watkins revealed that she

had a Masters Degree in Professional Accounting and was a Certified Public Accountant for about 24

years. When one considers these things, the reasons for her decision become clearer. Ms. Watkins

would have invested a lot of time and dedication to her studies and career to reach the point she did. As

an accounting professional, she must have understood that her greatest and most valuable asset was

her integrity. Had she been complicit to the illegal activities at Enron, her career would have surely come

to an abrupt end. In fact, Arthur Anderson, the accounting firm which performed the external auditing

function at Enron, met its demise when it was discovered that they assisted Enron in destroying

incriminating documents (History 2015). Sherron Watkins may have been concerned about the injustice

being perpetrated upon members of the public and the large scale fraud within Enron, but most likely

her concern over the effects of these nefarious activities on her reputation, career and even her

freedom would have had a greater influence on her decision to testify against the company. Some even

debate whether she is a real whistle-blower (Ackman 2002). A whistle-blower is someone who informs

the public upon observing wrongdoing in a company, but Sherron only raised concerns internally. It is

fair to say that Sherron Watkins played it safe at Enron and only testified when she had to for her own

sake. This case is a reminder that while there may be desires to protect the interests of the public,

people are often influenced by a loyalty to themselves first and foremost. Sherron Watkins is now

lauded as a hero and has become a motivational speaker. She is often praised for her courage,

truthfulness and integrity in professional and academic circles.

However there are cases in which whistle-blowers put the protection of public interest and other

universal ideals above self preservation. Julian Assange and Edward Snowden are currently evading

authorities after their acts of whistle-blowing against the United States of America. These men

publicized classified information out of concern for the public interest and a desire to promote justice.

However, their fight is against the most powerful nation in the world and this has resulted in a complete

upheaval in their lives. The USA sought to have Julian Assange extradited to face charges for his

publications but he was able to secure asylum with Ecuador from what he deemed to be political

persecution. The UK however, in seeking to honour geopolitical ties, placed police outside the

Ecuadorian embassy in which Assange was situated, thereby denying him safe passage to Ecuador. If

Assange leaves the embassy, he will enter the jurisdiction of the UK and could be arrested and

extradited. Assange has been living inside the Ecuadorian embassy for over three years despite pleas for

permission to access to medical care unencumbered (Weaver 2015). He is therefore forced to choose

between the human right to medical care and the human right to asylum. This appears to be a

grotesque case of injustice against a man who acted in goodwill and in pursuit of justice. As Assange

continues to avoid capture, he provides a lesson about the harsh consequences of whistle-blowing. It is

really an act that takes courage, selflessness and universal adherence to the principle of truth and

justice.

Perhaps after learning from the experience of Assange, Edward Snowden migrated to Hong Kong in

2013 before publicizing the unethical and unconstitutional surveillance activities of the National Security

Agency (NSA) in the USA. He is now enjoying asylum in Russia as he continues to evade extradition to

the USA. While the actions of Assange and Snowden are indeed courageous and admirable, they prove

that a powerful state cannot be brought to justice for unethical actions. The leaders of powerful states

are sometimes representative of the Machiavellian philosophy in that they trample the rights and

freedoms of citizenry in pursuit of narcissistic political objectives. These cases also give rise to questions

about the secrecy of the operations of the state. Plato’s Republic relates the story of the ring of Gyges

which made him invisible. Once he could not be seen, he engaged in unethical behavior in pursuit of

political power and wealth. Glaucon was of the view that no man who possessed this ring could be

virtuous and resist the temptation to be unjust if he knows that there will be no consequences for

injustice. This, he argued, is because injustice is more profitable than justice (Plato 2002). This truly

seems to be the case with secret state organizations. Secrecy affords such organizations freedom from

public scrutiny and a high level of impunity. It is difficult for ethics to achieve its goals within such a

framework.

Conclusion

The deontological perspective is of great value in the development of the discipline of ethics. Due to its

keen focus on goodwill, altruism, simplicity and universal applicability, it forms the foundation of many

codes of ethics. However, sole reliance on deontology is not ideal due to the diverse and complex nature

of ethical situations that may be faced in practice. As the ethical debate continues, philosophers and

thinkers search for the perfect ethical framework with which to guide human behaviour. The teleological

perspective offers the evaluation of consequences that is lacking from deontology, but it can easily be

corrupted into a self serving philosophy.

As has been done within the medical profession, codes of ethics need to continue to evolve to include

both deontological and teleological principles. That is, developers of these codes need to start with the

altruistic, universal rules of deontology, but include exceptions that safeguard against injustices being

experienced or perpetrated by adherents to these codes. The key to achieving this end is to continue to

rely on rationality and logic when developing codes of ethics. Professionals must also remember that

codes of ethics are meant to provide guidance and as such it is the professional that must embrace the

responsibility to apply rationality to the decision making process. Professionals should not adhere to

codes of ethics dogmatically then blame them for undesirable outcomes. Professionals have a duty to

consider the goodwill for all stakeholders when making ethical decisions. Professionals can safeguard

against the fallibility of human judgment by discussing ethical situations with peers or engaging in

stakeholder consultations where possible.

Ethics resides within a wider framework and is dependent on supportive systems to achieve its goals.

Human beings must strive to create the environment that allows ethics to function well. Part of this

mission involves the protection of individuals who make decisions in the interest of protecting the public

interests. Whistle-blowers must be applauded for their struggle and supported internationally in the

fight against injustice.

As long as human beings exist, ethics will continue to be an important and highly relevant discipline. We

are the most advanced species on the planet, and as such, our greatest struggle is with ourselves.

Human beings have a long history of violent and disastrous interactions. Our mastery of global ethics

may very well determine our viability as a species in the long run.

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