PCSB Hosts 2023 Michael Smith Business Ethics Case Competition
On Saturday, February 25, 2023, the Providence College School of Business hosted the 2023 Michael Smith Business Ethics Case Competition. Named in honor of Michael Smith ’65, former chairman and CEO of Hughes Electronics Corp., the competition featured multiple teams of undergraduate students from several colleges and universities from the Northeast and beyond.
“I am delighted that this has turned into an international competition, with teams from the United States, Canada, and Mexico participating this year,” said Patrick Kelly, Ph.D., professor of accountancy and Director of the Ethics in Business Education Program.
Teams were instructed to examine a business ethics case over a two-week period and present their analysis and solution to a panel of judges consisting of corporate and ethics professionals. This year’s case revolved around a fictional professional services firm, ABC, Inc. Students were tasked with recommending whether or not ABC should require employees to install tracking software on their devices to monitor the employees’ productivity. The issue rose to prominence during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, where remote work became prevalent among the workforce.
First place was awarded to Rowah Ibnaouf, Massaran Konate, and Agalby Morel, who represented Boston College. The team argued in favor of installing software mainly for cybersecurity, but they also endorsed gentle tracking software to minimize the risks of lost productivity without losing employee trust. Second place was awarded to Nikki Agrawai, Adam Chessell, Nara Lee, and Hamza Bin Waheed, who represented the University of Toronto Mississauga. Representing Providence College in the competition were Bobby McGuire ’24, Tommy Ishimwe ’24, and Jacob Bazyk ’24.
“I was able to witness the final round, and I was very impressed by all the teams,” said Kelly, noting that the judges had a difficult task in selecting the winning teams. “I am so proud of all the students who participated.”
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