“Senior Accountant's Career Dilemma” How to make a rational decision？
Hello everyone!
On the topic of Rational Decision Making, I've chosen a case very common in the workplace to run the discussion:
"A senior accountant working for a large accounting firm who plans to enroll in an MBA program next fall. However, the partner in charge of training and development offers the senior accountant the opportunity to do a five-month exchange program in the Soviet Union. The exchange program requires the candidate to demonstrate "long-term potential" at the firm. The senior accountant is now faced with a dilemma of whether to pursue the exchange program while concealing his participation in the MBA program or to prioritize his MBA studies and potentially miss the training opportunity in the Soviet Union."
In this case, the key points to consider are
1. Participation in an exchange program requires proof of "long-term potential" at an accounting firm. (We need to notice the keyword "Long-term".)
2. Senior accountants struggle between not wanting to miss out on training opportunities in the Soviet Union and not wanting to give up their MBA studies.
3. If the senior accountant chooses to pursue an MBA program, he/she may need to leave his current job.
4. Senior accountants may need to deceive or conceal plans to attend an MBA program from the firm to obtain Soviet training.
From ethical considerations
Senior accountants may deceive or conceal their intentions to attend an accounting firm's MBA program. This brings up issues of integrity, honesty, and transparency in professional relationships. On the one hand, the senior accountant may feel the need to hide his/her plans to secure a training opportunity in the Soviet Union. On the other hand, this may be seen as a break of trust and if discovered, may affect his/her relationship with the company, including his/her personal reputation evenly.
The following Decision Criteria will guide my analysis
Generate Alternatives
1. Pursue the exchange program while concealing the intention to attend the MBA program.
2. Prioritize the MBA studies and decline the exchange program.
3. Openly discuss career goals and aspirations with the training and development partner to explore alternative options.
Evaluate Alternatives
1. Alternative A: Pursuing Soviet training programs while concealing the intention to attend MBA studies.
2. Alternative B: Prioritize MBA studies and reject the Soviet training program.
3. Alternative C: Openly discuss career goals and aspirations with partners on overseas training and skills development.
Based on the above decision criteria and the respective decision percentages and possible impacts, I personally believe that the best option is Option C: the possibility of open discussions with supervisors and the company about Soviet training and personal skills development, both.
Because this option prioritizes ethical behaviour and maintains a positive relationship with the company. Meanwhile, it also combines a Soviet training program with an MBA study program. And, through open communication, the senior accountant may be able to negotiate a modified schedule or temporary leave of absence to attend his/her overseas training while pursuing educational goals.
In summary, when making a rational decision about this type of case, I believe it is important to give more weight to ethical considerations to ensure the integrity of the professional relationship and the personal good reputation.
1. Consider the level and job goals of the person you are communicating with. If their KPIs are focused on short-term business goals, open communication may have a negative impact.
2. Assess whether the company's culture and values care about the growth of employees.
3. Seek the advice of trusted colleagues before initiating such conversations.
Hello Sakura
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this post. I would like to highlight how well-structured the information is provided. This allows us to understand it easily.
I consider the key points to consider are clear. They are covering most of the challenges the senior accountant could face in his decision. This makes the decision-making process easier to understand.
For the evaluation of the alternatives, I can see you use high, moderate, and low impact. This is a good way to evaluate them, since in some of the alternatives, he may feel doubtful.
I also agree with the alternatives set and with the final alternative chosen. I consider the senior accountant has too much in risk, both personally and professionally. It says a lot from him to being transparent with the people he works with and feeling good with himself to make a long-term decision.
Thanks for sharing this. Overall, I appreciate the evaluation method you used. This is giving me more ways to analyze these cases in the future. Overall, I consider this is well done.