Ethical Dilemma in Government IT

This assignment examines the ethical dilemma faced by Hardeep, an IT manager for a government department. Two companies have submitted proposals for a new ERP system. While one offer is more favorable, it comes from Mandeep, Hardeep’s best friend and the general manager of the less competitive company. The paper analyzes the potential ethical, professional, and legal ramifications of Hardeep choosing his friend's company over the better offer. It also recommends adhering to the ACS Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct to guide Hardeep in making an ethical decision.

Running head: ETHICS AND MANAGEMENT
Ethics and management
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ETHICS AND MANAGEMENT
Table of Contents
Introduction:...................................................................................................................................2
Discussion:....................................................................................................................................2
Recommendations:........................................................................................................................2
Conclusion:....................................................................................................................................3
References:...................................................................................................................................4

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Introduction:
The provided case study corresponds to the dilemma present with Hardeep, who is the
IT manager in a government department. The department is now ready for upgrading their
existing system and thus requires an ERP system for their business operations. According to
their advertisement in the local newspaper, two different companies have provided a proposal.
Out of them, Hardeep is familiar with one company’s general manager, Mandeep who is also his
best friend.
The main ethical dilemma is that the offer made by Mandeep’s company is not good
compared to the other company. Moreover, Mandeep has also called his friend Hardeep to
accept their offer.
Discussion:
This section of the report is used to discuss about the various ethical issues that may
arise due to Hardeep’s consideration for Mandeep.
Ethical issues:
In case Hardeep decides to go with his friend’s proposal for his department, the ethical
issue that will occur is that the government will lose a lot of money for this proposal which will
create a problem for Hardeep as well (Honig et al. 2017).
Professional issues:
The main professional issues that will arise is that Hardeep might consider the best
interests of his friend above the interest of the government which will cause problem in his job.
Legal issues:
The main legal issue that may arise due to such unethical considerations is the loss of
business amounts which may cause the department to file a legal complaint against Hardeep
(Goetsch and Davis 2014). This might also lead to Hardeep losing his job all because of such
considerations.
Recommendations:
For resolving such issues, the ACS Code of Ethics and the ACS code of Professional
Conduct are to be adopted.
ACS code of ethics:
According to the Fourth value of competence, Hardeep must work diligently for the
department’s interest. The Fifth value of professional development must be followed for
complying with the professional development of him. Lastly, honesty is the third value that is to
be followed in case of business activities. This will let him be honest in his approaches which
are related to the department of the government.
ACS code of Professional Conduct:

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In 1.2.3.a, Hardeep must not accept any offer related to bribes or inducement. In 1.2.3.c,
Hardeep must differentiate between his personal and professional considerations. The 1.2.4.d
clause is to be followed by Hardeep for considering the interests of the stakeholders. The
1.2.5.b must be followed where the awareness for issued must be considered. Lastly, the 1.2.6.f
must be followed where professionalism in work is encouraged so that the image of the
department is not reduced.
Conclusion:
Thus, it is concluded that Hardeep must not accept his friend’s proposal and must abide
by the recommendations included to mitigate the ethical dilemma encountered. Ethics are an
integral part of a company or business organization.

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References:
ACS CODE OF ETHICS. (2017). [ebook] AUSTRALIAN COMPUTER SOCIETY. Available at:
https://www.acs.org.au/content/dam/acs/acs-documents/Code-of-Ethics.pdf [Accessed 1 Nov.
2017].
ACS Code of Professional Conduct. (2017). [ebook] Australian Computer Society. Available at:
https://www.acs.org.au/content/dam/acs/rules-and-regulations/Code-of-Professional-
Conduct_v2.1.pdf [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].
Honig, B., Lampel, J., Siegel, D. and Drnevich, P., 2017. Special Section On Ethics in
Management Research: Norms, Identity, and Community in the 21st Century. Academy of
Management Learning & Education, 16(1), pp.84-93.
Goetsch, D.L. and Davis, S.B., 2014. Quality management for organizational excellence. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: pearson.