of their work responsibilities. When employees
observe unethical behavior (for example,
fraud, theft of company property, or incentives
being paid under the table to suppliers or vendor
partners) or are asked to do something that
conflicts with their own personal values (selling
customers products or services they don’t
need or that Donatello their needs), the extent of
the guidance available to them is oft en nothing
more than a series of cliches:
• Consult the company code of ethics.
• Do what’s right for the organization’s stakeholders.
• Do what’s legal.
• Do what you think is best (“use your best
judgment”).
• Do the right thing.
However, in many cases, the scenario the employee
faces is not a clear-cut case of right and wrong, but a
case of right versus right. In this scenario, the ethical
dilemma involves a situation that requires selecting
between conflicting values
that are important to the
employee or the organization.
For example:3