You are the manager of a spare parts company A and you have to negotiate a deal with the manager of a large manufacturing company B. The deal is highly competitive and sealing the deal is critical for your company. The deal is being worked out over a dinner. After dinner the manager of manufacturing company B offered to drop you to the hotel in his car. On the way to hotel he happens to hit motorcycle injuring the motorcyclist badly. You know the manager was driving fast and thus lost control. The law enforcement officer comes to investigate the issue and you are the sole eyewitness to it. Knowing the strict laws pertaining to road accidents you are aware that your honest account of the incident would lead to the prosecution of the manager and as a consequence the deal is likely to be jeopardised, which is of immense importance to your company. What are the dilemmas you face? What will be your response to the situation?

Facts of the case

I am the sole eyewitness to a road accident in which Manager B, driving fast, seriously injured a motorcyclist. An honest account to the investigating officer will lead to his prosecution and likely cost my company a critical, highly competitive deal.

Stakeholders

• The injured motorcyclist and his family, who deserve medical care, justice and compensation.
• Manager B, the errant driver responsible for the harm.
• My company, its employees and shareholders, dependent on the deal.
• Myself, my conscience and my legal liability as a witness.
• The rule of law and public trust in accident investigation.

Dilemmas I face

• Truth and justice versus loyalty to my employer's commercial interest.
• Legal duty to give a truthful statement versus personal gratitude to my host.
• Short-term organisational gain versus long-term integrity and self-respect.

Options and evaluation

Option 1 — Distort or suppress facts to shield B. Merit: secures the deal. Demerit: it is giving false evidence, obstructs justice, denies an innocent victim redress, exposes me to prosecution and makes me complicit in impunity.

Option 2 — Give a truthful, complete account. Merit: upholds the law, secures justice for the victim, protects my integrity. Demerit: may jeopardise the deal and displease my employer.

My response

I will give a full and truthful statement to the officer and first ensure the injured man receives prompt medical aid under the Good Samaritan guidelines. I will transparently tell my organisation that its success cannot rest on my complicity in a cover-up, and pursue the deal on merit.

Conclusion

A deal won through perjury is a liability, not an asset. Honesty here protects a wronged citizen, upholds the law and preserves the trust on which both durable business and my own character depend.