BALANCING CONFLICTING

RESPONSIBILITY
• The best approach to resolve an ethical conflict is to prevent it from
happening in the first place. This means to have a defined core set of
values; ethical standards; strong compliance function; and ethical
leadership. When conflicts do occur a defined process helps to resolve
it in an effective manner. Here are my thoughts about how best to
resolve ethical conflicts:
• Identify the ethical issue.
 Clearly define the problem.
 Ethical issues occur when stakeholder interests conflict.
 Ethical issues exist when a proposed action may be legal but doesn’t
conform to the ethical standards of the organization.
• Identify and evaluate alternative courses of action.
 Consider how each alternative affects the stakeholders.
 Use ethical reasoning to resolve the dilemma.
• Evaluate the rights of each party and your obligations to them
• Treat each party fairly in resolving the dilemma
• Weigh the costs and benefits of alternatives.
• Seek help if necessary to resolve the dilemma.
 What is the role of your supervisor in this matter – i.e., an enabler of
the conflict or potential supporter?
 Who can you go to for guidance and support – i.e., the board of
directors?
 If the supervisor is the one creating the conflict, then the employee
must consider whether to jump the chain of command.
• Decide on a course of action.
 Would others in the organization respect me and my decision?
 How would my decision make me feel about myself? Would I be
proud of my decision? Would others be proud – i.e., my family?
 Would I be able to defend my action if it became public knowledge –
i.e., published in a newspaper?
 A common mistake is to assume that if an action is legal it is,
therefore, ethical. This is what’s known as ethical legalism. A decision
to withhold potential product defects from a customer may not break
the law but it is dishonest. It is not an overt lie but the decision fails to
disclose all the information a customer has a right and need to know.
Truthfulness is a double-edge sword and many organizations fail on
the transparency end.