I’m studying to take the FE exam (for the 3rd time). Taking it this many times is ok, especially since the 1st time was forced to get an idea of the exam format, and the 2nd time I failed by a measly 2 points. Hopefully 3rd time’s a charm, cause I wouldn’t have any excuse except that I didn’t put enough effort into studying.
One of the subject is ethics. And though it is one of the few section of questions with multiple choice word answers, it is one of the hardest. With equations, you can always formulate a way to find an answer. With ethics, it seems, nearly every single one of the answers has been put into play by my company or a representative of a brand or manufacturer; therefore, any of them could be wrong or right.
For example:
Q: Which of the following could you accept within most codes of ethical behavior?
A:
a) a trip to the Bahamas from a vendor to learn about that vendor’s products (ok…seems some ppl accept this before. should you accept such a big, all-inclusive, paid trip?)
b) a pen-and-pencil set sent by a blueprint reproduction company (we always get calendars, pens, pencils, etc. now I’m starting to wonder if receiving gifts is a bad thing.)
c) a smoke Thanksgiving turkey sent by a previous client in gratitude for a previous successful job (sure, we get a few “congrats” and “thank yous”. we also get gifts during the holidays, but mainly from reps. are we to send back the food?)
d) a monetary incentive sent from a vendor in a counter where such incentives are legal and common (it doesn’t sound right to accept straight up money, right? this is the answer to choose, right? but we do receive donations for our charity projects.)
So can you guys figure out the right answer? It seems to me, there’s a gray area where many exceptions can be applied to the rule of ethics. How am I to distinguish what is seemingly MORE right than the other? Cause I’ve seen all those examples practiced within my profession.
The correct answer is c). Technically, any gift, no matter what the value and no matter whether the gift is legal or illegal, is unethical if it influences you or biases you toward the giver. a) b) and d) are all intended to gain favor for future work, where choice c) is a method of saying “thank you” for past work.
So am I supposed to say something when they give gifts? It is really THAT unethical to go be a whistleblower? Meh!
-KTP
Lindeburg, Michael R. FE Review Manual: Rapid Preparation for the General Fundamentals of Engineering Exam. Belmont, Calif.: Professional Publications, 2006. Print.
^^Had to google how to do a works cited, but had to give credit to the author of the question.
yes, you need to always say something when they give you gifts…..and that’s “thank you for the wonderful gift” =)
i see accepting gifts from vendors, much like receiving gifts from a girl (or guy depending on your sexual preference). when they give you a gift, and you already like them, its welcoming and doesn’t really change your mind about the person, just gives you more incentive to trust that your decision to be with them were satisfactory. where as if you didn’t like them initially, or felt awkward around them, and then they gave u a gift, you’d feel a little creeped out by it, and then want to say something. basically it encourages your gut feeling
As I think more about it, being ethical means that you shouldn’t have your gut feelings tested about a vendor or client. But when i interpret your example for the “Thank you” Turkey, it seems invalid, even with the other examples.
So in conclusion, just take what you can get…or don’t take any of it…apparently its all bad anyway
=P
and now proves why the ethics portion is hard =P
yeah, we accept gifts anyways. if they think it’ll persuade us one way or another, they’re wrong. in the end, we choose what is right for the project.
I’m kind of surprised these businesses have the money to do such “marketing” cause we always suggest steakhouses for lunch haha! jk. orr…