Question

Susan is a cost accountant at a manufacturing company. She has been asked by her manager to update the cost for the company's lowest selling product, which is made at the plant where Susan is employed. He wants Susan to complete the task in one day, and does not want Susan to collect much information, because he does not anyone to know what Susan is doing. Susan believes the President of the company will use her numbers to justify closing the plant, which will cause Susan and some of her closest colleagues to lose their jobs. Susan is worried that she cannot provide accurate numbers in such a short time with such limited resources, but her manager is putting a lot of pressure on her to complete the work quickly. Susan is so frustrated with the request that her boss has made that she complains to her co-worker, Thomas, about the situation. Thomas advises Susan to report the cost of the product lower than it actually is so the plant will not be closed. He goes on to explain that if her boss finds out the cost is not accurate that she can blame the inaccuracy on the short time and limited resources that she was given to complete the task.

In an essay of at least five paragraphs (or at least a summarized version), answer the following questions:

Is Thomas' advice a violation of the IMA Standards of Ethics? Did Susan violate any of those standards herself? What should Susan do

Answer 1

1.Yes Thomas advice is violation of the IMA Standards

As per IMA Standrds Cost Accountant should be Followed the central code of ethics below,

1.Competence -she should perform professional duties in accordance with relevant law and regulation.

2.Confidentiality-Keep infromation confedential unless discloser authorised or legally requried.

3.Integrity -Avoid engaging or supporting activity that may discredit the profession.

4.Credibity- Communicate information fairly and objectively.

2.yes susan violate confidentiality ethics of above standards.She should refrain from using confidential information for unethical advantage.

3.

In applying the Standards of Ethical Professional Practice, susan may encounter problems identifying unethical behavior or resolving an ethical conflict. When faced with ethical issues, she should follow her organization's established policies on the resolution of such conflict. If these policies do not resolve the ethical conflict, she should consider the following courses of action:

• Discuss the issue with immediate supervisor except when it appears that the supervisor is involved. In that case, present the issue to the next level.
• If she cannot achieve a satisfactory resolution, submit the issue to the next management level. If her immediate superior is the chief executive officer or equivalent, the acceptable reviewing authority may be a group such as the audit committee, executive committee, board of directors, board of trustees, or owners. Contact with levels above the immediate superior should be initiated only with your superior's knowledge, assuming he or she is not involved. Communication of such problems to authorities or individuals not employed or engaged by the organization is not considered appropriate, unless you believe there is a clear violation of the law.
• Clarify relevant ethical issues by initiating a confidential discussion with an IMA Ethics Counselor or other impartial advisor to obtain a better understanding of possible courses of action.
• she should Consult her own attorney as to legal obligations and rights concerning the ethical conflict.