Response to case study scenario 1

I would choose NOT to IGNORE the problem. Ignoring these test results and allowing a potentially unsafe product to enter the consumer market would mean I had not carried out my job properly and would put myself in liable situation, if there were any legal actions taken by a consumer regarding safety.
My decision is based from experience with working on a testing line for smoke alarms. Although a manual job which tested the basic circuit configuration, I noticed a design flaw in the casing which could cause strain to be put on a wire to the alarm component, potentially resulting in the alarm not working.
Even though it was not my job to report design issues, I felt it was my duty to alert someone in a position to do something about it as this could have a potential affect on the customer.

Although the probability of any potential danger with the Flash drive is low, the company is still releasing a product into the customers hands with a known problem, this is the same as selling a second hand car knowing the brakes don't work very well, thus putting someone else in an unsafe situation. In the event of a serious injury or even a death through the result of the known fault in the flash drive, this would make the company liable or even tried for manslaughter in a court of law. This would forever damage the companies reputation and hinder its ability to be competitive for sometime.

As a Jnr Engineer I am in no position to recall the batch myself, the course of action I would take is as follows:

• Write a formal brief outlining my findings on the fault with the flash drive and justification on why the batch should be recalled.
• Hand the brief to my manager, Even though he has already told me to ignore the problem, the brief will act as formal evidence if there are any internal political issues to do with accountability should any legal action be taken by the customer.
• Copy the brief to Snr management who can make the decision on whether to recall the batch or not.
• Call a meeting with my manager, business manager and customer relations manager to review my report and whether to contact the customer to notify them of the potential risk.

The report will include:

• Evidence that the flash drive is unsafe- The test results.
• My justification for recalling the batch- That this is a potentially harmful product that could damage the companies reputation.
• Plan of action- Recall the batch, supply the customer with a proven batch of flash drives or provide a different model that is safe.

This will look like I have gone over my managers head, but not all managers make decisions based on what is ethically right. Many management decisions are made on how to hit the right targets and maximize profit, without delay.
I can understand my managers decision not to take action as this will make the company look bad in the eyes of the customer and potential customers by not delivering on time and producing faulty products which will ultimately put more pressure on him from his manager. But if the company was to be seen to be releasing knowingly unsafe products to consumers, this would be far more damaging to profits and action could be taken by trading standards.
As an employee I have a duty to do my job correctly which effects the over all success of the company, this is in my best interest because: "The success of an engineer's employer bears directly upon the prospects of the engineer" quoted from IEEE transactions ISSN: 0536-1516