Ethical deliberation process

1.1. The toy

The Situation

Case Study: The Toy

As an engineer, you have been working in the design-innovation department of a toy manufacturing company for over twenty years. At the beginning of your career, you were known for your creative spirit and your qualities were praised by all.

As the company grew over the years, it needed to hire several more engineers, which led its leaders five years ago to proceed with the creation of a chief engineer position.

Your co-worker of several years, an engineer who is a friend of the company's president, is appointed to the position through an internal competition that everyone agrees is a sham.

Months go by and relations become increasingly strained between you.

What is more, after two years of sustained effort, you still do not feel his support for a very innovative project to which you are devoting all your energies, even on your

personal time.

This former colleague, who at the time praised your creativity, has once again betrayed you.

betrayed you again. He recently hired, without competition, a young engineer, son of the president's best friend, supposedly to support you.

Nevertheless, given your reputation in the industry, you are still granted the privilege of attending the annual toy manufacturers' convention.

As you do every year, you meet with colleagues from rival companies there, and each other try to learn as much as possible about trends in the business.

On the last night, you meet at the hotel bar with an engineer from a rival company, whom you have known for years. In complete confidence, you come to share with her, now chief engineer of her company, the story of your setbacks.

She takes an interest in your situation and shows her support. She even offers you, assuring you on several occasions of total confidentiality, to bring you the next morning, in cash, the equivalent of your salary for the two years spent on this project in exchange for your plans.

Do you accept his offer?

Assignment: you are expected to complete in three pages the process of

ethical deliberation on the situation described in The Toy.

To do this, the ethical deliberation process allows for the analysis of the data

of the situation in four phases:

become aware of the situation;

clarifying the values in conflict;

make a reasonable decision ;

establish a dialogue with the parties involved.

The following is the list-like structure of the items to be completed in the three pages.

1.1.1 Situational Awareness a) Key elements of the situation.

..

b) Formulate the ethical dilemma

Option A Me, X, ...

Option B Me, X, ...

c) The spontaneous decision

...

d) The parties involved in the situation

...

Legal and regulatory provisions involved: 1.1.2 Clarification of conflicting values

e) The consequences for the parties involved in the situation

f) The normative framework - rules and standards - that applies

a) Recognition of the dominant emotions

b) Recognition of the values at work

c) Recognition of the main value conflict involved

1.1.3 Reasonable decision making

a) b) c)

Recognizing the overriding value Establishing the reasons for the overriding value Defining the terms of the action to be taken

1.1.4 Dialogue with the parties involved