OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Ethical Communities Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the four ethical communities
2. Apply the ethical communities to your personal case situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

T-Mobile is known for prioritizing customer satisfaction over commissions by investing

in their employees during their Mobile Expert training process. The organizations values and
reputation played a huge role in my decision to apply to work there. However after
completing the Moblie Expert training and was placed into my “Home” store the focus
shifted from finding the best solution for customers to maximizing sales by recommending
bundled product offerings with limited pricing details. This approach, driven by my
manager's perspective, exceeded store metrics despite not aligning with corporate guidelines.
While I was expecting a different style of leadership, it reflected the manager's commitment
to achieving organizational goals.

2) Describe how the ethics of the organization influenced the situation.

The ethics of T-Mobile had a large role in shaping the situation. The organization has made a

very public ethical commitment to prioritizing customer satisfaction. This is carried out by

investing more into Mobile Expert training. T-Mobile's reputation as an organization relies

heavily on being ethically sound. However after Mobile Experts are sent are sent out to retail

locations there is much less focus on adhering to the ethical standards of the organization. Just

like in this scenario my manager's approach prioritized closing sales over ethical considerations.

It is completely against the core values of T-Mobile to push bundled product offerings without

providing complete pricing details to customers.

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 During the Mobile Expert training we were all taught that being transparent is the only way

to sell.This misalignment between the retail locations actions and the organization's core ethics is

highlighted clearly. Small deviations can occur within retail locations but when it comes to

unethical behaviors like this, action must be taken within the organization. This situation

highlighted the need for stronger ethical leadership at the store level to ensure alignment with the

organization's ethical principles.

3) Recommend how you would apply one of the ethical communities for an alternative
course of action regarding your case.

In order to address the ethical misalignment that was occurring within T-Mobile, I would

recommend reframing the human resource frame. By implementing a proper strategy for this

frame it will help distinguish the importance of having a sense of community (Bolman & Deal,

2021). This approach encourages authorship, love, power and significance. It will also help

promote adhering to the ethical values within the organization, which should act as a powerful

influencer of behavior.

T-Mobile needs to invest in leadership training for management. There is a large focus on

training of Mobile Experts but there are not any ethics training programs available for store

managers. These programs should not only reinforce the company's commitment to customer

centric ethics but also provide practical guidance on how to implement these principles in daily

interactions. This will help create a strong ethical community from the top down. Where all

employees understand and embrace the company's ethical values.

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 T-Mobile should also consider establishing an ethics committee that is consists of

representatives from various all different levels and departments within the organization. It

would serve as a platform to discuss and addressing ethical challenges faced by employees. It

would also act as a mechanism to report unethical behavior without fear of retaliation.

Maintaining a strong ethical community is key to ensuring that deviations from the organization's

ethical standards are quickly identified and addressed.

Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about ethics.

Reflecting on what I've learned about the ethical frame, I should have been more
proactive in promoting ethical behavior within the organization. Being more vocal about the
lack of ethics within my retail store. If that was not enough I should have then started to keep
track and report the violations to corporate. Hopefully then upper management would have
intervened.

Even though I was not in a management position it should have been more important for

me to lead by example. To not only set the tone for the organization but also encourage others to

follow. Having ethics in sales is not a one time decision. It is a continuous commitment. Ethics

as a key cornerstone of effective leadership and longterm organizational success. That is why it

should be integrated into every aspect of a leadership approach.

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 Reference
Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(7th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass