8 steps to walking the tight rope of an ethical dilemma

An ethical dilemma is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two courses of action, either of which entails transgressing a moral principle.” In other words, ethical dilemmas are thorny, complex problems that have more than one “right” and defendable solution.

How might one proceed toward a decision that is both sound in logic (“head”), and one that allows the decision-maker to feel good about the course of action (“heart”). Here’s a process for your consideration:

Step 1: Get the facts

• Collect all the available dispassionate information you need to feel fully informed on the issue. (This can take the form of facts, data, general information, futures modeling, market reports, etc. Exhaust all available resources to ensure you are fully informed and educated on the various components of the situation.)
• Proceed to Step 2 once you have this information, and have made the time to analyze and synthesize the data (i.e. finding the signals among the noise). Make notes.

Step 2: Wisdom of crowds

• What can disinterested people offer as advice, thoughts, or differing perspectives? (These are people who have no skin in the game other than helping you in your decision-making; choose people who bring some expertise to the situation. Organize their contributions into key take-aways.)
• What can interested people offer as advice, thoughts, or differing perspectives? (These are people who are on your team, or in your wider circle or community. Though they may bring some biases, they are also better informed than most others. Organize their contributions into key take-aways, and see how they compare to the disinterested crowd.
• Proceed to Step 3 once you have this information organized into distinct threads (i.e. the key arguments for various courses of action).

Step 3: Cost-benefit analysis

• Conduct a simple cost/benefit analysis for each course of action. Use these analyses as additional data points. (Warning: only use this exercise as a way to generate additional data. Sometimes the course of action with the greatest benefits and the least costs can prove over time to have been the wrong decision (as it’s a very narrow way of framing a dilemma).)
• Add this data to each course of action. Move to Step 4.

Step 4: Bias check

• Is there anything tainting the decision-making process, which may create blind spots in your decision-making? Conduct an audit on the following considerations:
• Am I getting unfair political pressure from anybody? (e.g. somebody is asserting their political capital to get what they want)
• Am I getting unfair time pressure from anybody? (e.g. somebody is trying to rush you toward a decision because of impatience)
• Are there any conflicts of interest that I have not addressed, or do not feel okay about? (e.g. somebody involved in the situation who may profit or benefit from specific courses of action)
• Do I suffer from a lack of courage to do what I feel is right? (Another way to ask this is, “Am I being too risk-averse because I’m afraid to make the wrong decision?”)
• Am I letting my past or current emotions on the issue or on people involved exert too strong an influence on the situation? (e.g. I am letting personal feelings or past baggage influence the situation)
• Am I personally looking to be the “winner” in this situation? (e.g. I am wanting to look good, powerful, and wise)
• If you can answer the preceding questions with a “no”, then proceed to Step 5. If the answer to any of the questions is “yes”, then allow these discoveries to simplify your decision-making algorithm by removing them as considerations.

Step 5: Reality check

• Confront the “brutal facts” (Jim Collins) of the situation. Conduct an audit on the following considerations:
• Are there courses of action that would not be politically viable?
• Are there courses of action that would not be economically viable?
• Are there courses of action that would expose our institution to reckless risk? (e.g. if the course of action failed, it would be catastrophic)
• Are there courses of action that rely on assumptions you have little or no control over? (e.g. promises made by others what are not backed up by a legal agreement)
• Are there courses of action that rely on too many assumptions to come true, thus compounding the risk? (e.g. specific enrollment targets that must be met and specific revenue benchmarks that must be met and specific expense limits that must be met.)
• Consider charting these through a simple risk assessment of “Scenario” → “Likelihood” → “Impact” (the impacts should be treated as cumulative)
• Proceed to Step 6 once you have let the answers to this audit rule out courses of action that are not viable

Step 6: Core values & Mission/Vision check

• Ensure the remaining (viable) courses of action stand up against the institution’s core values. (i.e. ensure the courses of action can be supported on ethical grounds)
• Ensure the remaining (viable) courses of action stand up against the institution’s Mission. (i.e. ensure there is no conflict with the institution’s purpose)
• Ensure the remaining (viable) courses of action align to the institution’s strategic vision for the future. (i.e. the strategic position we want our institution to hold in the short-term and long-term futures → the preferred futures)
• Once satisfied, go to Step 7

Step 7: Go time!

• You have all the information analyzed and synthesized. You have organized all the opinions into threads. You have viable courses of action that have passed your audits. Now go up to the proverbial mountain and boldly make your choice. (Personally, I give myself as much time as I need until I gain insight. This might happen on a long walk, or simply sitting alone in silence. The key is to create the time and space for the insight to arrive.)
• Prepare the argument for your case, including the dissenting position. Run this by a couple of trusted colleagues for feedback.
• Prepare a pre-mortem statement, which includes what a quick pivot might look like (i.e. if specific indicators or benchmarks are not satisfied, then I will abandon the course of action for a different one).
• Ensure you have the right team on the bus to implement and support the chosen course of action. Develop talking points.
• Ensure you have the political support (e.g. the Board) for the course of action, especially if it could prove controversial.

Step 8: Move on

• Get a good night’s sleep, communicate and manage the course of action, and move on to other things. (Make a note to write a case study in one year’s time.)