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by stego-tech 574 days ago
> Kashani said Brain submitted numerous complaints through the EthicsPoint system and said tensions arose because Brain didn’t “play the political game” through his questioning of higher-ranking administrators.

This right here is why I scoff at “anonymous reporting systems” or stuff like EthicsPoint, for the simple reason that the only ethics that ultimately matter in an organization are those of everyone above you, and those individuals have a vested interest in preserving their political capital over acting or behaving ethically.

It’s disgusting and reprehensible if true, but it’s sadly not surprising. Those of us who behave ethically are little more than prey to those whose moral compasses are fungible.
2 comments
dreamcompiler 574 days ago
Organizations create these reporting systems to make themselves look good to outsiders, but they will punish you severely if you actually try to use them.

It's kind of like your grandmother's good china: Look at it all you want but don't you dare use it.

Stuff like this is incredibly confusing to people on the autism spectrum.

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permo-w 574 days ago
These systems must be used in conjunction with public media.
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stego-tech 574 days ago
> Stuff like this is incredibly confusing to people on the autism spectrum.

Upvoted for this alone. We thrive in clearly defined systems, but the powers that be are careful to hide the actual systems of power from us. It’s infuriating to find out we’ve been playing the wrong “game”.

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dmix 574 days ago
It doesn't sound like the process was anonymous, as it implies she found out it was him pretty quickly and worked to close ranks against him. Kinda defeats the purpose but I guess in any small organization it's probably easy to figure out who it is.
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dreamcompiler 574 days ago
There's no such thing as an anonymous reporting system in a company that owns the reporting infrastructure.

Some companies contract out such systems to a third party to reinforce the illusion of anonymity. But what do you think happens when the CEO says to the contractor "Tell me who wrote this or we won't hire you again"?

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