العربية    中文    русский    Français
MY|UOWD Online Payment
University of Wollongong in Dubai University of Wollongong in Dubai
  • About
    • Our Campus
      • About Dubai
      • 360° Virtual Tour
      • Facilities
    • Academic Units
      • School of Business
      • School of Computer Science
      • School of Engineering
      • School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Health
      • College
    • Accreditation
    • Rankings
    • UOW Australia
    • UOW Global Network
    • President’s Message
    • UOWD Board
    • UOWD Advisory Council
    • Organisational Structure
  • Degrees
    • Undergraduate
      • Business & Commerce
        • Bachelor of Business (Accountancy)
        • Bachelor of Business (Business Analytics)
        • Bachelor of Business (Finance)
        • Bachelor of Business (Human Resource Management)
        • Bachelor of Business (International Business)
        • Bachelor of Business (Management)
        • Bachelor of Business (Marketing)
        • Bachelor of Business Administration
      • Computer Science
        • Bachelor of Computer Science
        • Bachelor of Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence and Big Data)
        • Bachelor of Computer Science (Cyber Security)
        • Bachelor of Computer Science (Game and Mobile Development)
      • Engineering
        • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) - Civil Engineering
        • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) - Computer and Autonomous Systems Engineering
        • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) - Electrical and Electronics Engineering
        • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) - Mechatronic Engineering
        • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) - Mechanical Engineering
      • Information Technology
        • Bachelor of Business Information Systems
      • Media & Design
        • Bachelor of Communication and Media (Digital and Social Media)
        • Bachelor of Communication and Media (Marketing Communication and Advertising)
        • Bachelor of Communication and Media (Screen Media Production)
        • Bachelor of Communication and Media (Visual Communication Design)
      • Social Science
        • Bachelor of Psychological Science
        • Bachelor of Psychological Science (Human Resource Management)
        • Bachelor of Psychological Science (Management)
        • Bachelor of Psychological Science (Marketing)
    • Postgraduate
      • Business & Commerce
        • Master of Business Administration
        • Master of Business Analytics
        • Master of International Business
        • Master of Supply Chain Management
        • Master of Applied Finance (Investing)
        • Master of Applied Finance (Financial Services)
        • Master of Applied Finance (Financial Technology)
        • Master of Applied Finance (Corporate Treasury)
        • Master of Marketing
        • Master of Human Resource Management
        • Master of Innovation and Entrepreneurship
      • Education
        • Graduate Diploma in Educational Studies
        • Master of Educational Studies
      • Engineering
        • Master of Engineering Management
      • Healthcare
        • Master of Nursing
      • Information Technology
        • Master of Digital Transformation
      • Media & Design
        • Master of Media Design
    • Doctorate
      • Business
        • Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
    • Graduate Certificates
      • Graduate Certificate in Business
      • Graduate Certificate in Human Resource Management
      • Graduate Certificate in Marketing
    • NCUK - International Foundation Year
    • Short Courses
      • Executive Learning
      • Certificate of Proficiency
  • Language Studies
    • Study English
    • Private Tutoring
    • IELTS
    • OET
  • Join UOWD
    • Why UOWD
    • Academic Calendar
    • Fees
      • Bachelor's Degree
      • Master's Degree
    • Admission Requirements
      • Bachelor’s Degrees
      • Master's Degrees
    • Student Life
      • International Students
      • Visas
      • Health Information
      • Student Accommodation
      • Career Services
      • Transportation
      • Clubs and Sports
    • Scholarships
    • Transfer to Australia
  • Alumni
    • Alumni Benefits
    • Alumni Success Stories
    • Alumni Awards
    • Alumni Career Network
    • UOWD Graduates
  • Teaching
    • Blended Learning
    • Library
    • Trimester System
  • Research
    • Research Clusters
    • Research Excellence
    • Research Interests
    • Research Projects
    • Research Grants
    • Research Awards
  • Media
    • News
    • Events
    • Podcast
    • Blog
    • Gallery
    • Downloads
      • Annual Report
      • Brochures
      • Logos
  • Contact
    • Application Form
    • Online Payment
    • Become an Agent
    • Feedback
    • Work at UOWD
  • Open Day: Saturday, 24 May 2025 from 3pm to 7pm | UOWD Building - Register now!
Enquire Apply
  • Home
  • Media
  • Blog
  • Ethics vs Business – The IT project manager’s dilemma

Ethics vs Business – The IT project manager’s dilemma

Monday, 12 June, 2023


Business and technology always go hand in hand! As the world changes, businesses have realized the importance of technology in undergoing transformation and achieving consistent growth. Business transformation has become more frequent and relies more and more on information technology (IT). Companies are focusing on IT projects to drive concrete organizational changes and achieve business outcomes. However, like every project, IT projects include project managers who, like other professionals, are often faced with ethical dilemmas.

What is more important – Sticking to deadlines or upholding health and safety of employees? Hiring the right people for the job or successfully evading possible conflicts of interest? Upholding the organization’s reputation or owning up to mistakes? These are all current challenges that IT Project Managers face day after day. In fact, the larger the projects, the more the chances arise for Project Managers to compromise their ethical values to complete the project on time and within the budget. However, neglecting ethics could have consequences that are damaging to stakeholders. Dr. Zeenath Reza Khan from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences recently held the 14th ReBitVlogs session where a panel of experts and students discussed these very challenges faced by IT Project Managers and the way forward. 

