Problem Alistair, a chief legal officer, is responsible for insuring that his firm, a pharmaceutical company, upholds high ethical standards. After a thorough review of the firm’s European offices, Alistair has declared a clean sheet; however, he has heard of “the Bosnia contract.” By all appearances “the Bosnia contract” is a charitable endeavor by Alistair’s company to supply needed aid kits to worn-torn Bosnia, except for one. That exception is that there is a large commission paid to the distributors to keep as cash in case of being stopped by local militia. Alistair must decide whether this to the board or remain silent.
Input
First and foremost, Alistair’s company is not responsible for delivering these goods; instead, a major relief …show more content…
Opportunities
• Similar organizations to that of Alistair’s would be warned and could avoid facing the same ethical dilemma that Alistair has faced.
• Reporting his findings would bring to light the problems humanity aid organizations are having in delivering lifesaving kits into Bosnia. As a result, the global community may be able to step-up and intervene on behalf of the organization in order for goods to be delivered. As Elie Wiesel stated in his acceptance speech for a Nobel Peace Prize, “Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented” ("Nobelprize.org", 2014).
• By not remaining silent, Alistair could consequently help the people of Bosnia more by bringing to light their oppression.
Threats
• While the community in Bosnia already received aid, future aid to that community would no longer come from Alistair’s company.
• By reporting his finding Alistair places the international aid organization at risk and damage their reputation. Other organizations will not want to partner with this organization in order to avoid the unethical behaviors that effected Alistair’s …show more content…
As John Linder (2014), a former congressman, writes in The Daily Caller, history has shown that the cover-up appears worse than the unethical behavior. Linder (2014) uses the example of Watergate, in which Nixon’s cover-up was worse than the actual crime. Likewise, Alistair’s firm will have appeared to cover-up the actions in Bosnia due to him not reporting it. While delivering aid to those in need is certainly a good deed, the fact that Alistair’s company did not report unethical behavior would overshadow said good
Input
First and foremost, Alistair’s company is not responsible for delivering these goods; instead, a major relief …show more content…
Opportunities
• Similar organizations to that of Alistair’s would be warned and could avoid facing the same ethical dilemma that Alistair has faced.
• Reporting his findings would bring to light the problems humanity aid organizations are having in delivering lifesaving kits into Bosnia. As a result, the global community may be able to step-up and intervene on behalf of the organization in order for goods to be delivered. As Elie Wiesel stated in his acceptance speech for a Nobel Peace Prize, “Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented” ("Nobelprize.org", 2014).
• By not remaining silent, Alistair could consequently help the people of Bosnia more by bringing to light their oppression.
Threats
• While the community in Bosnia already received aid, future aid to that community would no longer come from Alistair’s company.
• By reporting his finding Alistair places the international aid organization at risk and damage their reputation. Other organizations will not want to partner with this organization in order to avoid the unethical behaviors that effected Alistair’s …show more content…
As John Linder (2014), a former congressman, writes in The Daily Caller, history has shown that the cover-up appears worse than the unethical behavior. Linder (2014) uses the example of Watergate, in which Nixon’s cover-up was worse than the actual crime. Likewise, Alistair’s firm will have appeared to cover-up the actions in Bosnia due to him not reporting it. While delivering aid to those in need is certainly a good deed, the fact that Alistair’s company did not report unethical behavior would overshadow said good