10. Evaluation

Summary Notes

Topics

1. Evaluation
2. Evaluation: Ethics
3. Ethical Evaluation Process: Five P's
4. Example: Holiday Gift

Ongoing process throughout lifetime of project

Goals and accomplishment should be reevaluated to ensure that all were met before moving on to another project aspect

Important to conduct a Potential Problem Analysis before carrying through solution

• Can prevent many failures from happening in the first place
• Requires use of quantitative and qualitative judgments

	Is the solution logical?
	Does the solution solve the real problem?
	Is the problem permanently solved, or is this a patchwork solution?
	Are all the criteria and constraints satisfied?
	Does the solution have impact?
	Is the solution economically, environmentally, politically, and ethically responsible and safe?
	Have you used the 9 types of Socratic questions, e.g., have you challenged the information and assumptions provided?
	Have all the consequences of the solution been examined, e.g., does it cause other more serious problems?
	Have you argued both sides-the positive and the negative?
	Has the solution accomplished all it could?
	Is the solution is blunder-free.
	Have the procedure and logic of the arguments been checked.

• Often times, problem solutions are not always black and white with regard to ethics, but are a shade of grey.
• Ethical issues can arise in all aspects of life: workplace, academia, day-to-day life
• Ethics are highly unique from person to person and can vary based on:

Age

Gender

Race/Nationality

Socioeconomic background/social status

The Four Classical Virtues^†

Seebauer and Barry provide a simple model for the origin of moral action (emotions and mind feeding into will, decisions and actions) and then discusses how these depend upon four classical virtues:

Prudence:	Thinking about a moral problem clearly and completely.
Temperance:	Avoiding either being rash or suppressing our emotions.
Fortitude:	Helping us to avoid moving blindly away from something we do not like.
Justice:	Having the will to act in truth on the way things actually are and to act with fairness to all concerned.

After discussing the virtues in detail the authors put forth the principle "People should always decide and act according to these virtues as far as possible." A number of examples are given that show how these can apply. Seebauer and Barry describe another way to look at the ethical decision making process as a "four component model".

1. Sensing the presence of moral issues. (I had not thought about...)
2. Reasoning through the moral issues. (The 4 virtues)
3. Making a decision.
4. Following through on the decision.

† Seebauer, Edmund G. and Robert L. Barry, Fundamentals of Ethics for Scientists and Engineers, Oxford University Press, New York, 2007.

Guidelines from Blanchard and Peale^††

The "Ethics Check" Questions

1. Is it legal? Will I be violating either civil law or company policy?
2. Is it balanced? Is it fair to all concerned in the short term as well as the long term? Does it promote win-win relationships?
3. How will it make me feel about myself? Will it make me proud? Would I feel good if my decision were published in the newspaper? Would I feel good if my family knew about it?

• Purpose: What is the objective for which you are striving? Are you comfortable with that as your purpose? Does your purpose hold up when you look at yourself in the mirror?
• Pride: Can you take pride in the solution you have developed? Is there any false pride or self-doubt involved?
• Patience: Have you taken the time to think through all the ramifications of your solution?
• Persistence: Are you sticking to your guns and not being dissuaded by other demands? Have you given up too soon on finding a solution that is fair and balanced to all concerned?
• Perspective: Have you taken the time to focus inside yourself to be sure everything fits with your ideals and beliefs? How does the solution fit into the "Big Picture?"

Interrelationship Between Five P's

Perspective is the inner guidance gained from the other P's that allows us to see the issue more clearly.

††Blanchard, Kenneth and Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Ethical Management, Ballantine Books, Fawcett Crest, New York, Copyright by Blanchard Family Partnership and Norman Vincent Peale, 1988.

Henry is in a position to influence the selection of suppliers for the large volume of equipment that his firm purchases each year. At Holiday time, he usually receives small tokens from several salesmen, ranging from inexpensive ballpoint pens to a bottle of liquor. This year, however, one salesman sends an expensive briefcase stamped with Henry's initials. This gift is very much out of the ordinary.

Should Henry:

1. Keep the case, on the grounds that his judgment will not be affected in any way?
2. Keep the case, since it would only cause embarrassment all around if the case were returned?
3. Return the case?
4. Other? (Please specify)

Holiday Gift: 5 P's

Purpose: Ask yourself what you would do if you were in Henry's shoes to remain unbiased in selecting the best supplier for a given job.
Pride: Would you feel pride in accepting the case or pride in returning the case? Patience: Set aside a time to think about whether or not you should accept the case. Talk to someone whose judgment you trust.
Persistence: Have you pursued all avenues to resolve either keeping or returning the case?
Perspective: Even if you feel your judgment will not be affected by accepting the case, how will it appear to other colleagues? Are you setting a good example?

Holiday Gift: Opinions of Others

The following is the response to a reader survey carried out by Chemical Engineering Magazine (p. 132, Sept. 1980.). We note the majority of the people, 64.9%, thought the case should be returned. However, 27.7% of those under the age of 26 thought it would be OK to keep the case.

			U.S. % by Age			% Non - U.S.
Option	Total % Responding	Total U.S. %	>26	26 - 50	<50	Brit/Can	Others
1.	20.1	19.7	27.7	17.9	15.4	14.6	39.0
2.	3.4	3.3	4.9	2.8	3.1	4.9	4.8
3.	64.9	65.8	56.9	68.1	67.6	61.0	43.8
4.	9.8	9.5	9.0	9.8	12.1	18.3	11.0

Comments by the Responders:

1. "Keep the case and really not be affected by it, which means that the next Holiday you're back on ball point pens."
2. "As a procurement agent on a limited scale, I have heard of colleagues receiving Porsches. The gifts only get bigger if you accept the first. Eventually, it will affect your judgment."
3. "I sometimes feel guilty accepting a gift knowing that the giver won't get anything out of it. But I won't be bribed."
4. "My price is very much higher than a briefcase. As a matter of fact it is so high that it would not be profitable to meet it."
5. "Henry risks being fired for a crummy $80 briefcase. That's the trouble, it's never two fully paid round-trip tickets to Hawaii, it's always cheap junk."

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