Question

Imagine that you are a manager in a large entity and need to make a recommendation to the CEO on which tender to accept. The job being put out to tender by the entity is worth millions of dollars, and you have a significant ownership share in one of the companies tendering. Outline the ethical issues to be considered. (7 marks. Word limit: minimum 120 to maximum 150 words)

Answer 1

Outline the ethical issues to be considered.

Answer.

The issues to consider are independence, conflict of interest, objectivity and integrity. In your position as manager, you need to act in the best interests of the company and make an independent and objective assessment as to which of the tendering companies should be given the tender. If the company in which the manager had an interest won the tender, there may be doubts from others as to whether it was because it was the best tender or because there was bias in the decision-making process. It would be best for the manager to declare his interest and to step back from the decision.