The project manager for a company that produces personal hygiene products. You are managing a project aimed at improving the quality of your company’s shaving creamVirile. Virile has a much smaller market share than the market leaderSmooth, manufactured by the competitor. The human resources (HR) manager tells you that a job application has been received from the chemist who developed the formula for Smooth. For each of the following situations, provide a suitable answer:
Situation 1: The HR manager asks your opinion on the job application. What would you tell the HR manager? Would you have any suggestions about the department of your company where the chemist should work, if hired?
Situation 2: Your company hires the chemist. The HR manager asks whether you would accept the chemist in your group. You ask whether the chemist has signed a non-disclosure agreement with his former employer. You are told that there is no such agreement. What do you tell the HR manager about accepting the chemist into your group? Give reasons for your answer.
Situation 3: The chemist is assigned to your team. Some of your team members are asking him very specific questions about the formulation of Smooth. Do you think this is ethical? What do you say to your team members about such conduct?
Situation 4: The chemist revises the formula for Virile. Product testing reveals that the new and improved Virile performs just as well as Smooth. In blind testing, when a subject compares products without knowing the identity of any product, both Virile and Smooth seem to be equal in all important parameters. Out of curiosity, you ask the chemist how close the formula for Virile is to the formula for Smooth. He replies, ‘They are the same. I thought that is why you hired me.’ What would you do now as you are about to market an exact copy of your competitor’s product under your brand name?