Ethical Dilemma: Early Product Launch Analysis Report

This report presents an analysis of an ethical dilemma arising from the early launch of a product without proper testing. The report identifies key ethical issues, including ownership, privacy and security, and control, and explores the responsibilities of various stakeholders involved. It examines the reasons why these issues constitute ethical problems, considering the potential consequences of launching a product prematurely. The analysis further delves into project management strategies that could have prevented the ethical problems, evaluates the best course of action from a provided YouTube video, and proposes alternative actions to resolve the dilemma. The report also discusses the implications of the chosen actions on project time, cost, and quality, along with the consequences for project stakeholders. The analysis emphasizes the importance of ethical considerations in business decisions and provides insights into managing ethical challenges in project management.

Running head: ETHICAL DILEMMA (EARLY LAUNCH)
Ethical Dilemma (Early Launch)
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
1. What are the ethical problems you identified in your chosen YouTube video?....................................2
2. Why are these ethical problems?...........................................................................................................2
3. Who is responsible for these problems?................................................................................................2
4. Who is affected by these problems?......................................................................................................2
5. What project management strategies have prevented the problems from arising in the first place?.....2
6. Which of the three actions in your chosen YouTube video is better? Why?.........................................2
7. What action, other than the three in your chosen YouTube video, can best resolve the problems?.....2
8. Who should take the best action? Why?................................................................................................2
9. What are the implications of the best action on the project’s time, cost and quality?...........................2
10. What are the consequences of the best action on the project stakeholders?......................................2

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1. What are the ethical problems you identified in your chosen YouTube video?
There are three ethical issues related to the early launch of a product without testing the
product.
Ownership: The employee is the owner of the information related to the organization and if
he left the organization, then there is the possibilities that he might be companied by the
competitors and this could cause a serious loss to the organization.
Privacy and Security: Launching a product without testing (specially, systems) could result
in certain bugs and glitches in the system that might affect the customer experience. This will
cost in all the way for the organization from its selling to the reputation in the market (Dawid et
al., 2017).
Control: Controlling the employees according to personal satisfaction can be categorized in
an ethical dilemma and forcing the junior employee to do decisions according to personal interest
without considering the consequences will ultimately affect the organization.
2. Why are these ethical problems?
It is an ethical issue as the ‘agent’ here has to make the decision on whether the product
should be launched or not, or he should talk to the seniors or he should just leave the
organization. It is his responsibility to choose the best option with all respective. This creates a
different courses of actions, among which he will have to decide to take the decision. The third
condition that makes it an ethical dilemma is that irrespective of the chosen course of action, the
individual will compromise certain ethical principle (Cooper et al., 2015). This results in no
matter what decision is taken by the individual; it will not be a perfect solution.

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3. Who is responsible for these problems?
Many stakeholders are responsible for these problems, as an ethical dilemma does not occur
due to an individual’s course of action only. The very first responsible person is the individual
who was not present to complete the evaluation process of the systems. If that individual was
already there, this situation had never been raised (Cui, 2015). Second responsible person is the
executive manager who ordered to launch the product without evaluation without considering the
consequences. The third individual responsible for this situation is the agent himself, as he does
not know what to do and how to settle the situation considering all the aspects related to the
actions.
4. Who is affected by these problems?
The very first affected sector will be the organization receiving the products, as the
operational activities of the organization will be completely dependent on the systems in manner
to share, store, and execute the data and information. Un-tested launching of the systems might
lead to certain software and hardware issues that will alternatively affect the production or output
of the organization. Regarding database, cyberattacks and data breaches are concerning topics
and not evaluating the systems will not ensure that the operating system and software will be
updated (Heizer, 2016). This will lead to the privacy and security issues relat4d to the data and
information of the organization and the stakeholders whose information have been saved into the
database.

