MARTHA MCCASKEY CAPSTONE CASE ANALYSIS

Martha McCaskey Capstone Case Analysis

Specific Reasons Underlying Martha’s Situation

The underlying reasons for Martha’s situation stem from ethical issues and legal

necessities. The first ethical issue stemmed from Tom Malone, COO of Seleris Associates’

Industry Analysis Division (IAD). He had informed a client that IAD had relevant information

about Silicon 6. Silicon 6 was the code word for the company’s project whereby information

would be covertly obtained from a competitor regarding a new micro-chip. Malone had misled

the client when he informed them that Phil Devon had worked for the company that made the

micro-chip and was willing to share information. If it was true that proprietary information was

going to exchange hands, the economic espionage act could very well be violated.

McCaskey misrepresented herself to Devon by claiming to be a representative from an

international company wishing to build a semiconductor plant in the United States. She also

needed to ensure that Devon did not break any non-compete agreements as he is under contract

with a European company. IAD’s client also sent confusing signals. The client wanted the

illegal information, but did not want to partake in breaking any antitrust laws (i.e., price fixing

allegations). Furthermore, the client offered up incentives to Devon in an effort to receive the

insider information. This situation would need to be handled with great care as to not violate any

laws.

The strategies Martha could have taken to influence her bosses;

Regardless of how McCaskey approaches her bosses, she must be prepared for the worst.

She must be willing to deal with negative feedback and possibly being pressured to continue

down the path that directly conflicts with her values and beliefs. McCaskey will need to employ

the pull and push technique when she communicates with upper management, as it will serve as

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a guide on how to proceed with her career at IAD. The question arises, should McCaskey stay

and comply with the unethical principles being set until she gets promoted, and then attempt to

change how things are done? Or, perhaps, she should cut her losses and resign at this point.

Despite the consequences, McCaskey will need to carefully navigate the situation.

McCaskey could have had a meeting with Tom Malone and Ty Richardson to discuss the

values of the company and integrity of the company (Chancellor University, n.d.). She should

also present an alternative way to complete the Silicon 6 project. Once Malone and Richardson

are confronted and directly asked about how IAD does business, they would be hard pressed to

endorse such tactics (Chancellor University, n.d.). McCaskey needs to use this as an opportunity

to learn and grow as a manager. As a future leader, many tough decisions lie ahead of

McCaskey. She could point out that the company has an obligation to be held accountable for its

actions (Feiner, 2004). McCaskey will need to use candor to effectively get her point across to

Malone and Richardson (Welch, 2005). She may even have to take this further up the chain of

command in order for others to see what is really taking place. After all, the parent company

was started by three accounting professors whom have been known to lead by example.

Three Potential Strategies for McCaskey to Employ

Strategy One

In a Monday morning meeting with Davies and Hackert:

McCaskey: Good morning gentlemen.

Davies and Hackert: Good morning McCaskey.

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McCaskey: I would like to seek your guidance on an issue that I have been wrestling with on the

Silicone 6 project. What is the legal line concerning ethics to this project

and what I mean is how far is to far before we get ourselves in trouble?

Davies: Can you be a little clearer on your question.

McCaskey: Sure, the path I am currently on could get us into trouble legally. I have not been

honest with my source, Devon, on what I am really after. Not to mention our

client, who is asking for us to perform industrial espionage to a degree. Is there

some gray area for me to maneuver in?

Hackert: Are you suggesting that you are doing something illegal?

Davies: Do you have an issue with how we do business?

McCaskey: To be honest, we have a plaque on our wall and our website about our Mission,

Vision, and Values. It is the values I have some concerns. We seem to be

treading on some thin ice when it comes to how we get our information for

our clients and I just need clarification on how to proceed.

Hackert: McCaskey I think you might want to seek legal counsel on how to precede further as I

am not a lawyer. Proceed with caution as this could turn ugly for you.

McCaskey: Thank you both for shedding some light on how to move forward.

Strategy Two

Meeting with Ty Richardson

McCaskey: Hi Mr. Richardson.

Richardson: Hi McCaskey, How are you?

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McCaskey: I am not doing so well to be honest and would like to talk to you about something

you may not be aware is happening. As you know I have been assigned to

the Silicon 6 project and I feel that our company maybe breaking some laws.

With that said I have spoken to our source Devon and came clean with what we

are really after.

Richardson: What did Devon reveal to you?

McCaskey: He has no hard data on the new chip as he has been gone from the company for over

12 years. He is however free of non-compete clause. They were working on

the chip when he was still employed but the information may not be 100 percent

accurate.

Richardson: I can see you are wrestling with an ethical dilemma. McCaskey when you are a

leader you will need to make tough choices and you made one by coming

and telling me this today. I could fire you right now but what do you propose

we do going forward?

McCaskey: Let me handle this project my way. Let me talk to the client and tell them what our

source can deliver. If they disagree and want to travel a less ethical road

then send Kaufmann in to do the dirty work and I walk away. If they agree to

my terms and conditions then when this is over you create an ethics and values task

force and you put me in charge of it.

Richardson: If I don’t?

McCaskey: I walk away anyway.

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Richardson: Okay McCaskey I will grant you this request. It took a lot of courage to come in

here and lay it on the table. I admire you for that. Now let’s see what you

can do.

Strategy Three

E-mail to Managing Director of Seleris

Dear Managing Director,

My name is Martha McCaskey and I work in the IAD office in San Francisco. I have a problem

and seek your guidance. I have been assigned to head up the Silicon 6 project. I feel as if I am

being pressured to do unethical things here at IAD. I have lied to a person by claiming to be

someone I am not in order to gain valuable information for our client. Some of our senior

executives do not care how we get the information whether legally or illegally. To them it is all

about the bottom line. There are individuals in our office besides myself who questions are

leaders’ motives and actions. I would be happy to discuss this further as I request your help in

this matter.

Sincerely,

Martha McCaskey

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References

Chancellor MBA 6120. (n.d.). MBA 6120 Module 3 lecture 1. Retrieved from

http://chancellor.angellearning.com on February 26, 2010.

Chancellor MBA 6120. (n.d.). MBA 6120 Module 4 lecture 1. Retrieved from

http://chancellor.angellearning.com on February 26, 2010.

Feiner, M. (2004). The Feiner points of leadership: The 50 basic laws that will make people

want to perform better for you. New York City, NY: Warner Business Books.

Welch, J. (2005). Winning. New York City, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.