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160 Part One Organizations, Management, and the Networked Enterprise

the decisions you make. Accountability is a feature of systems and social institu-
tions: It means that mechanisms are in place to determine who took responsible
action, and who is responsible. Systems and institutions in which it is impossible
to find out who took what action are inherently incapable of ethical analysis or
ethical action. Liability extends the concept of responsibility further to the area
of laws. Liability is a feature of political systems in which a body of laws is in place
that permits individuals to recover the damages done to them by other actors,
systems, or organizations. Due process is a related feature of law-governed soci-
eties and is a process in which laws are known and understood, and there is an
ability to appeal to higher authorities to ensure that the laws are applied correctly.
These basic concepts form the underpinning of an ethical analysis of infor-
mation systems and those who manage them. First, information technologies
are filtered through social institutions, organizations, and individuals. Systems
do not have impacts by themselves. Whatever information system impacts exist
are products of institutional, organizational, and individual actions and behav-
iors. Second, responsibility for the consequences of technology falls clearly on
the institutions, organizations, and individual managers who choose to use the
technology. Using information technology in a socially responsible manner
means that you can and will be held accountable for the consequences of your
actions. Third, in an ethical, political society, individuals and others can recover
damages done to them through a set of laws characterized by due process.

ETHICAL ANALYSIS

When confronted with a situation that seems to present ethical issues, how
should you analyze it? The following five-step process should help:

1. Identify and describe the facts clearly. Find out who did what to whom, and
where, when, and how. In many instances, you will be surprised at the errors
in the initially reported facts, and often you will find that simply getting the
facts straight helps define the solution. It also helps to get the opposing parties
involved in an ethical dilemma to agree on the facts.
2. Define the conflict or dilemma and identify the higher-order values involved. Ethical,
social, and political issues always reference higher values. The parties to a
dispute all claim to be pursuing higher values (e.g., freedom, privacy, protection
of property, and the free enterprise system). Typically, an ethical issue involves
a dilemma: two diametrically opposed courses of action that support
worthwhile values. For example, the chapter-ending case study illustrates two
competing values: the need to improve health care record keeping and the need
to protect individual privacy.
3. Identify the stakeholders. Every ethical, social, and political issue has stakehold-
ers: players in the game who have an interest in the outcome, who have
invested in the situation, and usually who have vocal opinions. Find out the
identity of these groups and what they want. This will be useful later when
designing a solution.

4. Identify the options that you can reasonably take. You may find that none of the
options satisfy all the interests involved, but that some options do a better job
than others. Sometimes arriving at a good or ethical solution may not always be
a balancing of consequences to stakeholders.
5. Identify the potential consequences of your options. Some options may be ethically
correct but disastrous from other points of view. Other options may work in one
instance but not in other similar instances. Always ask yourself, “What if I
choose this option consistently over time?”

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