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5. What project management strategies could have prevented these problems from arising
in the first place?
Utilitarianism or Consequentialism, Virtue Ethics, Social Contract and Deontological Ethics
are the management strategies that could be implemented for preventing such problems that
might rises the issues related to the ethical issues. Utilitarianism can be represented as results-
based ethics that states that the correct ethical choice chosen at the situation is the one that is
favorable for most of the involved individuals while not favorable for some of the stakeholders
(Crane & Matten, 2016). Virtual ethics put emphasis on the “virtues, or moral character, in
contrast to the approach that emphasizes duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasizes the
consequences of actions (consequentialism).”
6. Which of the three actions in your chosen YouTube video is better? Why?
“Program Director listens to the team” will be the most suitable action for all the
stakeholders as there will be not any bad consequence of this case only there will be delay in the
delivery. The consumers will also understand the importance of data and information saved into
their database and after proper communication; they will understand that delay in the delivery
will be most suited for their organization (Monczka et al., 2015). The top most priority for
making customers believe in the organization and protect the information gathered from the
research as the information is the only power in this competitive market that could keep the
organization on the track of the competition.

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7. What action, other than the three in your chosen YouTube video, can best resolve the
problems?
Delivering the ten percent of the total delivery and with proper certification in which it is
mentioned that the organization will be only responsible for further data breach or intrusions.
This will insure that the further consequences will be completely on the organization itself.
However, certain loss will be there but, the supplier will be completely detached from the bad
consequences and the loss will be only on the other side of the supply (Yawar & Seuring, 2017).
On the other hand, the consumer enterprise might feel that there is no one to blame so it is better
to have some delay in the delivery than later consequences.
8. Who should take the best action? Why?
The program director should take the best action in manner to have proper communication
with the project manager and the consumer. This conversation will be helpful in minimizing the
loss and ensuring the effective and efficient supply and customer experience. This will also
ensure the security of the further customers of the consumer enterprise (Laudon & Laudon,
2016). This will ensure safety for every stakeholder related with both the organization and
consumers of the organizations. Thus, this will be the best solution in all aspects in manner to
ensure the privacy and security issues of the stakeholders.
9. What are the implications of the best action on the project’s time, cost and quality?
The cost must have been decided earlier before the delivery of the supplies however, there
will be delay in the supply and consumer organization will be facing certain problems. Quality
will be the best as for today, the best defense for the cyberattacks and breaches that might affect
the organization and protect it from being closed (Hofmann et al., 2014). Time is one of the

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greatest factor related to the performance and output of the organization but the safety and
security should be given the highest priority in manner to ensure the betterment and reputation in
the market.
10. What are the consequences of the best action on the project stakeholders?
All the stakeholders will be saved from the bad consequences rather than the consumer
organization and the supplier organization will be able maintain its reputation in the market. The
costumers of the consumer organization will be able to maintain its sustainability in the market
and take competitive advantage of the market (Wecket, 2017). On the other hand, the consumers
organization will also be able maintain such level in the market and their consumers will be safe
from further privacy and security threat in the future.

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References:
Cooper, R. W., Clapham, S. E., Frank, G. L., & Kemp, R. A. (2015). Ethical Issues for Supply
Managers: Then and Now?. Journal of Business and Behavior Sciences, 27(1), 54.
Crane, A., & Matten, D. (2016). Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and
sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
Cui, G. (2015). Ethical issues in ethnic segmentation and target marketing. In Proceedings of the
1998 Multicultural Marketing Conference (pp. 87-91). Springer, Cham.
Dawid, H., Decker, R., Hermann, T., Jahnke, H., Klat, W., König, R., & Stummer, C. (2017).
Management science in the era of smart consumer products: challenges and research
perspectives. Central European Journal of Operations Research, 25(1), 203-230.
Heizer, J. (2016). Operations Management, 11/e. Pearson Education India.
Hofmann, H., Busse, C., Bode, C., & Henke, M. (2014). Sustainability‐related supply chain
risks: conceptualization and management. Business Strategy and the Environment, 23(3),
160-172.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5M7ohdZ6qA
Laudon, K. C., & Laudon, J. P. (2016). Management information system. Pearson Education
India.
Monczka, R. M., Handfield, R. B., Giunipero, L. C., & Patterson, J. L. (2015). Purchasing and
supply chain management. Cengage Learning.

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Weckert, J. (Ed.). (2017). Computer ethics. Routledge.
Yawar, S. A., & Seuring, S. (2017). Management of social issues in supply chains: a literature
review exploring social issues, actions and performance outcomes. Journal of Business
Ethics, 141(3), 621-643.