The Dilemma of Being Practical vs. Being Moral

“Shruti has been working as a PR Manager for quite some time. Her journey has been pretty smooth as well. But recently Shruti seems bothered by one of her colleagues. Her colleague is not being honest with her work, and she’s also too much involved in office politics. She has also been warned by the management a couple of times, but there’s not been any significant change. Her behavior has now started to affect others’ work, and as a manager, Shruti now feels obligated to complain about her actions to upper-level management. Shruti is puzzled as complaining about the actions of her colleague may cost her the job, but as a manager, it’s her responsibility as well.”

What do you think? What should Shruti do now?
The answer to these questions might be quite simple for many. Some will say that Shruti should control her emotions and fulfill her responsibility, while others would choose to give a warning to her colleague and carry on.
The thing is, all of you should be more interested in the situation and how you reach a certain conclusion rather than answering to your impulse and answering right away.
Here, the real question should be, ‘How do you choose when you either have to be ethical or moral?’ Let’s find out!

The Concept of Morality

Morality is a set of values that shape an individual’s sense of right and wrong. Many religions and exploratory systems often follow cosmic righteousness in any given situation that aims to do the best for everyone. In any case, being moral is usually doing the right thing and avoiding someone else’s loss. In a nutshell, morality is simply making the ideal choice in any situation.

The Concept of Ethics

Ethics are another set of values, different from morals, that apply in the real world and are more practical. Ethics are quite subjective in nature, and many individuals follow their set of ethics which they think is the right approach for them to live their life. However, contrary to morals, ethics do not always follow morality. For instance, Mafia in the US and Italy had their own code, i.e., Omerta. This was an oath of silence that every Mafia member took to save other members from the police. Similarly, many private associations also follow ethics/guidelines limited to their organization only.

Now, what do you think?
What should have been Shruti’s answer?
As far as I’m concerned, I would advise Shruti to complain about her colleague’s actions to the management, as within the premises of the organization and as a manager, it is her moral and ethical duty to report any discrepancies that come under her purview.