Business Ethics: Case Study Format

Please read the case study on the page 137 in your textbook and answer three questions for this case on the same page then submit 1-2 page paper (case study) analyzing the decisions and behavior of Connor. Please use the format below as an outline for your work:

Business Ethics:  Case Study Format

            In doing a case study, you must show that you are familiar with the facts and details of the case under consideration.  The case study should also show that you understand not only who the principal characters are, but that you also understand who are the parties affected by the events, i.e., all the parties affected, both directly and indirectly.  An ethical case study focuses on an event or decision which involves an ethical or moral dilemma.  Therefore, it is important in a case study to point out the moral values that seem most central to the issue under discussion.  And finally, a thorough case study should clarify what choices were open to the central person or persons involved — in other words, what possible paths could they have taken, and what are the possible outcomes that might have ensued from each possible decision.  In light of this, your case study should have at least one paragraph or section on the following topics:

1. Facts What are the significant facts and details of the case?  You should list the main facts and events that are needed to explain the case to someone who knows nothing about it.  To put it bluntly, without facts ethical analysis isnt worth a can of beans.  You must first clearly show that you understand what happened, who did what, when they did it, and, if possible, why they did it.  Do not be too verbose here, i.e., do not spend three pages talking about the facts.  In a paragraph or two, try to provide a snapshot that gives the overall picture.
2. Obligations/Stakeholders  Who are the stakeholders in the case?  In other words, who will be harmed and who will benefit by the actions which are taken?  Another way to assess this is to ask: what obligations do the principal actors have?  To whom are they answerable?  To whom do they owe loyalty?  Who is affected, both directly and indirectly, by the events and actions which transpire?
3. Moral Values Another way of looking at an ethical dilemma is to ask what moral values are at stake?  If someone may be harmed, what kind of harm might be expected to occur?  What moral values are at stake?
4. Choices and Outcomes This is the section where you show your creativity and intelligence by pointing out all the possible choices open to the main character in the ethical drama.  What could he or she do, and just as importantly, what will be the possible outcomes of various decisions?
5. Your personal decision Finally, you should indicate, in light of the above facts and analysis, what you think is the best possible path of action to take.  In other words, what would you do, or what you would have done, under the circumstances.  You should indicate why you would make this choice: what are the moral or ethical considerations which lead you to your decision.