Prophet Whistleblower Link?
Stephanos, A., & Roberts, J. (2012). Whistleblowers in
Organisations: Prophets at Work? J Bus Ethics (20120, 110:71-84
This article attempts to link the works of the Hebrew
prophets to understanding whistleblowers’ motives in today’s work force
(Stephanos & Roberts, 2012). The significance of the article is supporting
the theory that there is a moral and ethical basis for the action of
whistleblowers beyond just a legal reason (Stephanos & Roberts, 2012).
This article discusses the reason for ancient Hebrew
prophets to report on immoral or unethical actions by people in ancient society
(Stephanos & Roberts, 2012). The article then begins a discussion on the
motivation of modern day whistleblowers (Stephanos & Roberts, 2012). At the
conclusion, the article ties the two together through how each challenged
society, how each held concern for society, and how each desired to change
society (Stephanos & Roberts, 2012).
This article uses the biblical scholars’ studies of the
prophets’ motivations to compare with sociologists’ studies of modern day
whistleblowers’ motivations to show a relation between the two (Stephanos &
Roberts, 2012). Managers, today, can use the comparison to understand that
society has concerns, that people with concerns will challenge society, and
while there exists a desire to change society, there will exist those who will
attempt to change society.
First, the author is using generalizations for his article, and that is a huge pet peeve of mine. Not all whistleblowers do so for puritanical reasons. The author is making assumptions as to what the whistleblower feels and he cannot know what every whistleblower feels. Some whistleblowers do so for the money, which is sad. His or her entire life is in ruins because they wanted instant gratification. Thanks to the internet, every future employer will know he or she is a whistleblower. Unfortunately, the same holds true for those that spoke up for the right reasons. I believe that most prophets were true of heart and did what they believed to be right, but some used their position for his own personal gain. As much as I would like to believe that people only do things for the benefit of society, I am not that naive. The author should not be, either.
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ReplyDeleteI found the relationship between biblical history and current day whistleblowers interesting. The author makes an excellent relationship between the moral decision to be a whistleblower in current day and those in biblical history. The world is unfortunately not made up of all people being of high-moral standards. If that were the case, there would be no reason to be a whistleblower in the first place. I suppose some whistleblowers could do so for the wrong reasons. However, it is an extremely difficult action to stand up and be a change agent against that which is wrong. It is self-sacrifice because of the possibility of backlash in a corrupt corporate environment. The author’s examples of Sherron Watkins of Enron and Cynthia Cooper of WorldCom are classic examples of two women who probably did not know the events to follow their whistle blowing efforts. It takes a person of high moral values to stand up and take action against it. These events were the wakeup call that business needed.
ReplyDeleteSadly, we will never know, with certainty, the whistleblower’s motivation. It seems that a quick, almost reflexive, reporting of the injustice holds more sincerity than a response that seems to have waited for good timing. Having never been in a position to put an end to serious wrong doing, I can’t begin to know how I would react. I do agree that the discussion in generalities is off putting, but it seems that only first-hand knowledge gives you the opportunity to speak with in more direct terms.
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