Amber Davis had recently graduated from college with a degree in general business. Amber was quite bright, although her grades might lead a person to think otherwise. She had thoroughly enjoyed school—dating, tennis, swimming, and similar stimulating academic events. When she graduated from the university, she had not found a job. Her father was extremely upset when he discovered this, and he took it upon himself to see that Amber became employed.

Her father, Allen Davis, was executive vice president of a medium-sized manufacturing firm. One of the people he contacted in seeking employment for Amber was Bill Garbo, the president of another firm in the area. Mr. Davis purchased many of his firm’s supplies from Garbo’s company. After telling Bill his problem, Allen was told to send Amber to Bill’s office for an interview. Amber did as instructed by her father and was surprised that before she left that day she had a job in the accounting department. Amber may have been lazy but she certainly was not stupid. She realized that this job was obtained because of the hope of future business from her father’s company. Although the work was not challenging, it paid better than the other jobs in the accounting department.

It did not take long for the employees in the department to discover the reason she had been hired—Amber told them. When a difficult job was assigned to Amber, she normally got one of the other employees to do it, inferring that Mr. Garbo would be pleased with them by helping her out. She developed a pattern of coming in late, taking long lunch breaks, and leaving early. When the department manager attempted to reprimand her for these unorthodox activities, Amber would bring up the close relationship that her father had with the president of the firm. The department manager was at the end of his rope.

QUESTIONS

1. From an ethical standpoint, was