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Johnson, Organizational Ethics 3e, © 2015 – Instructor Resources
Case Study 9.1
Helping Harvard Medical School Make the Grade
Case Synopsis and Analysis
Students at Harvard Medical School became concerned that pharmaceutical money was biasing
the information their professors were presenting in class. They convinced administrators to adopt
stronger conflict of interest policies at the same time the U.S. Senate held hearings on the matter.
Other medical schools have also put stricter limits on relationships between faculty and drug
companies and medical device manufacturers. However, some students and faculty claim that
medical school ties to the biomedical industry produce more good than harm.
Harvard students took a significant risk in confronting faculty and administrators. Their
willingness as followers to offer dissent led to significant changes.
Learning Objectives
*Students will determine proper limits on the relationship between the biomedical
industry and medical faculty.
*Students will reflect on their own attempts to express dissent in the classroom.
Discussion Guide
Case Study 9.2
GM’s Deadly Ignition Switch
Case Analysis and Synopsis
For over a decade employees at General Motors knew of problems with the ignition switch on
several of its small car models. The switch would accidently turn off, shutting down the car.
However, the firm did not issue a recall for nearly a dozen years, in large part because followers
in a variety of departments failed to speak up while others tried to cover up the problem. At least
13 deaths are attributed to crashes involving the faulty switch. Even when a recall was issued,
the firm refused to urge owners to park their vehicles until they could be repaired.
Johnson, Organizational Ethics 3e, © 2015 – Instructor Resources
Followers at GM failed to deliver bad news, which would have prevented the loss of life. If the
company is to improve its safety record, employees must share information across divisions and
with their leaders. Unfortunately, company leaders still appear more interested in saving money
than in saving lives.
Learning Objectives
*Students will recognize the personal moral responsibility of followers to speak up when
they discover problems.
*Students will identify strategies that large organizations can use to break down
organizational silos and to help followers deliver bad news.
Discussion Guide
Case Study 9.3
Blowing the Whistle on the NSA
Case Synopsis and Analysis
Civilian defense contractor Edward Snowden blew the whistle on the National Security
Administration (NSA) by releasing hundreds of thousands of top-secret documents. The material
revealed that the NSA is spying on U.S. citizens and foreigners alike. U.S. allies were outraged
and Congress and the President tightened restrictions on intelligence gathering. Snowden
considers himself a patriot, as do a number of news organizations and privacy advocates.
However, many government officials call him a traitor. His passport was revoked and he was
forced to take asylum in Russia. He faces charges under the Espionage Act.
Snowden was aware of the risks but decided to act, convinced that the world needed to know the
truth about the agency’s intelligence gathering program. The former analyst continues to suffer
as a result of his decision to blow the whistle on the NSA.
Learning Objectives
*Students will determine if the costs of government surveillance outweigh the benefits.
*Students will determine if Snowden should be considered a patriot or traitor.
Johnson, Organizational Ethics 3e, © 2015 – Instructor Resources
*Students will apply chapter whistleblowing standards to determine if Snowden was
justified in blowing the whistle on the NSA.
Discussion Guide
