Introduction
In the last couple of decades, Agile frameworks have changed the way organisations deliver products and services, bringing a new perspective to the lean focus on maximizing customer value. In theory, this focus ensures that teams build what matters most to those who pay for, use, or depend on a product. But as technology pervades more aspects of daily life, a pressing ethical question emerges: Should teams optimize only for customer value? When the needs and desires of customers conflict with the well-being of employees, communities, or society at large, how should teams respond? And who gets to decide what constitutes ‘value’?
The Ethical Challenges
Defining Value: More Than Just the Customer
Frameworks like Scrum emphasize delivering customer value above all else. Paraphrasing Albert Einstein, as project managers, we should focus not on achieving financial success but on delivering value to society. “Be creative, but make sure that what you create is not a curse for mankind”. Customer value is not always synonymous with social good. In some cases, optimizing for one group can actively harm another.
When Value Delivery Harms the Public Good
Several real-world examples illustrate how this tension plays out:
- Surveillance Features: A government client requests capabilities for tracking citizens in the name of security. While this delivers customer value, it raises serious privacy and human rights concerns.
- Engagement and Addictive Design: Product owners ask for features that increase user engagement—sometimes by encouraging addictive behaviours. While this boosts KPIs, it may harm users’ mental health.
- Cost-Saving Initiatives: Organizations may request automation or layoffs to save costs, delivering value to the business but negatively impacting employee livelihoods.
Who Decides What Value Is?
The PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct urges practitioners to balance responsibility to clients with responsibility to the public. Agile frameworks often leave the definition of value to the “customer” or product owner, but this approach can ignore wider consequences. Agility must go together with adaptability and ethical awareness, especially in complex, interconnected environments.
Ethical Considerations vs. Customer Requirements
Should ethical considerations outrank customer requirements? According to the PMBOK Guide and Risk Management standard ISO 31000, risks to stakeholders—including the public—must be managed alongside project objectives. The Agile Practice Guide recommends that teams “consider the impact of decisions on all affected parties,” not just end users or paying customers.
Recommendations
Broaden the Definition of Value:
- Teams should actively seek input from stakeholders beyond the customer: employees, users, regulators, and the public.
- Use stakeholder mapping to identify who is affected by product decisions.
Build Ethics into Agile Processes:
- Incorporate ethical checkpoints into backlog refinement, sprint reviews, and retrospectives.
- Use models like PMI’s Code of Ethics as a framework for decision-making.
Empower Team Members to Raise Concerns:
- Create a culture where team members can voice ethical concerns without fear of reprisal.
- Leverage the wisdom of diverse team members to identify risks that may not be obvious.
Make Ethical Trade-offs Explicit:
- When faced with conflicting values, document the trade-offs and rationale behind decisions.
- Use tools such as impact mapping and risk registers to make these trade-offs visible.
Engage in Ongoing Learning:
- Stay informed about evolving norms and regulations (e.g., data privacy laws, labour standards).
- Learn from case studies on professional forums, research sites and guidance from industry leaders.
The Bottom Line
Delivering customer value is a core tenet of Agile and project management frameworks, but it must not be pursued in isolation. Practitioners are increasingly called to weigh the interests of customers against the broader public good. As the PMI Code of Ethics emphasizes, our duty is to act responsibly, respect the dignity of those affected, and ensure our actions do not cause harm—even when it means saying “no” to a customer requirement. Ultimately, the most sustainable value is that which benefits everyone: the customer, the team, and society at large.
Questions for reflection
- How should a team balance customer value and public good when they come into conflict?
- Who should define what counts as “value” in your projects?
- Can you recall a situation where delivering customer value had unintended negative consequences? What would you do differently?
