ETHICS IN SYSTEMS ENGINEERING

Abstract. Systems are growing larger and larger and are taking over the running of many facets of modern society, such as Automated Traffic Handling Systems, Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems, and Air Traffic Control Systems. A failure in one of these systems can cause economic damage, as well as loss of life. An engineer who discovers such a problem or even the probability of such a problem faces an ethical dilemma concerning what to about the discovery. This paper discusses personal and corporate ethics in systems engineering; the ethical dilemma faced by a systems engineer and the possible consequences of abiding by one's principles. PERSONAL ETHICS Personal ethics deals with the way you relate to the organization and to the people you work with. There are two golden rules within an organization (Kasser 1995) which prescribe the way people behave, namely: (1) They who have the gold make the rules. Deals with satisfying the customer. Your internal principles (Covey 1989) must not be violated by any process you have to endure to satisfy the customer during the course of your career in an organization. The customer may be external, or internal (upper management). (2) Treat others the way you'd like to be treated. Deals with interpersonal relationships within the organization. Effective systems engineering is based on team work. You may be the world's finest engineer, but if you can't work on a team, the organization will have little use for you. CORPORATE ETHICS The goal of a corporation is to make a profit within the operational framework of its environment, the law, suppliers, customers, and its employees. However, there are often: • Tendencies to take short cuts to maximize profit; • Personal biases