Case Study
Individual
Written Task
Overview
This is an individual
written assignment requiring a business report containing altogether up
to 1500 words for both sub tasks. The report should present the result of
research relating to the ethical questions stated below. Assessment criteria
are based on the course learning outcomes, quality of the written presentation
and the appropriate application of ethical and professional principles to solve
the questions.
Assessment
Details
This assignment has two subtasks of equal weights. Students are expected
to complete both subtasks.
Subtask
1: Case Study
Percentage Value of Task: 7.5%
Minimum Time Expectation: 10 hours
Assume that Mr. McBright is an employee of a
company called NewAge Pty Ltd, which develops operating systems for a tablet
computer manufacturer by name XYZ Pty Ltd. Mr. McBright is in charge of testing
the proper functioning of the operating system and endorsing them prior to
their released to XYZ Pty Ltd. Mr. McBright reports to Mrs McDonald, who has
become so complacent with his position within NewAge Pty Ltd that he takes
every step to protect it. For example, he does not want to develop himself for
a higher-level position, neither does he train or sponsor any of his
subordinates for further career development. Mrs McDonald also does not employ
anyone who appears to be much more competent than himself. Furthermore, to Mrs
McDonald, the most important criteria for hiring new employees is the college
that they attended. The management philosophy of Mrs McDonald has resulted in
many incompetent employees at NewAge Pty Ltd, resulting in somewhat shoddy work.
XYZ Pty Ltd contracted NewAge Pty Ltd to develop
a software at the cost of A$2 million. Just prior to handing over of the
operating system to XYZ Pty Ltd, Mr. McBright discovered a bug in it, although
it could provide its intended basic functions.
She reported her discovery to Mrs McDonald, but
they colluded to keep the finding secret in order to meet project schedule.
Eventually the new operating system with its bug was released to XYZ Pty Ltd.
XYZ Pty Ltd installed the operating system on 20,000 newly-manufactured tablet
computers using the buggy operating system acquired from NewAge Pty Ltd without
knowing the deficiency. Five weeks after releasing the first set of tablets
running the faulty operating system, the software created a virus which
destroyed all the customer records of Badluck Bank which acquired some of the
tablets. Four months after the release of the second set of tablets
manufactured from the faulty operating system one of the tablets burst into
frames, burning an office.
An investigation into the two accidents revealed that:
1. The main cause of the two accidents was that the
tablets involved were manufactured using buggy operating system acquired from
NewAge Pty Ltd.
2. NewAge Pty Ltd has four branches located in four
countries, and the employees at each branch have different set of skills.
However, Mrs McDonald has the habit of not making good use of the skills of his
colleagues working from other branches than where he sits.
3. The main cause of the bug in the software was
the lack of current best practices for software development at NewAge Pty Ltd
as Mrs McDonald has not mentored his staff for career development for a long
time. Also, Mrs McDonald employs only people of his alma mater.
The authorities of the council of the city
(called LivingCity) including its mayor Hon. Joseph Luck, where the
headquarters of NewAge Pty Ltd is located, became privy of the saga. As NewAge
Pty Ltd is the major employer in LivingCity, the council closed its eyes to the
saga.
Subtasks
1 Tasks:
Students are expected to prepare a business
report of maximum length of 750 words that gives an ethical analysis of the issues
raised in the case study. Your submission must at least address the following
points:
a) List the stakeholders in the case study. Discuss
how each of the stakeholders in the case study applied or failed to apply
ethical decision-making approaches in the IT work environment. (V3)
b) Clearly state the ethical dilemma that confronts
the stakeholders mentioned in the case study.
c) Provide an ethical response to the dilemma
according to consequences alone. Consider the consequences for each of the
stakeholders mentioned in the case study.
d) The ACS Code of Professional Conduct extends the
meaning of the six ethical values with requirements that contribute to
observing the values. Examine the code and identify requirements (using value
numbers 1-6 and a requirement letter) that are relevant to this case study. For
each identified requirement, explain how it should be applied in this case
study. (K2)
e) Use appropriate theories of ethical philosophy
to analyse the case study, especially for the position of Mrs McDonald and Mr.
McBright in passing the integrated circuits while knowing that they were
faulty. (K1)
Subtask
2: Using the SFIA 6 to Develop a Career Plan for Classroom/Career Transition
The Skills Framework for the Information Age
(SFIA) is one of the frameworks developed to guide professionals or aspiring
professionals and employers in the Information and Communications Technologies
(ICT). Employers can match the skills of an applicant for a job to the skills
needed to fill a specific vacancy in the business, and (prospective) job
seekers can use the SFIA to build their skills for their aspired employment.
A main objective for an average student is how to become a professional.
Therefore, knowing and embracing the set of skills, knowledge and competencies
needed for the aspiring careers is foremost important. The objective of this
assignment is to motivate students to achieve that. SFIA is developed and
managed by SFIA Foundation, which is a global not-for-profit organization
headquartered in the United Kingdom. SFIA Version 6 (aka SFIA 6), released on 1st
July 2015, has seven levels of responsibilities, and there are a number of
skills for each level of responsibility. An overview of SFIA 6 can be
downloaded by clicking here. The website address is also provided under the section Resources in this
document.
Task:
investigate the SFIA 6 framework, and apply it
to develop a career plan to prepare you for your transition into the IT profession upon your graduation.
First, identity and specify which of the seven SFIA 6 responsibility levels
whose skills your developed career plan seeks to achieve.
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