Professionalism

WHAT IS A PROFESSION?
•No universally accepted definition, but
one good working definition is:
Occupation requiring a set of knowledge and skills through
formal higher education and/or practical experience such
as medicine, law, engineering, teaching, etc.

A profession is also prepared to apply this knowledge and

exercise these skills in the interest of others.

profession is governed by its respective professional body.

 What is a professional?
• A professional is a member of a profession or any
person who earns their living from a specified
professional activity.
• Someone Possesses specialized knowledge and
skills
• Belongs to and abides by the standards of a
society
• Serves an important aspect of the public good
 Other definitions

• Must satisfy two general criteria

•
(1) Attain high standards of achievement in
education, job performance, and creativity.
•(2) Accept moral responsibilities to the
public, their employers, clients, colleagues,
and assistants.
 What is Professionalism?
• Professionalism is the behavior that is
demonstrated by someone who is a professional in
her or his field.
• Describes a certain type of behavior in the
workplace
• Based on our values and understanding of our
professional roles
• People also have an expectation of what
professionalism looks like because it is based on a
role that is created and understood by those in the
field.
 Ethics as Relating to Engineering
Engineering often is based on Preventative Ethics
which is based on two dimensions:
1. Engineers must be able to think ahead to
anticipate possible consequences of their
professional actions.

2. Engineers must be able to think effectively

about those consequences and decide what is
the ‘ethically’ correct manner to handle the
situation.
What is a professional engineer?
• Has a bachelor’s degree in engineering
from an accredited school

• Performs engineering work

• Is a registered P.E.

• Acts in a morally responsible way while

practicing engineering
• Skill, capability in work
• Relational element – work will be
beneficial to others
Remember: Work itself doesn’t have moral status
but Execution of work has moral status
How is Professionalism Judged?
• Against a set of expectations or standards
• From our own personal values set and
understanding of what “professionalism”
means
• May be situational in nature
• Strongly influenced by culture
Professionalism is Determined By
• Our Image
• Our Communication
• Our Capability
• Our Behavior
From the Client’s Perspective
• Trustworthy
• Competent (knowledgeable)
• Empathetic (concerned)
• Respectful
• Caring
Unprofessional Behavior - Clients
• Non-beneficial relationships
• Inappropriate communication
• Inappropriate self-disclosure (reveals
information about himself or herself to another.).
• Exploitation – the action of making use of and benefiting from
resources, money, gifts

• Breaches of confidentiality
From the Co-Workers Perspective
• Trustworthy
• Competent
• Supportive
• Respectful
• Accountable
 Unprofessional Behavior -
Coworkers
• Inappropriate relationships
• Disengagement – texting, inappropriate
use of internet, phoning
• Provision of misleading information
• Disrespect
Qualities and Characteristics
of a Professional
 Competent  Courteous (well mannered )
 Trustworthy  Dependable
 Respectful  Cooperative
 Act with Integrity  Committed
 Considerate
 Sympathetic
 Always do your best.
What you plant now, you will
harvest later.

Og Mandino
American author

‫وعلى قدر عطائك في الحياة تأتيك ثمارها‬

Expectations of Professional
Team Members
Work place issues

• Functional Trust
• Mutual Respect
• Open Communication
 Functional Trust
• Be Honest
• Use Good Judgment
• Be Consistent
• Be Honest in Non-verbal Communications
• Have a Mutually Beneficial Attitude
 Mutual respect
• All people have an equal need for respect
• Respect is the basic foundation of all
healthy personal relationships
• Each team member is equally important
• Each team member’s work is equally
important
 Open Communication
• Team members talk to each other about
issues directly
• All team members avoid the BF (best friend).
• Supportive feedback is given generously
• Corrective feedback is helpful, considerate
and positive