Ethical Decision Making Scenarios
Scenario-based questions testing ethical judgment and decision-making in professional and government contexts
Questions
Your immdediate supervisory authority had taken some decisions regarding the setting up of a project which has run into heavy revenue losses. The higher authorities have set up a three member committee to enquire into the matter which has called you for your deposition. Your boss wants you to justify the stand taken by him. He is likely to remain your boss for at least one more year. You would,
- justify the decision of your supervisory authority and bail him out.
- outrightly criticise his decisions as in the past he has been rude and harsh with you.
- give a fair account of what had happened, which is likely to result in his implication, but is surely to adversely affect your personal relations with him.
- give an ambivalent reply showing your lack of specific knowledge of the subject and thus save you the embarrassment of implicating your boss and also save you from being further dragged as a witness against your boss.
You are a Deputy Secretary in a Ministry of the Government of India where you are dealing with appointments of ‘Technical Assistants’. On the basis of a written examination, 10 candidates have been shortlisted for two posts. Based on their educational and previous work experience you have to make your recommendation in order of preference. A senior official in the Ministry who is known to you, asks you to recommend the name of candidate Y amongst the first two choices. What will you do?
- Bring the matter to the knowledge of your immediate superior officer and do as he verbally directs.
- Comply to the request of the senior officer who approached you and recommend the name of the candidate in the top two positions despite knowing that he is not among the best two. This way you earn the goodwill of the officer who approached you.
- Examine the profile of all ten candidates and take decision on merits even if it means that candidate Y is eventually selected.
- See to it that candidate Y is not selected at all by placing him down in the preference.
You are a businessman who plans to start a new business venture for which a licence is required from a regulatory government department. You have submitted the application after fulfilling all the procedural formalities and the required documents. Even after months from the date of application, you have not received the licence. The reason, you have come to know for the delay is, demand for illegal gratification. The amount asked for granting the licence is within your means and less than the loss you are suffering every month because of loss of business opportunity. You will
- pay the amount asked for and get the licence, treating the amount paid as a business necessity and business expense
- ask a senior officer in the same department who is known to you to get the issue of licence expedited
- wait for the official to change and hope that the next official is honest
- make an application under RTI Act seeking status of your licence application and the time frame in which such licences are required to be issued
You are a government official and along with your team of subordinates you have conceptualised a project whose recommendations are to be presented before the higher authorities of your Ministry. The project pertains to exploration of important minerals in the state and was the result of six months of untiring effort of your team. At the last moment your boss mentions that he will be making the presentation and you need not accompany him to the Ministry. You suspect that he wants to hog the entire credit. What will you do?
- Request him to take you along to the Ministry for presentation.
- Seek audience of your bosses supervisory authority to present your side and seek his intervention.
- Accept the situation stoically knowing that you may not get credit for your work.
- Refuse to part away with presentation and relevant documents unless your boss agrees to let you accompany him/give you due credit.
You had made a request to the State Civil Works department for repair of roads of your colony which are in pathetic condition. The roads have not been repaired as yet, but in response to an RTI application filed by you, the official records show that the repair has been done and the contractor has been paid for it. You tried to meet the executive engineer but he has been avoiding meeting you on one pretext or the other. Meanwhile the contractor has approached you and threatened you with dire consequences if you take any further action. He assures that the roads around your residence/ adjoining it will be duly repaired in lieu of your silence. Which amongst the following actions will you take?
- File a written complaint against the Executive Engineer and the contractor, despite the threat.
- Keep silent and accept the contractors offer of getting the roads only around your house repaired. This way something will be done and you will be saved from the hassles of confrontion with the authorities and the contractor.
- Take initiative and garner people in your colony to file a joint memorandum against the civic – authorities and the contractor.
- Plan to shift your residence to a better locality which enjoys the services of a more responsible and better civic- agency.
You are in the ‘Legal Section’ of a government department where you provide legal inputs, case laws (judgement of a court on an issue) to defend the department in cases coming before the High Court. An important case is coming up in a few days for which inputs have to be given to the legal counsel (Advocate) by tomorrow. Your boss has asked you to quote a specific case law in the department’s input to be given to the counsel. You are aware that there is another recent case law (Court’s judgement on an issue) of the jurisdictional High Court, which supports the Department’s case much better. But you don’t have its particulars or the copy of the judgement. Locating it and citing the facts from it may take a few hours more. This would mean staying back till late in the office. In such a situation what would you do?
- Quote the case which the boss wants you to and submit the inputs.
- Stay back till late night, find the new case law and include the inputs from it.
- Speak to your boss and the government counsel that you are wanting to include the new case law and take time till next day for giving the submission.
- Ask the counsel to seek adjournment from the High Court as inclusion of the new case law and preparation of the submission will take time.
As a senior manager in a company you have called a meeting of 20 field representatives from different towns and cities. You have worked very hard for the last one month to prepare for this meeting which is very important as you want to explain the future marketing strategy of the company. But a few hours before the meeting you receive a call that your father (who lives in a different city) has fallen seriously ill and is hospitalised. The flight for that city leaves in three hours and it is urgent that you leave for the airport immediately. In such a situation which of the following course of action would you prefer?
- Ask your immediate subordinate to cancel the meeting and inform the representatives.
- Inform your boss about your problem and leave the decision to him about cancellation/ holding of meeting.
- Issue directions to your subordinate to postpone the meeting by a day as you have put in a lot of effort in it and want to make the presentation personally. This would also give a boost to your carrer.
- Ask your colleague to hold the meeting in your place (who can handle the meeting equally well). Hand him the presentation at the airport and also explain the future marketing strategy to him. Inform about this to your boss. But this would rob you of a golden career opportunity which your colleague is likely to grab.
You are the head of a committee which is to award a public contract for executing an important government programme in a district. Your immediate superior officer calls you and tells you that the application of a party X which is related to a prominent politician is to be favoured. This is to be done by citing technical deficiencies in the bids of other possible competitors. In case you disobey him he suggests that you will be transferred to a different station. Your response would be to,
- cancel the process of examination of tenders and awarding of contract and float fresh tender calling for bids.
- examine the tenders on merits and award the contract, to the party satisfying the technical requirements and making the lowest financial bid.
- award the contract to the party X lest you are transferred out and other good administrative measures initiated by you suffer.
- black list the party X and see to it that somebody else gets the award.
Your colleague who was heading a project had an accident and cannot continue with it. The ‘Departmental Administrative Head’ wants you to head this project in addition to your present assignments. This is going to increase your work burden, as you would be required to timely complete your colleagues project as well as your present assignment. The ‘Head’ has called you in his office for discussion on this issue. What will your response be?
- Communicate acceptance of the additional responsibility.
- Suggest another colleagues name as the project head and intimate preoccupation with existing assignments as reason for this.
- Refuse the additional work as your current assignments are sufficient to keep you busy.
- Accept the additional responsibility subject to sanction of additional manpower. However, you are also aware that this is not likely to be sanctioned because of severe manpower shortages in the department.