Introduction
Project management is a vital aspect of any development project. Companies should define the processes that are to be used to ensure fair and open business. The procurement stage of any project comes at the beginning and thus it forms the base of the entire project. The best procurement methods are intended to be free from the risk of fraud and collusion. The risks involved in procurement are normally calculated in terms of cost and expected value. To avoid corruption in the procurement procedure, a company needs to adopt an ethical position throughout the process. An ethical approach will ensure that what is procured meets the quality and quantity required. It also ensures that it reaches the location of the project at the right time. The need to beat set project deadlines often compels project managers to pursue unethical processes of procurement. Ethics at this stage shall create an atmosphere of trust and confidence throughout the project. The knowledge that what has been procured meets the project standards is in itself morale boosting factor all along. With confidence and morale, the project becomes almost a guaranteed success.
Main body
Sustainable value is a way of measuring and maintaining the sustainability of performance in a project. It is measured in terms of the costs to be incurred against the returns from the same. It can, therefore, be said to be an indicator of efficiency for a project. The European Union project ADVANCE (Application and Dissemination of Value-Based Eco-Ratings in Financial Markets) uses the concept of sustainable value to assess the sustainability of financial performance of the Euro in many countries (Hahn & Figge, 2005). Sustainable value can provide information regarding the viability of a project. It is an important aspect of any undertaking that an organization wants to pursue. Through the making of an assessment on the sustainability of a project, a manager can be able to decide on whether to continue or leave the project.
Ethics is an important part of the success of any company venture. Business ethics are what help those that are in charge of the projects make valid decisions. The dilemmas that face project managers are numerous and diverse. Ethical decisions are what help managers maneuver through these dilemmas. The great Greek philosopher Socrates spoke of ethics as a way of bringing happiness in a person’s life. In business projects, ethics can be relied on for the success of the entire project. Ethical decisions are different from other kinds of decisions. They are instigated by dilemmas that people face in their daily lives. The factors that ensure the success of the project mainly involve a lot of decision-making. With the right kind of moral values and ethics, the person making these decisions will in many times make the right decisions.
Though it may be an important part of decision-making for a project, ethics is not the only value that is helpful in that aspect. Information is also vital in decision-making. In a project scenario, the decisions that are made do not only affect the project. They affect the people involved, as well. Through group decision-making processes, the manager can be able to get more information to use in the decision-making process. This can be done in different modes. The manager can seek the opinion of the members of the team irrespective of their positions in the organizational chart. This method would be easily applied if the team working on the project was not large. In a large firm, this process might be time-consuming and too tiring (Knights & O’Leary, 2005).
Another method that the manager can use is dividing the team into small units and allowing the teams to hold discussions. This method would work very well in a project involving large groups. He/she can then get feedback from the team leaders of each group. The last method that can be employed is to consult a professional. Professionals come in handy at such points as they possess a great deal of knowledge within their areas of study. They also offer a professional point of view, as opposed to a layman who simply says what can only be observed.
Once enough information has been gathered, an informed decision can be made. Through consultation and negotiations, some form of working relationship is created between the team. This is part of work ethics, which is vital for the success of a project. A good working environment will provide team members with the necessary tool that ensure maximum output from each member of the group. It also acts as a motivator for individuals who are involved directly and indirectly in the project. To manage the resources that are available for the project, it takes a person of high moral character (Dangayach, 2011).
A project manager is, therefore, expected to have high moral and ethical values and maintain the same throughout the project. An ethical approach can only be implemented by a person in possession of these characteristics. An ethical approach in the procurement procedure as cited earlier shall ensure that there is fairness and no collusions. This in terms of sustainable value is going to ensure that the resources that a project is assigned are used appropriately. In such a scenario, wastage or using resources wrongly shall have been eliminated. If ethics are applied throughout a project, the probability of success increases drastically. Since no project is started to fail, success is the ultimatum of any given project. When sustainable value assessment has been carried out efficiently, what remains is the implementation of the project plan. This stage involves utilizing the available resources to achieve the desired results. With a good, ethical approach, the implementation part would feel extremely easy though it is the real test of sustainable value (Guy, 1990).
Conclusion
An ethical approach forms an important part of any given project. It is directly linked to sustainable values as it is through maintaining such an approach that resources are being utilized efficiently. Through this approach, projects are done to the desired quality and are on time. It is the duty of the individuals involved in a project to ensure they take this approach to reach the desired end of a project. The utilization of the available resources to get the quality of the project that was expected is what sustainable value is all about. Achieving this sustainable value takes a combination of determination and commitment. Using an ethical approach, it is very easy to attain sustainable value. The ethical approach can, therefore, be termed as the base of sustainable value in a project (Dangayach, 2011).
References
- Dangayach, G., 2011. Sustainability: An Ethical Approach towards Project Business Success. World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, 73, pp.364- 368.
- Guy, M., 1990. Ethical decision making in everyday work situations. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
- Hahn, T. & Figge, F., 2005. The Cost of Sustainability Capital and the Creation of Sustainable Value by Companies. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 9(4), pp.47-58.
- Knights, D. & O’Leary, M., 2005. Reflecting on corporate scandals: the failure of ethical leadership. Business Ethics: A European Review, 14, pp.359-366.