Define the term “dilemma”

BUL 4310 Ethics Essay

Question 1.

a) Define the term “dilemma”

A dilemma is a problem offering two possible outcomes neither of which is unmistakably suitable or better. This means that none of the possible outcomes is preferred.

b) Identify the ethical dilemma facing management.

One of the ethical dilemma the organization is whether viewing employee’s emails is ethical. They are also faced with the dilemma of monitoring which internet sites the workers are watching at any time is ethical. The aptitude to shadow computers of any employee at all times lacking the consensus of the employees. And whether to install cameras on Computers of every worker and monitor every employee in the workplace all the time. The management is also faced with the dilemma of whether to monitor the emails and activities on employees’ computers that belong to the organization even when they are not at work.

Question 2.

a) Who are the stakeholders (not limited to shareholders)?

Stakeholders are a group of people that have an interest in the organization. They include employees, top managers, owners, unions, the community, and the administration.

b) Evaluate the stakeholders and how the various stakeholders would be affected by the dilemma indicated in question #1

The stakeholders will be affected if their privacy is invaded and they will end up not feeling safe in their work and might resign from work. The top managers will be affected when confidential information is leaked and the organization might suffer the results. The organization might face litigation from the union for invading employee’s privacy. Information on organizations strategies might be leaked to the organizations’ competitors and use it against them and hence it will affect the organization. The organization might also suffer from a bad reputation from the community and it can affect the organizations’ productivity. Supplier’s information might also be leaked and the organization might end up losing their suppliers and it will affect the running of the organization. If the CEO was to approve the request the organization will face more problems and hence affect the running of the organization

Question 3

Discuss alternative courses of action to solve the dilemma indicated in your answer to question #1 including the pros and cons of each.

To avoid having to confront an employee about the inappropriate viewing of certains sites or sending non-work related emails, management could set up site blockers. Site blockers don’t allow for certain web addresses to be reached and aid in preventing employees from being distracted from work-related tasks. Just the same, companies could implement a system that doesn’t allow emails to be sent to certain email addresses but instead only to company ones. Though on the down side limiting the sites that can be used in a work environment may also limit the employees ability to find creative solutions or projects to enhance the company’s products and/or services. Also to maintain a sense of safety for the company and its employees, management should consider installing one or two cameras to observe the whole work environment instead of one on each monitor as to avoid being unethical. Essentially the cameras may not catch everything that the employees may try to look up on their computers but it should catch all other activities. A few cameras along with site blockers should provide enough surveillance to ensure that the company runs smoothly without crossing ethical boundaries. The staff should only need to shadow someone’s computer use after red flags have been raised with these safety measures in place.

Question 4

Recommend one of the alternatives indicated in your answer to #3 and provide a rationale for your decision