You are a salesperson for Visions Medical Equipment, a distributor of high-end CAT scan, MRI, ultrasound, x-ray, and mammography equipment. Lately, business has not been good and you have lost a number of customers to your largest competitor. Your boss has been on you about it and the declining sales have dramatically affected your commission checks. You have curtailed your spending, but your finances are starting to get really tight. You are barely able to make the minimum payments on your credit card bills and you are afraid that if your commission checks don’t start to rebound, you won’t be able to make your car and house payments. You don’t understand the loss of business; you are very good at your job and are selling the top-rated products in the industry. Lately, you have begun to suspect that your competitor’s salesperson is giving kickbacks to the hospital buyers. Recently, a buyer for your largest customer hinted that he could help you secure a large order if there were “something in it” for him. If you land the order you will earn a very large commission. You have never done anything like this before, but you do have an expense account where you could bury the payoff and there would be little risk of getting caught. You are afraid that if you don’t do it, your company will lose the sale and you will lose the commission.
1. What are your options? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each option for you and your employer? 2. What risks do you face if you give the kickback? 3. What risks do you face if you speak up? 4. What is the risk of doing nothing? 5. What would you do in this situation?
