Rachael Stiver

OGL340

Arizona State University

April 14, 2022

Module 6 Paper

Ethics are the driving force for many decisions people make. As someone who

has a strong personal code of ethics, this week's learning material was incredibly

interesting and helpful. The readings from this week along with the blog posts, from the

association of project management and Rebel’s guide to project management, delve

into ethical standards and expectations within the project management role. In a job that

is built on schedules and expectations, it is easy to be tempted to make unethical

decisions or to see them happening and turn the other way. Being able to understand

the ethical context of a project, the company sponsoring the project, and understanding

the consequences of unethical decisions are important tools for becoming a great

project manager.

In Ethics and Project Management by Ralph Kliem, Chapter 2 "Why Ethics

Should Matter to Project Managers”, focuses on the types of ethical choices and how to

spot and manage them. Reading this chapter I recognized several different ethical

dilemmas I have found myself in. Recently, at my job I have found myself being

unethical by omission. Working in a store that has different dayparts means partners

don’t always see the same people and when a partner moves from one day part to the

other the culture changes. I have found myself working later in the day again and

noticed that some of the standard cleaning tasks are either being skipped or corners are
cut that have resulted in things breaking or needing to be replaced much sooner than

normal. Instead of doing the right thing and confronting the people making these

choices I turned a blind eye to them and avoided the potential confrontation issues.

While one of the main reasons I made that choice was to avoid the night crew becoming

upset because they are not direct communicators and are avoidant confrontation

module six helped me understand that this was an unethical choice on my part. I know

have plans to address these issues at work the next time I am in and to hold myself and

the team accountable.

Understanding the environment of the project is vital to understanding the ethical

expectations of the project. In tandem, a project manager should also understand the

PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. This universal baseline is a great starting

point for project managers to build upon the specific cultural and contextual ethical

expectations of the project they are working on. Ethics are not something that people

develop when starting a project in a professional setting but typically are the values and

morals people learn growing up. Ethics are also supposed to include action and not just

inaction. The blog post from the association of project management says it best, “Since

ethics, values, and behaviors are so interconnected, it’s worth considering the action

part. After all, there is little point having values or a code of ethics if when it comes down

to the wire, you don’t act.” This serves as a good reminder to project leaders both

professionally and personally and encourages project leaders to be accountable and

ask leading questions about decisions. The pressures of tight deadlines and schedules

can make an unethical decision look like a better option. Making decisions with a
long-term perspective and understanding the ramifications that a short-term unethical

decision can have should be a tool that all project managers use.

In Rebel’s guide to project management, the blog post that resonated with me

had 7 ethics tips for project managers. The focus on ethical communication stood out to

me because it is not something that I had thought about before. Developing a

communication plan is an important part of starting a project that I talked about in my

last paper on module 5. An important thing to add to a communication plan is the ethical

standards for communicating. Having these principles laid out can help to avoid

unethical choices like inaccurate reporting from different stakeholders or members of

the project team. As important as it is for Project leaders to understand the

environment's ethics and values the project leader needs to communicate those ethics

to everyone involved with the project. From the Harvard Business Simulation, I have

learned that communication with my team is one of the most important factors in a

successful project and that includes sharing ethical expectations which helps to create

an environment of accountability.

In a world that is racing to advance it is a difficult time to be a project manager

and leader with the performance pressure and competing priorities. Keeping the 5

chapters of the PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct (honesty, respect,

fairness, responsibility, and vision and purpose) can help a PM to make ethical

decisions. As humans, we are all tempted by unethical decisions because they may

seem easier or more appealing in the moment than the ethical choice. It is important to

recognize and anticipate unethical behavior to create a level of accountability within

projects that stem from leadership. As a leader focusing on creating healthy and
functional motivation and creating an environment that focuses on ethical choices is an

effective way to help projects succeed.