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Accounting Ethics
The harmless or not-so-harmless lies of Bobby Glick
From a strictly utilitarian perspective, it might be that the scenario outlined in the Glick case does not seem so morally questionable. Glick, as a new and untested employee right out of college, was naturally apprehensive about how his competency would be viewed. He studied, successfully passed his CPA exam, and acquitted himself admirably 'on the job.' No one was harmed by his concealment: indeed, his firm benefited from having a highly competent employee concerned about his reputation working for them.
However, viewing professional ethics from a purely utilitarian perspective is extremely problematic. Professional ethics by its nature assumes certain 'standards' which professionals must uphold, even if the consequences are not bad -- in fact, even if the consequences of the unethical action are 'good' (Driver 2009). For example, someone with no CPA license could lie, get employment with a CPA firm, and do a wonderful job for 10 years. This would still be wrong and unethical, according to the standards of the profession, because when someone pays for the services of a CPA, the person should get the services of a CPA. Even if people benefited from the work of the fake CPA, his actions would still be wrong.
In contrast, utilitarianism (also called consequentialism) holds: "Consequences -- and only consequences...
From a consequentialist perspective, Glick's or any subterfuge is not wrong, so long as the outcome is good. In this case, the only harm was the hurt feelings of Glick's employer, while the 'good' of Glick passing the test and giving high-quality service far exceeded any negative results.
From a deontological ethical perspective, however, lying is wrong, no matter what the consequences (Alexander & Moore 2012). Even if no harm was done, Glick not only concealed the fact he had taken the exam, he also lied. If he had not passed, it is likely he would have continued to lie and create the impression he had been a 'first timer' even though he was not. This also suggests to the firm that he would have not disclosed relevant information to the firm (his failure to pass the first time).
Glick would counter that not being a 'first timer' was more of a point of personal pride, and that not being a 'first timer' does not mean that a CPA is incompetent. In fact, it is more common not to pass all sections of the test than it is to pass. He was, in effect, more competent than he was presumed to be when working for the firm, since he had already passed and the firm members believed he had not passed. Clients received more rather than less…
References
Alexander, Larry & Moore, Michael. (2012). Deontological ethics. The Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved: <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2012/entries/ethics-deontological/>.
Driver, Julia. (2009). The history of utilitarianism. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved:
<http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2009/entries/utilitarianism-history/>.
<http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2012/entries/ethics-virtue/>.
<http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/ethics-business/>.
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