PROFESSIONAL ETHICS PROFESSIONALISM CODE OF ETHICS OF ENGINEERS
WHAT IS A PROFESSION? Given the purpose of this treatise, a mere attempt to define or simply to conduct an examination of design professionalism would, I believe, be inadequate. In order to responsibly define design professionalism we must first fundamentally understand what a profession is and what conditions are required for it to exist.
THE FUNDAMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF A PROFESSION: GREAT RESPONSIBILITY ACCOUNTABILITY
DIRECT WORKING RELATIONSHIPS CLIENTS RATHER THAN CUSTOMERS
ETHICAL CONSTRAINTS
AUTONOMY
BASED ON SPECIALIZED, THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE INSTITUTIONAL PREPARATION CAPITALIST MORALITY
MERIT-BASED
PROFESSIONALISM The short definition is that professionalism means behaving in an ethical manner while assuming and fulfilling your rightful responsibilities in every situation every time, without fail. To get a bit more granular, one can say that it means, in part, conducting your affairs in such a way as to engender trust and confidence in every aspect of your work. It means having the requisite ability to be worthy of the confidence others place in you. It means having already made the right choices so that you attract the right sort of client and work under good circumstances rather than having to continually make the best of bad circumstances and take whatever is tossed your way, regardless of its quality.
Perhaps most importantly, professionalism means, in every situation, willfully gathering responsibility rather than avoiding it. Doing so is important because if you don't acknowledge and assume the onus of responsibility in every aspect of your work you will seldom if ever make the right choice to do what is necessary to achieve consistent success for your employer, your employees, your clients, or yourself. Quite simply, if the buck doesn't stop with you, you're not a professional.
“This is silly, you're making this all too complicated. I'm not the CEO of a corporation, I'm just a designer. As a design professional, my job is to create beautiful designs for my clients. It's not my choice who the sales guy gets us as clients so it's not my fault that half of them don't trust my designs and want to fiddle with them too much. It's not my fault if the owner of my agency always changes my designs before we show the client. It's not my fault if the project manager gives me a ridiculously short deadline or if the client didn't explain her business to me well enough so that I could understand what she really needs. I do the best I can with what I have and all I really need to know is how to design really well.�
PROFESSIONAL ETHICS Business or professional ethics are standards or codes of conduct set by people in a specific profession. A code of ethics is a part of the expectations of those involved in many different types of professions. People in a profession don't want to condone bad, dishonest or irresponsible behavior if it does occur by someone in their field. By setting out expected behaviors in the form of professional ethics, professionals work together to try to uphold a good reputation. Professional ethics are commonly known as ethical business practices. Respect and honesty are the two main components of professional ethics. All employees are expected to represent a business ethically as they are a part of it. This is why businesspeople traditionally speak of "we" or "us" rather than the more personal "I" for the most part. For instance, if an employee must mention company policy to a customer, he or she may say "I'm sorry, but this is our company policy in these situations." Policies are another type of preferred standards in how business is done, and everyone in a company is expected to represent them.
PROFESSIONAL ETHICS Engineering, journalism, religious organizations and many other professions have professional ethics. These ethical codes or rules must never go against laws, but rather often coordinate with them as in the case of medical record confidentiality. In general, professional ethics always include upholding honesty and respect in the profession over personal needs, conflicts or biases. A bias is a personal belief such as prejudice toward a certain group of people.
CODE OF ETHICS OF ENGINEERS THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES Engineers uphold and advance the integrity, honor and dignity of the engineering profession by: Using their knowledge and skill for the enhancement of human welfare; being honest and impartial, and servicing with fidelity the public, their employers and clients striving to increase the competence and prestige of the engineering profession; and supporting the professional and technical societies of their disciplines.
THE FUNDAMENTAL CANONS 1.-Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public in the performance of their professional duties. 2.-Engineers shall perform services only in the areas of their competence. 3.-Engineers shall issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner. 4.-Engineers shall act in professional maters for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees, and shall avoid conflicts of interest.
THE FUNDAMENTAL CANONS 5.- Engineers shall build their professional reputation on the merit of their services and shall not compete unfairly with others. 6.- Engineers shall act in such a manner as to uphold and enhance the honor, integrity and dignity of the profession. 7.- Engineers shall continue their professional development throughout their careers and shall provide opportunities for the professional development of those engineers under their supervision.