1. Joint Engineers Conference Making Ethical Decisions in Engineering Stephen Smith, P.E. stephen@StephenSmithConsulting.com

2. Ethics = ?? Do the right thing. Do no harm. Comply with the law. Be honest. Black and white vs. grey areas. Does intent or result matter?

3. Engineers Creed As a Professional Engineer, I dedicate my professional knowledge and skill to the advancement and betterment of human welfare. I pledge: – To give the utmost of performance; – To participate in none but honest enterprise; – To live and work according to the laws of man and the highest standards of professional conduct; – To place service before profit, the honor and standing of the profession before personal advantage, and the public welfare above all other considerations. In humility and with need for Divine Guidance, I make this pledge. Adopted by National Society of Professional Engineers, June 1954 http://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code- ethics/engineers-creed

4. NSPE Code of Ethics for Engineers Fundamental Canons Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall: 1. Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public. 2. Perform services only in areas of their competence. 3. Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner. 4. Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees. 5. Avoid deceptive acts. 6. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession. http://www.nspe.org/sites/default/files/resources/pdfs/Ethics/CodeofEt hics/Code-2007-July.pdf

5. Ethics and Human Nature Want to be ethical vs. be accepted Want to please vs. bad news Now vs. later Not my problem Effort vs. ease (lazy) Profit (greedy)

6. Ethical Dilemmas Cost vs. safety – Busy traffic intersection in small city – Stop signs least cost, but more accidents likely – Traffic lights more costly, fewer accidents, more delay – Roundabout most costly, least accidents and delay How does engineer decide?

7. Ethical Dilemmas Energy vs. climate – If you think human caused CO 2 emissions are damaging our climate, – Is it ethical to design a coal fired power plant?

8. Ethical Dilemmas Making the least bad choice… – Choose between fossil CO2 emissions vs. windmills that kill raptors Forced decisions with limited data… – Human behaviors – Earthquake loads – Climate change responses

9. Ethical Dilemmas Engineers and Politics – Data vs. belief – Obligation to be involved? – “The world is run by those who show up.” Journal of Management in Engineering, July 1997, Vol. 13, No. 4 : pp. 61-66 Leadership: The World Is Run by Those Who Show Up. Weingardt, R. (doi: 10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(1997)13:4(61))

10. Ethical Dilemmas When to blow the whistle? – Consider General Motors and their ignition switch issues 1.As a design engineer, if you know about the problem and have reported it to your boss and nothing happens, what do you do? 2.As a supervisory engineer, you know about the problem and production manager says not a problem, what do you do? 3.Knowing that whistle blowing is likely professional suicide, when must you blow anyway?

11. Ethical (Non) Motivators VA Hospitals—Bonuses for short wait lists – Intent—Promptly schedule patients for care – Result—Secret lists not reflecting true wait times Others??

12. How To Promote Ethical Behavior Recommendations from Morality Rebooted: Exploring simple Fixes to Our Moral Bugs, T. Zhang, F. Gino, & M Bazerman, April 21, 2014. – Download from website: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Publication%20Files/ 14-105_67d79182-6bf2-404e-a049- 6544c916fc8d.pdf http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Publication%20Files/ 14-105_67d79182-6bf2-404e-a049- 6544c916fc8d.pdf Values and structures oriented approaches

13. Strategy for Ethical Behaviors Emphasize moral values – Values and mission statements – Ethical standards – Moral self concepts We want to be good – Ethical perceptions flexible Reflect environment, peers, organization Like “white lies”, unintended or little ethical lapses accumulate, resulting in unethical behavior

14. Strategy for Ethical Behaviors Structural approaches – Audits Increase likelihood of being caught Give credibility to values – Penalties Impose consequences appropriate to acts Give credibility to values – Commitment before action Face ethical issues before they are real. Use SOPs, project planning, team approach

15. Strategy for Ethical Behaviors Alignment of values with structure – Impossible goals (“Why try?”) No child left behind 90% billable time – Short term goal versus values Profit versus reputation Individual goal versus group values – Discuss, emphasize, consistent, frequent, culture – Lead by example – Conflict between values and policies encourages unethical behavior.

16. Resources Online Ethics Center for Engineering and Research at: http://www.onlineethics.org/http://www.onlineethics.org/ NSPE Ethics website: www.nspe.org/ethics/www.nspe.org/ethics/ YouTube Engineering Ethics—Many!! Many more: google “engineering ethics” And the final best resource—your family! Tell spouse, parents, children about what you are doing and see how you and they feel.

17. Thank you. Stephen Smith, P.E. Helena, MT stephen@StephenSmithConsulting.com (406)449-6216