Question

Discuss whether it is ethical for a leader to go undercover at work? Why or why not? At what point should they tell the employee who they are? If they observe something that goes against the company’s mission, which conflict intention/style would you suggest they use?

Answer 1

In any organization, people work to achieve their individual & organizational goals. To achieve various goals all members of the organization work in different departments & with different responsibilities. To execute their work & fulfill their responsibility they need to work with, believe in each other & cooperate with each other. In such situations, the moral & ethical principles play a key role in binding all of them together with the mission to achieve the goals. Values of trust, cooperation, respect & empathy are required to have adhered while executing their respective jobs.

The moral principles & ethical values build up a supporting atmosphere for all employees to work with full potential & loyalty. But when a leader goes undercover at the workplace then it could violate the ethical value of trust between employees & the leader or superior. The relationship between the employer & employee needs to be very good, cooperative & trustworthy so that the full potential & loyalty of employees can be harnessed for the greater good of the organization & all linked to it.

Being undercover - also highlights the lack of communication between the employer & employees, which is key to healthy work culture. Going undercover blocks the transparency & could create a question of intentional misuse of authority. Employees may perceive such instances as an action against their integrity or questioning their honesty & dedication towards the organization. Employees fear punishment & up to an extent it motivates them to work with integrity, but it is not good for healthy work culture & is not an ethical motivation.

Instead of going undercover, in a general situation (considering ethics being subjective), the thing that could be done is to have a proper channel of communication & supportive policies, guidelines in the organization to resolve the issues. A proper proactive approach is better than a curative approach. Thus, here in the general situation, it would be unethical to go undercover.

But if a leader goes undercover for any given particular situation then it must be a situation where nothing else could be done to find out the loophole or root of the issue. He should disclose himself & the reason for being undercover before any employee gets to know by himself. A leader should have confidence in himself & in employees that he should deliver while trying to tell the employees the reason for being undercover. He should let the employees know that what was the intention of going undercover & the intention was the welfare of all employees & for the benefit of the organization.

In case of any wrongdoing within the organization, if any leader finds that no other option but going undercover will resolve the issue or problem effectively & minimum loss then a collaborating management style can be chosen. In this, there is a concern for relationships & for goal achievement.

The issue can be resolved by looking at the conflict from multiple dimensions. The perspective of all employees & the information gathered by all of them by being undercover could be used to analyze & interpret the problem.

The best possible solution or any alternative could be reached which could benefit the organization & also disclose the main reason & who is responsible for the wrongdoing. Such a style will make employees realize the true intention of the leader that he went undercover to find out the loophole & not for any other secret reason. Such a style would instill confidence among the employees & the leader will gain the trust of employees. This style if followed appropriately would be fruitful not only in resolving the current crisis but also in the long-term because of the transparency, integrity & other ethical values being respected in the organization while trying to accomplish the organization’s goals.

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