Which of the following, if true, most clearly makes Beatty’s action pr

QUESTION

Which of the following, if true, most clearly makes Beatty’s action professionally unsupportable?

A) The supplier’s low prices have helped the computer company remain competitive with rival companies in its local market.
B) The supplier needs continued business from the computer company to remain financially viable.
C) Beatty is not the only person responsible for recommending which bids to accept from suppliers.
D) Beatty’s work contract states that employees must report all gifts from people associated with firms with which they do business.
E) Rumor has it that other employees also received similar gift cards from the supplier and did not report them.

ANSWER

Answer: D
Explanation: D) Taking a gift from a supplier is morally suspect from the start, and work contracts or corporate policies often reinforce a firm’s commitment to ethics. In this case, Choice D shows that Beatty’s work contract explicitly addresses the issue of receiving gifts without reporting them, so accepting the card was unsupportable. Choices A and B offer motives for Beatty’s company and the supplier to stay on good terms, but they don’t ethically justify Beatty accepting the gift. Choice C makes the conflict of interest less direct by spreading responsibility for accepting bids, but the ethical issue still remains since Beatty is still part of the decision process. Choice E, if the rumor is true, simply offers an “everyone does it” excuse that has no moral standing.