According to the Code of Professional Conduct, which situation would pose a conflict of interest for Ernie the Project Manager?
Explanation
Answer: d - According to the Code of Professional Conduct, conflicts of interest can include hiring family members or close acquaintances for contracts.
Working long, exhaustive hours comes with the territory of most projects, especially for IT Project Managers, and does not exemplify a conflict of interest.
Getting paid a higher salary than a coworker might be true but doesn’t pose a conflict especially since salaries are typically kept confidential.
Recommending an acquaintance for a specific job on a project might pose a conflict of interest, but here, the person was simply recommended. It’s a positive to bring people who you know can do good work in, but be careful of what the perceived relationship is. You want to be seen as bringing in someone you know who is qualified, not favoring a friend. In fact, a project manager with a strong network who can staff up a project with people he or she knows are strong is great to have.
Key Take Away: It’s important for Project Managers to avoid any association with matters that may suggest impropriety or a conflict of interest, even if the associated relationship is with someone extremely qualified for the job. Even highly competent people mess up sometimes, so Ernie should not hire his brother unless he is the only qualified person on Earth who can do that job. Even in the case, Ernie should disclose the nature of the relationship. At the end of the day, you don’t want any one to be able to question your integrity. It’s not worth the professional risk. If you do want to bring that person in, we recommend it be a superior who signs off on it with full disclosure on the relationship.
