C206 Task 1 Patrick Gump
Western Governors University
A. Select a leader who you feel has exhibited
exemplary ethical conduct to do the following:
For this section, I will focus on the ethical leadership of CEO John “Jack” Welch. Jack
Welch, a Chemical Engineer served as the CEO of GE for 21 years, from 1980 to 2001. During
his tenure, Jack was known for his “known for his unmatched track record of success, enormous
love of people, fierce passion for winning, and unbridled desire to change the world for the better
using his unique management practices, which are collectively called The Welch Way. (Business
Insider, n.d.).”
A1. Discuss two ethical traits that your chosen leader has demonstrated.
There are two ethical traits that Jack Welch demonstrated success as a leader. The trait
central to Jack’s legacy is that of Integrity. This ethical trait means having been true to who you
are and knowing your true self. It means having an unbiased view of the world and seeing things
for what they are, instead of what one intends them to be. Jack’s second ethical trait is his
People-Orientation. People-Orientation in this example means having a focus on developing
people and to the ability to inspire a shared ethical vision.
A2. Explain how your chosen leader has exhibited ethical conduct
Integrity was central to Jack Welch’s entire vision as a leader. Having learned the value
from his mother as a young boy, Jack believed that Integrity was GE’s number one value. In an
article in Harvard Business Review, David Weinberger (2010) describes Welch’s memoir as
“filled with frank admissions of his weaknesses and of the mistakes he’s made. But, he never
, C206 Task 1 Patrick Gump
Western Governors University
thought he was better than he was, and he didn’t tolerate the butt kissers who tried to tell him
otherwise.”
Jack’s second ethical trait is People-Orientation, which is shown by his desire to build
competent leaders and to inspire others to share his vision. Jack has always been defined by his
love of teaching and had established a corporate training center with GE where he frequently
taught leadership seminars. In a post to LinkedIn, Jack (2017) describes one of the five key traits
of a leader is the “ability to energize others”
B. Analyze the dilemma found in the scenario from
both the consequentialist and deontological
perspectives.
The core ethical dilemma in the scenario stems from the conflict between feeling duty-
bound to disclose a potentially lethal risk, and a signed Non-Disclosure Agreement. In this
scenario, a Consequentialist would focus on the consequences of disclosing as well as not
disclosing. They would ask questions and explore all the potential actions that could take place
and identify the harms and benefits to stakeholders for each. Ultimately, their concern for the
greatest net benefits to society would be the factor that guides their choice. For this reason, the
consequentialist may be more likely to respect the Non-Disclosure Agreement, because it means
most artificial knee recipients will enjoy the benefits of reduced costs and lower healing-times.
For the Deontologist, the ethical dilemma is the same, but the response will be different.
Deontological Ethics focuses on duties, obligations, and principles to make decisions. In this
Western Governors University
A. Select a leader who you feel has exhibited
exemplary ethical conduct to do the following:
For this section, I will focus on the ethical leadership of CEO John “Jack” Welch. Jack
Welch, a Chemical Engineer served as the CEO of GE for 21 years, from 1980 to 2001. During
his tenure, Jack was known for his “known for his unmatched track record of success, enormous
love of people, fierce passion for winning, and unbridled desire to change the world for the better
using his unique management practices, which are collectively called The Welch Way. (Business
Insider, n.d.).”
A1. Discuss two ethical traits that your chosen leader has demonstrated.
There are two ethical traits that Jack Welch demonstrated success as a leader. The trait
central to Jack’s legacy is that of Integrity. This ethical trait means having been true to who you
are and knowing your true self. It means having an unbiased view of the world and seeing things
for what they are, instead of what one intends them to be. Jack’s second ethical trait is his
People-Orientation. People-Orientation in this example means having a focus on developing
people and to the ability to inspire a shared ethical vision.
A2. Explain how your chosen leader has exhibited ethical conduct
Integrity was central to Jack Welch’s entire vision as a leader. Having learned the value
from his mother as a young boy, Jack believed that Integrity was GE’s number one value. In an
article in Harvard Business Review, David Weinberger (2010) describes Welch’s memoir as
“filled with frank admissions of his weaknesses and of the mistakes he’s made. But, he never
, C206 Task 1 Patrick Gump
Western Governors University
thought he was better than he was, and he didn’t tolerate the butt kissers who tried to tell him
otherwise.”
Jack’s second ethical trait is People-Orientation, which is shown by his desire to build
competent leaders and to inspire others to share his vision. Jack has always been defined by his
love of teaching and had established a corporate training center with GE where he frequently
taught leadership seminars. In a post to LinkedIn, Jack (2017) describes one of the five key traits
of a leader is the “ability to energize others”
B. Analyze the dilemma found in the scenario from
both the consequentialist and deontological
perspectives.
The core ethical dilemma in the scenario stems from the conflict between feeling duty-
bound to disclose a potentially lethal risk, and a signed Non-Disclosure Agreement. In this
scenario, a Consequentialist would focus on the consequences of disclosing as well as not
disclosing. They would ask questions and explore all the potential actions that could take place
and identify the harms and benefits to stakeholders for each. Ultimately, their concern for the
greatest net benefits to society would be the factor that guides their choice. For this reason, the
consequentialist may be more likely to respect the Non-Disclosure Agreement, because it means
most artificial knee recipients will enjoy the benefits of reduced costs and lower healing-times.
For the Deontologist, the ethical dilemma is the same, but the response will be different.
Deontological Ethics focuses on duties, obligations, and principles to make decisions. In this
