Question

Assume that you are a cashier and your manager requires that you immediately enter each sale when it occurs. Recently, lunch hour traffic has increased and the assistant manager asks you to avoid delays by taking customers’ cash and making change without entering sales. The assistant manager says she will add up cash and enter sales after lunch. She says that, in this way, customers will be happy and the register record will always match the cash amount when the manager arrives at three o’clock. The advantage to the process proposed by the assistant manager includes improved customer service, fewer delays, and less work for you. The disadvantage is that the assistant manager could steal cash by simply recording less sales than the cash received and then pocketing the excess cash. You decide to reject her suggestion without the manager’s approval and to confront her on the ethics of her suggestion.

*** Propose and evaluate two other courses of action you might consider, and explain why.

Answer 1

The two possible courses of protocol I can follow are as follows:

1. Manager has given a foolproof protocol to follow but it may provide some inconvenience to the customers during rush hours in the form of delay in serving them due to regular entry of sales in the system. On the other hand, assistant manager's instruction won't cause any inconvenience to the customers but it poses a risk of misappropriation of cash by the assistant manager. Following the instructions of assistant manager which causes reduction in the control procedures without consultation with the manager, is a disregard of instructions given by the manager, the higher person in the hierarchy. Had assistant manager ask for extended protocol for timely recording of sales, this dilemma wouldn't have arise. But, such change in following the assigned protocol will be faulty. So what I will be left with is consulting with the manager about the proposal of the assistant manager by whatever means it is possible like a phone call if he/she isn't available physically, and then doing it the way he/she recommends. In case there is denial of the manner communicated by the assistant manager then appropriately communicating the assistant manager the reason of not following her communicated protocol.
2. We can also see the situation differently. If the intentions of the assistant manager doesn't seem to be malafide, she is associated with the entity for fairly long period and she really want that for adding up business and providing convenience to the customers, then I can follow her instructions but at the same time I will ask her, to record sales and add up cash as well all by myself so that any situation of embezzlement by her is ruled out. I will be following this protocol only during rush hours like the lunch time and otherwise I will be following as instructed by the manager.