The Expiring Software License |
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Management Control Systems |
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Organizational Behavior |
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Beginner |
1 |
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On September 30, Jianxin (Jimmy) Wu, manager of the Information Systems
Department for Southwest Industries (SWI), was in panic mode. SWI was a
medium-size manufacturer of portable shelters, tents, and awnings.
Jimmy was panicking because the company's Citrix software had just
died. Because of his oversight, an invoice had not been paid, and SWI's
license to use the software had expired. This was the second time in a
month that he had failed to complete an important task.
Jimmy knew that something had to be done very quickly. Many of the
company's information systems users, who were situated at three
different locations, relied heavily on the Citrix software. All of
SWI's applications ran under Citrix. The Citrix software gave all
employees access to the SWI applications they needed no matter where
they were, as long as they had access to the Internet. The Citrix
license renewal would cost $3,600, but going through the purchasing
department to get a requisition issued would take at least several
days. The users could not be without the Citrix capability for that
long.
Jimmy first thought about asking Citrix for an extension while the
purchasing department processed the payment, but he doubted that it
would be granted. SWI was a notoriously slow payer. The last time SWI
asked Citrix for a similar extension, it actually took the SWI
purchasing department several weeks to pay the invoice. Citrix
personnel were quite annoyed at this delay.
Then Jimmy thought about using his purchasing card. The card, which
worked like a credit card, was intended for small purchases, not
including travel, hotels, or food. SWI issued the card to some of its
key personnel to avoid the costs of processing the paperwork required
for many small, incidental purchases. The company only had to make one
single payment to the credit card company, and the credit card company
did all the processing
The maximums placed on Jimmy's card were $2,000 for any single
purchase, and $5,000 per month. Jimmy knew that these limits were
strictly enforced. Personnel in the accounting department scanned the
bills monthly looking for violations. But Jimmy thought that he could
get Citrix to split the bill in two, and then the accounting department
personnel would not raise any objections.
With no other apparent options at hand, Jimmy decided to try to use his
card to renew the license. The Citrix salesman agreed to charge the
card in two transactions of $1,800 each. The license was renewed
quickly, and few of SWI's Citrix users were ever aware that there had
been a problem.
Assignment
1. Did Jimmy Wu act in an ethical manner in using his purchasing card to renew the Citrix software license?
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