Question

A U.S. Department of Defense official has made it clear that, for a generous contribution, he would make sure your firm wins a hefty defense contract. In this situation, what "ethics check question" should you consider first?

Answer 1

Answer:

You should think about fair competition.

Explanation:

The ethics question here would be: Is the contribution I'm willing to pay to get the contract a bribery? So, if there are better firms than mine but they don't have the money to pay the contribution, does it mean I get preferential treatment because I can afford it? Wouldn't it be considered unfair by many?

This a common practice in business and although seen morally wrong by many, it is the only way to ensure some contracts are signed. People who advocate this way of dealing with allocating contracts say that it is a fair way, everybody has the opportunity in life to make money and some people would always make more than others. Critics say that it's unfair, especially for smaller firms and developing companies, as their chances to win big contracts are being reduced drastically.