Ethical Values Competence, Professional Judgment,

¶ … Ethical Values

Competence, Professional Judgment, and Greed

Three ethical values: Competence, professional judgment, and greed

Three ethical values: Competence, professional judgment, and greed

Value 1: Competence

At first, competence may not seem to be an ethical value, merely a judgment of skill. However, the role of competence in ethics comes sharply into relief when a professional claims an area of expertise that is not in his or her field: for example, when a general physician attempts to treat a seriously ill patient without recommending he or she see a specialist or when a family lawyer is contacted by his or her client who really needs specialized help in criminal law. Another example of competence becoming an ethical concern is when a school hires an eager young teacher because he or she is cheaper, even though the teacher might not have the skills to deal with a difficult class. An employer must also ensure that the employee is competent to perform the necessary services required by a position.

But the question of whether employers have a responsibility to further employee competence, rather than merely ensure they are competent at performing certain tasks has come into the forefront according to Melanie Vogel of Career Journal. In her 2009 article, "The new soft skill: Virtual competence," Vogel describes the controversy that arose at one workplace when employees were banned from accessing social networking sites: given the legitimate use of such sites for professional goals such as marketing and networking, the workers derided their manager's prohibition as unethical, and unnecessarily limiting their learning experiences in the workforce. Employers said they were trying to guard against 'time theft.'

B. Personal views

This article highlights the increasingly blurry line between work and personal life: quite often, employers are demanding employees are connected to work 24/7 through online connections, yet still attempt to monitor workers for 'time theft' at work. Furthermore, using the online format can be a professional skill that is an asset to the workplace. Banning workers from using Facebook but then trying to use their social networking skills to create a social networking site for the business seems counter-productive.

C. Workplace application

Workers should be judged by their output and fulfillment of their tasks, not 'baby sat' and banned from websites, unless the websites pose a real security risk to the nature of their work. Of course, if a worker is wasting time for hours on Facebook, he or she should be disciplined. But Facebook does have work applications and singling it out sends the wrong message to employees. Furthermore, one or two minutes spent 'surfing' the web is little different than having a few minutes of pleasant chatter with a colleague at a water cooler.

Professional judgment

A. Review

According to James Schmutte and James Duncan's 2009 article "Professional judgment: A model for accounting and auditing decisions" from the CPA Journal, the recent scandals in the accounting profession, and the more stringent legal regulations spawned by these scandals demand greater professional judgment and discretion on the part of accountants. "The auditor must employ judgment in using that information to identify the risks of material misstatements and develop an appropriate audit response. Professional judgment synthesizes the collection of information and the resulting conclusions" (Schmutte & Duncan 2009, p.1). An auditor, to be ethical when exercising his authority, cannot merely exist on automatic pilot, accepting the figures he or she has been given without question. Using past experiences and even common sense is a part of upholding the standards of the profession. The ethical demands of accounting extend beyond merely advancing the interests of the client.

B. Personal views

The issues of balancing the ethics of one's profession with the need to do one's job do not merely pertain to accounting, but touches upon all workers. For example: does a manager's duty merely lie in maximizing shareholder value, or does he or she have an ethical obligation to his or her employees to secure their welfare? Until recent regulations, accountants often placed their desire to please clients over their responsibility to the public to produce a valid audit. But even when not legally or professionally bound by a formal code of ethics, a worker should not be forced to put aside his or her own sense of integrity to serve his or her employer.

C. Workplace application

A worker should not be expected to do something unethical that violates common laws of decency as part of his or her employment: for example, he or she should not be required to lie about the environmental hazards of a product, or mislead shareholders about the solvency of a company. This is especially true if the worker could be legally liable for the 'fall out' after the lie is revealed. Professional judgment means using one's knowledge, and also one's human judgment to their fullest capacity in the workplace.

Greed

A. Review

There is perhaps no greater 'hot button' word in the American discourse today than greed according to Frank Ryan's 2009 article "Thoughts on civility and selfless sacrifice" from the Central Penn Business Journal. Excessive executive compensation, imprudent policies that put taxpayer money at risk, and outrage and the bailouts of large banks and automotive companies have all enraged the American public, turning them against big business and Wall Street. Frank states that corporate leaders, unions, and even employees of corporations have a responsibility as citizens, to citizens, and also to the future of capitalism as a whole. Americans have lost faith in the system, and even innocent companies will feel the pinch in terms of fundraising because of the actions of a few. Meanwhile, many have lost their jobs due to the inflated salaries and pensions negotiated at GM, or the speculative and fraudulent actions of bankers.