Ethical Dilemma

Ethical Dilemma

Bonnie, an account executive working with an advertising agency, has had difficulties facing critics from his fellow employees due to a decision he made. Bonnie is a hard working individual and had put in a lot of effort in improving the general state of the advertising agency. He has improving the number of agents and customers that the company gets through his work and dedication to his work. He normally works for long hours to ensure that all customers who work with the company are satisfied and always seek services from the company in future. This has increased the profit making ability of the company.

In is the December holiday and bonnie has been given time off to relax from his hard work. He has been working for the entire year without any break or time off from work. He sought to visit his girlfriend and later they would go together and visit the girlfriend’s parent. This was a chance for him to take his relationship to another level. His girlfriend was also traveling and this was the only time they had together before they met after another year. Before he went, he was called by his boss and was told that a very important client needed some work to be done urgently. The boss insisted that he was the right person for the job. Bonnie was forced to make a decision of whether to go or not to go for his holiday. This was a difficult choice to make since any choice would lead to some negative effects. This is an example on an ethical dilemma. Bonnie chose to cancel his holiday and work for the company.

Ethical dilemma may be defined as a situation where one had to make a decision but the decision to be made has some impact on either of the choices taken (Cohen, 2003). for instance in Bonny’s situation he had to choose on whether to choose between going for the holiday or remaining and working for the company. If he chose to go for the holiday, he would ruin his reputation with the management team of the company and could also risk losing his job (Davis, 2007). On the other hand, based on the decision he made of canceling his trip he has risked jeopardizing his relationship with his girlfriend as well as the girlfriend’s parent. It would take him another one year before they meet again. This decision also ruined his relationship with other employees since they felt like he wanted to be seen as the best employee. Either of the decisions had a negative impact on one of the choices to be made.

The ethic framework that would have been used in solving this situation is through looking into both of the sides of the decisions to be made (Forester, 2000). The manager should have weighed the option of letting Bonnie go for the holiday and asking him to remain and work. For instance, the manager should have weight the negative impacts of either of the decision (Kane, 2003). For instance, choosing to work would risk Bonnie losing his girlfriend while the company could ask another employee to do the project. Looking into the issue in this manner would leave all parties involved satisfied (Kirsch, 1999).

Ethical dilemma may have negative impacts on the different individuals involved. Either of the decision made would lead to one party or more becoming dissatisfied (Lo, 200). For instance, making Bonnie remains and work for the company would lead to bonnie not being satisfied with the decision. This would also affect his girlfriend, the parents’ to the girlfriend and other employees. On the other hand, another employee could have been chosen to handle the case and this would leave every individual satisfied with the decision.

References

Cohen, M. (2003). 101 ethical dilemmas. London: Routledge.

Davis, A. J., & Davis, A. J. (2007). Ethical dilemmas and Business. Stamford, Conn: Appleton & Lange.

Forester, T., & Morrison, P. (2000). Computer ethics: Cautionary tales and ethical dilemmas in computing. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.

Kane, R. A., & Caplan, A. L. (2003). Ethical conflicts in the management of home care: The case manager's dilemma. New York: Springer.

Kirsch, G. (1999). Ethical dilemmas in feminist research: The politics of location, interpretation, and publication. Albany: State University of New York Press.

Lo, B. (2000). Resolving ethical dilemmas: A guide for clinicians. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

McDowell, B. (1991). Ethical conduct and the professional's dilemma: Choosing between service and success. New York: Quorum Books.

Miller, S., & Selgelid, M. J. (2008). Ethical and philosophical consideration of the dual-use dilemma in the biological sciences. New York: Springer.

Shapiro, J. P., & Stefkovich, J. A. (2000). Ethical leadership and decision making in education: Applying theoretical perspectives to complex dilemmas. Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Rowe, J. Y. (2011). Michal's moral dilemma: A literary, anthropological, and ethical interpretation. New York: T & T Clark International.