WEEK 4 DISCUSSION POST

Wk 4 discussion (C. MUNDY)

Rocket Man Enterprises is a government defense contractor currently working on a contract to develop weapons systems. R.U. Kidding the comptroller for the company who discovered a miscalculation in the charges the company has billed the government. There are several stakeholders in the middle of this ethical dilemma, however the issue needs to be resolved for the greater good of everyone involved. Specifically, the stakeholders who are affected are: Rocket Man Enterprises employees, US taxpayers, and the ongoing weapons systems project that could potentially protect millions of people globally. The current ethical dilemma is bringing up an issue that may be unaware to all parties involved but could potentially damage relationships if not handled appropriately. 

The first thing I would do if I were R.U. Kidding would be to contact a Whistleblower attorney (Lexi, 2020). Once all risks have been evaluated and weighed and it was safe to do so, I would make the CEO aware of the discovery. Furthermore, I would recommend a legal review and for the negotiations team to collaborate with the contracting officer representative (COR) to work on a plan to move the situation forward. With Rocket Man Enterprises finding the mistake and bringing it to the attention of the government, there can be an honest billing adjustment made or a possible renegotiation of charges. If the cost to build the weapon systems truly requires the current cost being billed – then an amendment to the contract might need to be made. This would be the right direction for the relationship of each members of the contract. 

If all else failed and the company was not willing to make matters known or work towards resolving the dilemma, I would use the whistleblower attorney to file a qui tam lawsuit in accordance with the False Claims Act (Phillips & Cohen, 2021). To say nothing would be a damaging risk to all stakeholders involved. Not to mention, I personally would not want to work for a company who cheated clients.

 

References

Lexie. (2020, November 03). 5 famous American whistleblowers who stood up for what is right. Retrieved from https://www.expressvpn.com/blog/5-american-famous-whistleblowers/

Phillips and Cohen. (2021). Our successful whistleblower cases. Retrieved from https://www.phillipsandcohen.com/successful-cases/