Six Ethical Dilemmas

Six Ethical
Dilemmas Every
Professional Faces
Dilemma means
• A situation in which a difficult choice has to be made
between two or more alternatives, especially equally
undesirable ones.
• A difficult situation or problem.
• An argument forcing an opponent to choose either of two
unfavorable alternatives.
Ethical Dilemma
• Is a paradox that comes up when there are two or more
options, but neither of them are the best ethical or moral
option.
• Presents a difficult decision where there is no clear right
or wrong answer, and each option has potential ethical
consequences. Resolving an ethical dilemma involves
careful consideration of the potential outcomes, weighing
the ethical principles at stake, and often necessitates
making difficult trade offs.
1. Worthwhile Work
Worthwhile can be found in working in a corporate
culture that respects its workers and their personal
lives. You may work where management is supportive
and workers thrive and advance, but you can also find
yourself working in a toxic environment where human
dignity is torn down everyday and responding to ones
family commitments is regarded as weaknesses.
2. Work vs. Family
The second dilemma is what balance to strike between
your commitment to work and to your commitment to
work and to your family. Each of us makes a fundamental
decision whether to work excessive hours, neglecting our
spouse, children or loved ones, or to limit our work to
achieve a balance with family priorities.
This dilemma of work/family balance also faces
us when we manage the day to day conflicts
between family obligations and work, parent and
attending an after school youth soccer game. In
these moments we answer the values question—
what is more important and what balance do I
choose? What really are my values?
3. Going along with the
Crowd
The third dilemma is how you will manage the
continuing question of whether you will be a
“team player” who goes along with whatever the
group is doing or someone who actively resists the
uglier side of group behavior. Every corporate
culture and every small work group has a set of
norms and a way of doing things.
Group norms are also powerful in determining ways
of getting things done. Every person has the chance
to decide whether he or she will go along with the
crowd. The other choice is to maintain your own
independent values and resist group norms that
violate company rules, belittle any subgroup of
employees or show intolerance to particular
political viewpoints.
4. When Leaders Mislead
The fourth dilemma occurs when each of us must
decide what to do when confronted by shoddy
behavior by own leaders. Unfortunately, leaders
ethics are not always exemplary. In fact, some
leaders success causes them to believe they are
above the law and that the rules do not apply to
them.
Employees have the opportunity to resist. No one
is encouraging employees to blow the whistle or
resign every time they encounter questionable
behavior, but instead to find ways to raise
questions about the appropriateness of the
behavior or decision, or maybe to give the boss an
opportunity to rethink his or her own decision and
save face.
5. Being a Change Agent
The fifth dilemma or choice is whether one
initiates positive change in one’s organization or
profession. Lots of things can be improved in any
organization or any profession. And changes in the
external environment or in technology can
sometimes render traditional ways of doing things
inappropriate and even unethical.
Change is not just the prerogative only of top
executives. It is the responsibility of all employees.
The successful careers of the future and the
successful companies of the future will be those
populated by intrapreneurs who make things happen
and make their organizations and professions more
responsive to public concerns and social
responsibilities.
6. Careers and Common goods
The sixth dilemma all professionals face is deciding
whether to look beyond their immediate organization
and apply their professional skills for the benefit of
humanity.
The organization Doctors without boarders represents a
response by the medical profession to the broader
needs of society by meeting the critical need for clinical
staff during incidents of civil strife around the world.
Sadly, a growing number of such professionals have lost
their lives providing this service for the common good.
Each businessperson, each professional has
talents that can serve the broader society in
some concrete way. In shaping a life and ones
personal character, one must choose whether to
make such service to the common good a part of
ones calling.
• Ethical issues in the workplace occur when a
situation arises requiring the persons involved to
make a decision about what is right or wrong.
• If a company has a high standards of ethics, it
means it supports an environment built on trust
and honesty.
• It also means that it follows the necessary laws
and regulations.
Ethical Dilemmas that can
happen in a company
• An employee considers whether to keep office supplies
for personal use
• An employee takes the credit and praise for another
colleagues work
• The manager asks an employee to lie about the
number of hours they work
• The boss openly favors one specific employee because
they are related
• An employee uses abusive language towards their
How to avoid ethical issues in the
workplace
When faced with ethical issue, you might consider the
possible consequences of each option before making
a decision. It can also prove constructive to consult
with other colleagues or experts. It is important to
avoid ethical issues because if a company allows
them to flourish, it can create a toxic work
environment.
1. Uphold the rules: Familiarize yourself with the
organizations ethical policies and ensure that all employees
are aware of what they are.
2. Train the staff: if you work in HR, make plans to educate
the staff on common ethical issues and teach them how to
avoid these situations.
3. Make reporting easy: if you work in HR or policy-Making,
develop procedures to ensure that any unethical behavior
can be easily reported both internally and externally.
4. Invite feedback: Invite constructive criticism and
different perspectives on how to improve the company's
work environment and current ethical policies.
5. Encourage accountability: Hold employees

accountable when they violate the company's policies
concerning ethical behavior and proper conduct. This is
specially important if the violator is a leader in the
office, such as the manager or supervisor.

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5. Encourage accountability: Hold employees

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