Do as I Say, Not as I Did Carl Durrenbergen, an engineer in
Do as I Say, Not as I Did Carl Durrenbergen, an engineer in
Do as I Say, Not as I Did
Carl Durrenbergen, an engineer in San Diego, was packing up his cubical at Hewlett-Packard to transfer to another division of the company when he came across a copy of a 1944 book given to him by a former boss. The book was titledThe Unwritten Laws of Engineering, authored by W. J. King. As he browsed through the little book, he couldn’t help but grin at the outdated language.1Just a few days later, he read an article inUSA Todaynewspaper about Bill Swanson, CEO of Raytheon, and his 33 unwritten rules, published under the titleSwanson’s Unwritten Rules of Management.2Durrenbergen thought for a moment, paused, and then a memory flashed into his mind. He quickly found the King book in his box of packed materials, looked it over more carefully, and was“flabbergasted” to recognize that 16 of Swanson’s rules were the same as King’s, even down to the identical wording. He later wrote on his blog:“Bill Swanson of Raytheon is a plagiarist.”3
Media Questions.Raytheon started receiving questions from the media immediately. When newspaper articles started showing up, Swanson finally released a statement. He said he regretted any reference to King’s work and according to theNew York Times, seemed to laugh off the whole thing. He was quoted as saying that this experience had taught him a valuable lesson, and he issued his new rule #34—“Regarding the truisms of human behavior, there are no original rules.”4
Swanson’s Admission.Swanson apologized for the incident but later went on to saythat the whole thing was an innocent mix-up.
He said he had asked some of his staff members to compile a presentation from a file of materials he gave them, and he later admitted that“it’s clear to me now that this file contained Professor King’s book, as well as other published materials.”5It later turned out that Swanson’s little booklet also contained some other rules that had been taken from published guidelines of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and also from humorist Dave Barry. This incident exploded into a full-blown embarrassment and public relations nightmare for Raytheon and for Swanson.6The Board’s Position.As CEO, Swanson reports to his board of directors. A board spokesman said they were not happy with the incident but had become convinced the lifting of someone else’s material had been unintentional.7By February 2007, the Raytheon board had decided that Swanson had been punished enough for his plagiarism. The company docked his 2006 pay by $1 million after he admitted his guilt. A few months later, it was reported in theNew York Timesthat Raytheon had raised Swanson’s bonus to $2.8 million in 2006, even though theBoston Globehad reported that promoting ethical behavior was one criterion the board says it uses in deciding upon bonuses. When asked why Swanson’s bonus increased while his ethics had decreased, a company spokesman said that ethical behavior was just one factor the board considered.8
Questions for Discussion
1. Did Swanson plagiarize or was it all just anunintentional, innocent mix-un? What would happen to a college student who did what Swanson had done?
2. How would you characterize the ethical leadership style of CEO Swanson? Was Swanson denying responsibility and trying to blame staffers for the error?
3. In Case 7, Swanson spoke out about people with“situational value systems.” Has he now engaged in hypocritical behavior?
4. What is your evaluation of the reaction of the Raytheon board of directors? Was the $1 million fine a serious attempt to punish questionable behavior, or was it a slap on the wrist administered for PR purposes?
5. What does this case tell you about corporate governance and ethical leadership?
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