However, the memo states that there is evidence 1/1,000 people "may react poorly to the drug and fall into a coma." There is no certainty this will happen, there is no way to isolate the mechanism in time. You know that the company has spent millions on this, and any delay in the launch will be fiscally catastrophic. What do you do: ignore the memo, write a note to your supervisor and then forget it, or take it public? The courageous thing would be to first try to stop the launch internally; knowing the situation, though, it might be best to have a backup plan to get the information out onto the Internet should something "strange" happen to you.
Value: Compassion is a human emotion, like empathy, that allows us to feel what others are feeling and have a desire to help them.
Review: In the 21st century, we know the workplace has changed dramatically from even two decades previous. We as a society are far more aware of diversity, personal issues, and the need to provide an appropriate psychological environment in order to train, manage, and engender loyal employees. In a world, though, where advanced technology causes a merging of various cultural ideas, what is the key to keeping the workplace "human?"
Authors Mujtaba, Griffin and Oskal (2004) believe that it is actual the core moral and ethical values of the basic moral philosophies of life that will do so -- character -- what you do when no one is watching, building trust, compassion for the needy or underdog, empathy for those who are not getting something as quickly as you. Kindness- the ability to "treat others as you would be treated. All this, they say, will make the technological workplace more productive, retain more high-quality talent, and help bridge the gap between what is "human" and what is "technology."
Personal Opinion: This seems like a true paradigm shift from the 1980s and 1990s in when it was the norm to enter the corporate world and expect a "dog eat dog" kind of mentality. Instead, it seems...
Your team works together quite well, each an expert in their own function; however, your graphics person has been missing days, meetings, and just not performing up to the standards of the group -- even to the point in which the group has started to grumble. Meeting with this employee, you finally find out that their spouse has cancer, and has been undergoing expensive chemotherapy, all of which are not covered by the company's insurance based on a clause about preexisting conditions. Your employee had no choice but to take a second, night job, just to keep things going. What do you do? Fire the employee and bring in someone who can devote 100% to the team? Transfer the employee out of your group, which will probably stigmatize them within the company? Find another solution. The compassionate manager would call a meeting with the Human Resources Department to see if anyone could intercede with the insurance company, and if not, since this was a long-term employee, figure out a way to advance 401(k) or vacation leave, etc. To alleviate the burden. Second, use the company's resources to provide psychological counseling; bring the group together and do some bonding and see if you can recreate the team through empathy.
REFERENCES
Costello, M., et.al. (2002). "Preparing Students for the Empowered Workplace."
Active Learning in Higher Education. 3 (2): 117-127.
Mujtaba, B. (2004). "Emerging Ethical Issues in Technology." The Journal of Applied
Management and Entrepreneurship. 9 (3): 34.
Streeter, W. (2007). "Courage in the Cubicle." ABA Banking Journal. 99 (11): 4.
