PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
• ETHICS: Rules of conduct recognized in respect to
the actions of persons in the profession
• CODE OF ETHICS: Governs the behavior of
members of the profession; usually written in
general terms
• CORPORATE ETHICS: Composed of individual
actions; may be governed by legislation, may be
influenced by competition/economics
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PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
EXAMPLES OF ETHICS ISSUES
• Price fixing/reciprocal agreements
• Bribery/kickbacks
• Advertising
• Confidential/proprietary information
• Intellectual property
• Financial fraud
• Identity theft
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PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
• Intellectual property refers to the protection of ideas
with patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade
secrets
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Patents – Concept in United States Constitution
Copyright infringement – Google library project?
Trademarks – Immediate customer recognition
Trade secrets – Unauthorized use is an unfair practice
Plagiarism/self-plagiarism
Academic copy-and-paste papers
IEEE Xplore and Google links
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ETHICS AND MEMBER CONDUCT COMMITTEE
(EMCC)
MISSION
The Ethics and Member Conduct Committee
advises the Board of Directors on ethics
policies and concerns, as well as fosters
awareness on ethical issues and promotes
ethical behavior among individuals and
organizations working within IEEE fields of
interest.
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ETHICS AND MEMBER CONDUCT
COMMITTEE (EMCC)
SCOPE
IEEE Bylaw I-306.7
“The Ethics and Member Conduct Committee shall make
recommendations for policies and/or educational programs to
promote the ethical behavior of members and staff, and shall
consider instituting proceedings, as defined in IEEE Bylaws I110 and I-111, related to matters of member and officer
discipline and requests for support. Neither the Ethics and
Member Conduct Committee nor any of its members shall
solicit or otherwise invite complaints, nor shall they provide
advice to individuals.”
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IEEE BYLAW I-110
MEMBER DISCIPLINE AND SUPPORT
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Cause for expulsion, suspension or censure
Member conduct complaints
Hearing board
Requests for support
Misrepresentation
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PROCEDURES FOR HANDLING MEMBER
CONDUCT COMPLAINTS
• The EMCC receives complaints from members about the
conduct of other members.
• The EMCC conducts a preliminary investigation.
• If the EMCC finds that the facts can be proven and
constitute cause for
– censure,
– suspension, or
– expulsion
a Hearing Board is convened.
• The Hearing Board deliberates.
• The IEEE Board of Directors takes final action.
See Bylaws I-110 and I-111 and Policy 7.11
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IEEE CODE OF ETHICS HAS A LONG
HISTORY
• 1912 – Code adopted by the American Institute of
Electrical Engineers (AIEE).
• 1963 – IEEE endorsed “Canons of Ethics of
Engineers” after AIEE/IRE merger.
• 1974 – Board of Directors approved “IEEE Code
of Ethics for Engineers”.
• 1979-89 – Code underwent a few revisions.
• 1990 – Board of Directors approved simplified
IEEE Code of Ethics.
• 2006 – Board of Directors approved revision to
the IEEE Code of Ethics.
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IEEE CODE OF ETHICS REVISION
We, the members of the IEEE, in recognition of the importance of our
technologies in affecting the quality of life throughout the world and in
accepting a personal obligation to our profession, its members and
the communities we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the highest
ethical and professional conduct and agree:
1. to accept responsibility in making engineering decisions
consistent with the safety, health and welfare of the public,
and to disclose promptly factors that might endanger the
public or the environment.
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LIAISON WITH THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR
ENGINEERING ETHICS
• National Institute for Engineering Ethics (NIEE)
encourages cooperation among individuals,
universities, professional and technical societies
and business organizations with regard to
engineering ethics
• Liaison provides the IEEE with a voice in
determining the format and content of NIEE projects
and an opportunity to interact with other
professional engineering societies
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IEEE AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED ETHICAL
PRACTICES
• Description of the award: For (a) exemplary
ethical behavior/practices and/or (b) persuasive
advocacy or promotion of ethical
behavior/practices.
• Eligibility: Members of the IEEE and organizations
that employ IEEE members.
• Nominations: Details for nominations available on
EMCC website (www.ieee.org/ethics).
• EMCC REQUESTS YOUR SUPPORT AND
NOMINATIONS FOR THIS AWARD.
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STUDENT ETHICS COMPETITION GOALS
• Foster familiarity with IEEE Code of Ethics
and concepts
• Promote a model for discussing and
analyzing ethical questions
• Learn about ethics in a “fun” context
• Provide experience in applying ethical
concepts to hypothetical professional
situations
• Supplement Regional/Sectional ethics
programs
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STUDENT ETHICS COMPETITION
GUIDELINES AND REQUIREMENTS
• Funding for maximum of 10 events per year spread
among the 10 IEEE Regions
• Competition is suggested to be between 4 to 6
teams made up of 2 to3 IEEE Student/Graduate
members
 Each team represents their student branch or
similar group
 Each team is sequestered and given a period of
time to prepare a presentation and defense of an
ethical situation provided by the sponsor
 Each team’s presentation/defense will be judged
by a group of 3 to 6 judges using a standardized
judging form.
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STUDENT ETHICS COMPETITION
RECOMMENDATIONS
• Schedule a Student Ethics Competition in your
Region, Section and/or Chapter
 Access Guidelines and Requirements
 Select an IEEE program/venue that will attract
sufficient student involvement
 Establish a management team and panel of
judges
 Select a case from the EMCC portfolio or
produce your own
 Notify EMCC about plans and request funding
approval at ethics@ieee.org
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CONCLUSIONS
• A goal of EMCC is to focus on outreach by
developing an Ethics Speaker list, preparing ethics
training and lecture materials, and possibly making
ethics case studies available online.
• The IEEE Institute publishes ethics articles
• Ethics awareness outreach includes Regions,
Sections, Chapters, Branches....
• Current areas of ethics awareness include
 IEEE Award for Distinguished Ethical Practices
 Student Ethics Competition
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