Ethical Dilemmas

While we all wish for projects to complete without any problems arising, that is completely unrealistic when it comes to larger scale projects that involve a large number people and stakeholders, and any amount of money. There is a plethora of ethical dilemmas that can occur within a project, whether it be negatively impacting the environment, endangering the well-being of team members, or challenging the legal compliance. With all of these issues in mind, it is on the project manager to ensure that the ethical dilemmas are being assessed in a proper and unbiased way.

Project managers have a responsibility, not only to themselves, but also to the people in the organization, to be honest and transparent with the actions happening within the project. They should never alter project reports or purposely misrepresent any information that is open to the workers, stakeholders, or the public. Additionally, some information is meant to be confidential and should not be released if specified. If a manager/worker is caught tampering or leaking information, that should be red flag that something is happening behind the scenes and the worker should be reported. Conflicts of interest are super common in the workspace and should always be looked for.

Lastly, the project managers are responsible for diversity and inclusivity. A project worker should not ever feel excluded from work activities due to their race, gender, religion, sexual identity, etc. It is up to the project manager to punish workers who violate the ethical code of conduct even of it means letting go of them. All in all, project managers should take accountability for their actions and always do what’s best for the project, rather than themselves.