Read the following case and answer the questions. You don't need to recopy the questions but you do need to number each answer.
Bill Gannon was a middle manager of a large manufacturer of lighting fixtures in Newark, New Jersey. Bill
had moved up the company ladder rather quickly and seemed destined for upper management in a few
years. Bill's boss, Dana Johnson, had been pressuring him about the semiannual reviews concerning
Robert Talbot, one of Bill's employees. Dana, it seemed, would not accept any negative comments on
Robert's evaluation forms. Bill had found out that a previous manager who had given Robert a bad
evaluation was no longer with the company. As Bill reviewed Robert's performance for the forthcoming
evaluation period, he found many areas of subpar performance. Moreover, a major client had called
recently complaining that Robert had filled a large order improperly and then had been rude to the client
when she called to complain.
Case Study Questions
1. What ethical issues does the situation raise?
2. What courses of action could Bill take? Describe the ethics of each course.
3. Should Bill confront Dana? Dana's boss? Explain you answer.
4. What would you do in this situation? What are the ethical implications?