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Duty vs. Responsibility

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Bryan Shelby Retired| Retired and volunteering, having left "employment" behind! New York, Ny, United States
In these troubled times, I find that lately I am spending a lot of time thinking about and reflecting on questions of ethics, particularly where duty and responsibility are in conflict.

We may feel a duty to follow a leader’s directive because of that person’s position, power, or ability affect our future, but what is our responsibility if we firmly believe that directive is wrong? With our future or the future of the organization or possibly our country or even the planet at stake, how can we, from our limited perspective and partial knowledge, decide what to do? And, how do we find the justification and the courage to support that decision either way?

Have you had to speak truth to power? Or have you gone along, convinced that the leader had the breadth of knowledge that you lacked? Or, have you been lucky enough not to have faced this issue but have thoughts on what you would do if confronted with it?

All comments are welcome – I look forward to hearing from you!
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Bryan Shelby Retired| Retired and volunteering, having left "employment" behind! New York, Ny, United States
Aug 12, 2022 12:38 PM
Replying to Stéphane Parent
...
As someone working in government, public servants are asked to implement decisions and laws made by duly elected politcians. While we have the room to discuss and debate the how, it is not our duty nor responsiblity to dismiss the what or why.

"Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die."
- Lord A. Tennyson
Stéphane, of course that "do or die" philosophy didn't work out so well for those who were the subject of that poem! :-)
I would submit, however, that there is at least one other option that, as PMs bound by the PMI Code of Ethics, we should consider. Section 2.1 of the Code says "Responsibility is our duty to take ownership for the decisions we make or fail to make, the actions we take or fail to take, and the consequences that result." Therefore, if we are asked to take actions that we believe are wrong and harmful, we have an obligation not to take those actions. Such a refusal might require resignation (or the threat thereof) -- if you've been following recent events in the US, you will have seen that both of those options were exercised in the latter days of the last administration -- or if resignation is not an option, then a refusal to act might result in dismissal with resulting career and financial consequences. The ethical quandary is the conflict between duty to those affected by such actions if carried out versus duty to self and family affected by the result of a refusal to act.
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Ming Yeung Adjunct Professor & Acting COO/CPO/CRO (contract)| Blockchain Venture Capital Inc. Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I am fortunate enough not to have faced this issue yet. Still, as a PMP charterholder (and an active PMI member and volunteer), I always adhere to the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and leverage the Ethical Decision-Making Framework when faced with an ethical issue.
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