Ethical Forum: Analysis of Ethical Dilemma in IT Service Management

This discussion board post presents a student's analysis of an ethical dilemma faced by a casino data analyst. The analyst discovers a colleague engaging in gambling, which violates company policy. The post explores how four ethical theories—utilitarianism, deontology, social contract theory, and character-based ethics—can be applied to resolve this conflict. The student argues that the data analyst should inform management, aligning with the principles of each theory to uphold organizational integrity and ethical conduct. The analysis references relevant literature to support the arguments, highlighting the importance of ethical decision-making in IT service management and professional culture. The post emphasizes the need for consistent monitoring systems and adherence to company policies to prevent conflicts of interest and maintain a positive work environment. The discussion covers the implications of each ethical framework in relation to the case study, providing a comprehensive examination of the ethical considerations involved.

Ethical Forum
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Post 1
A casino has a data analyst who is working after his usual work hours to complete a project. Some
data is found missing and this data analysts was accessing organisational database when he came
across a file. The file showcase another colleague of his engaged in gambling bets with a local sports
firm. This is against the rule of the casino which states no employee must gamble or place bets so
that conflict of interest does not arise. Using the following four ethical theories this problem or
ethical dilemma is to be resolved.
Utilitarianism ethical theory
The utilitarianism ethical theory is related with the ability of an individual to forecast outcomes of
any specific action. So the choice to the utilitarian is to ensure that the people concerned and
associated with an action get its greatest advantages (Bowden, 2018).
In the case study the organisation must develop a regular monitoring system to check employee
activities in general. Currently in this ethical dilemma the data analyst is hesitating whether he
should inform the management about the colleague’s activities or be silent about it. As per
utilitarianism ethical theory the employee must inform the management to resolve this matter. If not
the same activity can be repeated by the employee in the future (Argenziano & Gilboa, 2018). When
employees of the casino engage sin gambling activities it is usually a conflict situation.
Deontology ethical theory
As per the deontology class of ethics the individuals must be in compliance with duties and
obligations when they are engaged in some kind of ethical decision making (Van Staveren, 2019). So
as per me, upholding ones responsibility is ethical and to do these individuals must follow their
obligations with respect to others and the society as well.
The data analyst in this case study must inform the email communication he discovered to the
management of the organisation. Deontology ethical theory states that every individual must adhere
to their responsibilities and duties with respect to the community and to others (Mandal, Ponnambath
& Parija, 2016). Here the organisations are depicted as a community where the colleagues work and
have to be in compliance with the norms and regulations of the entperises. The outcome of the action
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of the casino employee is wrong. It is beneficial to the concerned persona but it is not beneficial to
the organisation and its culture.
Social Contract Theory
As per social contact theory people who are belonging to one society must be in compliance with
agreement which develops a moral and political norms and regulations with respect to behaviour
(Elahi, 2017). These are explicit theories such as law or implicit such as raising the hand in a
classroom for asking a question in the teacher.
Every organisational has some dos and don’ts which can also be considered as the entperises culture
and norms. These are explicit as well as implicit behaviours which entperises expect that their people
will adhere to. Even analysing the ethical dilemma from this view point it can be stated that not
disclosing the unethical conduct of the respective employee will be the wrong decision made by the
casino data analyst (Hirani, 2017). The moral obligation of every employee is to showcase
organisation behaviour which is in compliance with the organisation.
Character-Based Ethics
The character based ethics are also known as virtue based ethics. The primary focus of such ethical
theories is determination of what helps developing the good character of an individual instead of
making their action good (Van Zyl, 2017).
From the perspective of character based ethical theory as well, every individual working in an
entperises must integrate in them good ethical organisational culture. Ethical decision making must
be made at every step when associated with an organisation. The data analyst will be immoral if he
keeps the truth he discovered by himself (Kaptein & Wempe, 2017). Overall employee must develop
good and positive character and personality in them so that they can always do the right thing.
This ethical theory was inspired by Aristotle and his declaration that virtuous individuals are those
who cultivates in them some ideal traits and virtues of character. Such traits can be derived from
their natural tendencies internally or can be nurtured and developed as well and maintained in a
stable manner. Such a theory is different from deontological theory as the aim here is not to detect
the principles which are applied to one ethical situation. The theory rather deals with how one must
live ethically. For the case study all the four ethical theories can be applied effectively in order to get
the right resolution.
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References
Argenziano, R., & Gilboa, I. (2018). Perception-theoretic Foundations of Weighted
Utilitarianism. The Economic Journal, 129(620), 1511-1528. doi: 10.1111/ecoj.12622
Bowden, P. (2018). In Defense of Utilitarianism. SSRN Electronic Journal, 1(1), 2-3. doi:
10.2139/ssrn.1534305
Elahi, M. (2017). Summary of Social Contract Theory by Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau. SSRN
Electronic Journal. doi: 10.2139/ssrn.2410525
Hirani, K. (2017). Transcending Ethical Dilemmas in Coaching and Supervision: A Model to
Develop a Transpersonal Perspective. Philosophy Of Coaching: An International Journal, 2(1), 6-27.
doi: 10.22316/poc/02.1.02
Kaptein, M., & Wempe, J. (2017). Three General Theories of Ethics and the Integrative Role of
Integrity Theory. SSRN Electronic Journal, 2(1), 10-11. doi: 10.2139/ssrn.1940393
Mandal, J., Ponnambath, D., & Parija, S. (2016). Utilitarian and deontological ethics in
medicine. Tropical Parasitology, 6(1), 5. doi: 10.4103/2229-5070.175024
Van Staveren, I. (2019). Beyond Utilitarianism and Deontology: Ethics in Economics. Review Of
Political Economy, 19(1), 21-35. doi: 10.1080/09538250601080776
Van Zyl, L. (2017). Virtue Theory and Applied Ethics. South African Journal Of Philosophy, 21(2),
133-143. doi: 10.4314/sajpem.v21i2.31341
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