Ethics in Sharing Employee Information
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When an employee leaves a company and is hired by the competition, there can be a question of what type of knowledge that employee can ethically share with the new company. According to the text, “One helpful approach is to measure your choices against standards.” (Bovee, Thill and Mescon, 70). Ethics are the moral principles that guide an indivuals behavior in life. A person whose intent is honest should have few problems making an ethical decision. A business that hires workers from its competitors should also be honest with their hiring practices. If the companys intent is unethical, it puts the new employee in a precarious situation. Companies looking to hire from the competition should also refrain from putting their new-hires in unethical situations, as well. If upper management of a company is ethical in their dealings the likelihood of their subbordinates using ethical behavior is high.
Starting a new job can be hard. Learning how a new company wants things done is important to keeping and advancing in the company. If an employee is routinely questioned about how the other company did certain things the new employee should ask his or herself if they can live with sharing any knowledge they have acquired from their previous employer. Simple things that involve productivity or time management would not be an issue. However, if it is the financial situation of the previous company, and that knowledge would benefit the new company that would be unethical. Likewise, strategies for combating employee burnout or turnover would be okay to discuss. Discussing any programs such as employee sponsored daycare or tuition reimbursement would be ethical since those programs are not limited to just one particular company. I believe a good indicator would be to never share any information that is owned or trademarked by your previous employer. Also, sharing information about former coworkers personal matters can be considered unethical, especially if that knowledge can be used as a tool or leverage in competing for contracts.
When dealing with ethical issues one must make sure that they are not holding onto any biases from their old employer. If an employee feels they were treated unfairly by a previous manager they may not look at their ethical dillema in an honest way. It can be very easy to justify unethical behavior due to unresolved issues of the past. An employee should always make sure that when they are faced with an ethical dillema that they are honest about why they are making the decision to share their knowledge.
Using the Golden Rule is a good idea when an issue of ethics is involved. Doing unto others what we would want done to us is a good way of dealing with ethical decisions. If the new employee puts themselves in the place of the previous employer and thinks about what knowledge they would want given to their competitors, it makes the decision even easier. If the knowledge would do