PROJECT MANAGEMENT FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS MANAGERS CHAPTER 11 potx

Chapter 11
ETHICS
Ethics (Greek ethika, from ethos, “character,” “custom”) are principles
or standards of human conduct, sometimes called morals. Ref.
"Ethics," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2003
© 1997-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights
Reserved.
© 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
From the Encarta, we find that:
Philosophers have attempted to determine goodness in conduct according to
two chief principles, and have considered certain types of conduct either
good in themselves or good because they conform to a particular moral
standard. The former implies a final value, or summum bonum, which is
desirable in itself and not merely as a means to an end. In the history of
ethics there are three principal standards of conduct, each of which has been
proposed as the highest good: happiness or pleasure; duty, virtue, or
obligation; and perfection, the fullest harmonious development of human
potential.
Many companies, and most organizations, subscribe to a code of ethics.
For example the codes for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE) and for the Project Management Institute (PMI) are
shown.
Project Managers are responsible for determining the ethics that are to be
used by the project team, for ensuring that all team members are aware of
these rules, and then ensuring that everyone acts in a totally ethical manner
at all times during the project. This is obviously a challenging assignment,
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Ethics
but it is critical that the PM assumes this responsibility, and that all team
members act in an ethical fashion at all times.
PMI MEMBER ETHICAL STANDARDS

MEMBER CODE OF ETHICS
The Project Management Institute (PMI) is a professional organization
dedicated to the development and promotion of the field of project
management. The purpose of the PMI Member Code of Ethics is to define
and clarify the ethical responsibilities for present and future PMI members.
Preamble:
In the pursuit of the project management profession, it is vital that PMI
members conduct their work in an ethical manner in order to earn and
maintain the confidence of team members, colleagues, employees,
employers, customers/clients, the public, and the global community.
Member Code of Ethics
As a professional in the field of project management, PMI members
pledge to uphold and abide by the following:
I will maintain high standards of integrity and professional conduct
I will accept responsibility for my actions
I will continually seek to enhance my professional capabilities
I will practice with fairness and honesty
I will encourage others in the profession to act in an ethical and
professional manner.
Also from the Encarta, we learn that through history morals and ethics
have developed because they were necessary for the well being of the group.
Why would projects be any different?
For as long as people have been living together in groups, the moral
regulation of behaviour has been necessary to the group's well being.
Although the morals were formalized and made into arbitrary standards of
conduct, they developed, sometimes irrationally, after religious taboos were
Ethics
217
violated, or out of chance behaviour that became habit and then custom, or
from laws imposed by chiefs to prevent disharmony in their tribes. Even the

great ancient Egyptian and Sumerian civilizations developed no
systematized ethics; maxims and precepts set down by secular leaders, such
as Ptahhotep, mingled with a strict religion that affected the behaviour of
every Egyptian. In ancient China the maxims of Confucius were accepted as
a moral code. The Greek philosophers, beginning about the 6th century BC,
theorized intensively about moral behaviour, which led to the further
development of philosophical ethics. Ref: Encarta
The team must be clear about the ethical standards to be applied in the
project work, and to subscribe to these. Particularly in the technical areas,
but also on the project as a whole, engineers must ensure that their own
behaviour and in fact all behaviour of project personnel is ethical. Some
projects are multi-company, and even multinational. In these projects, teams
may find themselves dealing with people who subscribe to different ethical
codes. Most of the basic standards will be the same everywhere, but there
can be deviations which must then be identified, understood and resolved as
much as possible. This can cause stress and problems for the team members
in both areas. If this is the situation on a project, the project manager should
be aware of the situation, and may need to clarify for the team which
standards are to be followed for the project. As long as the standards do not
conflict, the team should honour both sets. If there is a conflict, the PM must
decide which to follow, and this should be done with input from the team,
and discussion. This can be one of the more challenging aspects of project
management on such projects.
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Ethics
IEEE Code of Ethics
We,
the members of the IEEE, in recognition of the importance of our
technologies
in affecting the quality of life throughout the world, and in

accepting
a personal obligation to our profession, its members and the
communities
we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the highest ethical
and
professional conduct and agree:
1.
to accept responsibility in making engineering decisions consistent with
the
safety, health and welfare of the public, and to disclose promptly factors
that
might endanger the public or the environment;
2.
to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever possible, and
to
disclose them to affected parties when they do exist;
3.
to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on
available
data;
4.
to reject bribery in all its forms;
5.
to improve the understanding of technology, its appropriate application,
and
potential consequences;
6.
to maintain and improve our technical competence and to undertake
technological tasks for others only if qualified by training or experience, or
after

full disclosure of pertinent limitations;
7.
to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to
acknowledge
and correct errors, and to credit properly the contributions of
others;
8.
to treat fairly all persons regardless of such factors as race, religion,
gender,
disability, age, or national origin;
9.
to avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by
false
or malicious action;
10.
to assist colleagues and co-workers in their professional development
and
to support them in following this code of ethics.
Approved by the IEEE Board of Directors, August 1990