Here we’ll look at some of the most common types of ethical issues that IT Project Managers are faced with.  

Accountability

When things don’t go as planned, it’s part of human nature to put the blame on someone else. Unfortunately, instead of assuming responsibility as the Project Head, IT project managers are often seen putting the blame on someone else.

Basic Human Rights 

It is becoming increasingly common to find Project Managers turning a blind eye to the health and safety of their team members. Project Managers on tight deadlines often misuse their powers by asking employees to work overtime and/or cancelling leave to ensure the project is completed within the client’s timeframe.
 
Conflict of Interest

The larger the project the more people are involved. Many a time, leading large projects requires the expertise of third parties.  Managers of IT projects are then faced with ethical dilemmas of hiring the people they know and trust or giving other parties a fair chance to bid. Project managers should ensure that all parties involved understand the company’s standards for bidding and vendor selection, and that the definition of a conflict of interest is clear to everyone.

Bias

Bias is everywhere! IT Project Managers often fall prey to different kinds of bias such as optimism bias (promising outcomes that are better than expected), hindsight bias (tendency to view past events as more predictable than they were), cognitive bias (errors in thinking and reasoning) and strategic misrepresentation (lying). Overcoming these biases calls for awareness and reflection on the nature of the bias, followed by a thorough implementation of behavioral changes.

Project Management in IT: Business, Art or Science?

So, what’s the solution to these dilemmas? As human beings, we need to reconsider what defines success for us. Project Management in IT requires a unique skillset to ensure that the completion of the project is not only deemed successful when completed on time and budget but also when it has been accomplished through ethical processes. So, an IT Project Manager should set goals like a businessperson, develop a project team and a project story like an artist, and design a critical path using formulas like a scientist. And all these needs to be done in an ethical manner.

The expert panel at ReBitVlogs addressed some clever questions that students came up with on how to navigate through these ethical challenges. You can watch the recording of the session below.



Author:

Vidhi Sharma
Instructor, School of Business
Organiser and Moderator, ReBitVlogs Majlis
University of Wollongong in Dubai

Related Blogs

12 Nov 2024
Confidentiality and Transparency in IT and Business

For businesses, the core focus has always been on people. This principle holds true even at the intersection of business and technology

Read More
10 Oct 2024
Green Hydrogen: The Game-Changer in the UAE’s Clean Energy Landscape

The future of green hydrogen in the UAE is exceptionally bright. With projections that the hydrogen economy could create over 180,000 jobs by 2031

Read More
19 Mar 2024
The Next Wave in HR: How AI and Data Analytics Are Redefining the Future

HR analytics involves the methodical identification and measurement of factors related to a company’s workforce that influence organisational outcomes

Read More
12 Feb 2024
Beyond the Price Tag: How to Leverage Digital Storytelling in Marketing

In the intricate world of marketing for luxury brands, the efficacy of storytelling emerges as a pivotal strategy

Read More
08 Aug 2023
Cyber Security Meets Sustainability: Securing a Sustainable Future

As the world technologically evolves, businesses have started to realize the importance of having a digital platform to reach more customers, especially globally

Read More
03 Feb 2023
AI in my classroom by Dr Zeenath Reza Khan

January 2023 began for a lot of us in academia with our social media pages bombarded with news and posts on Microsoft’s bid to invest on ChatGPT, an artificially intelligent text generating tool from OpenAI

Read More
14 Jun 2018
Getting prepared for a future career whilst at University

Regardless of the current stage of your studies, it is never too early to start preparing for your future career. Of course there is a slight chance that you planned it all out, but chances are that by the time you graduate you would have changed your ..

Read More
29 Mar 2018
5 reasons why women should consider a future in STEM

The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematic (STEM) industry is developing at a rapid pace and is becoming one of the highest paying sectors. With this in mind, there is no doubt that a career in this direction will be of interest to new or ..

Read More
View All

Open Day

Attend our next Open Day on Saturday, 24 May 2025.
Join our experts to learn more about our degrees and how you can enrol at UOWD in our
Autumn intake which starts on 22 September 2025.


Register Now Upcoming Open Days

Established in 1993, University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) is the first international Australian university in the UAE, and is now part of a global brand that has campuses in Australia, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Location

University of Wollongong in Dubai is located in the heart of Dubai's vibrant education and training cluster, Dubai Knowledge Park.

Directions

Forms

Forms footer menu

  • Application Form
  • Visa Application Form
  • IELTS Application Form
  • Referee Report
  • Scholarship Form
Quick Links

Quick links footer menu

  • Our Campus
  • About Dubai
  • Mission & Vision
  • UOW Global Network
  • Payment
  • Events
  • News
  • Podcast
  • Library
  • IT Services
  • Legal Services
  • Student Video Tutorials
Contact us

University of Wollongong in Dubai
UOWD Building, Dubai Knowledge Park
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
P.O. Box 20183

Toll-free 800-UOWD, or +971 4 278 1800
[email protected]

Stay Connected
  • Copyright © 2025 University of Wollongong in Dubai

  • Privacy
  • Disclaimer
  • Site map
  • Australian Provider ID (TEQSA): PRV12062

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website.

Learn More