Ethics in Cyberspace
Life is continually teaching us valuable lessons and one of the most important factors in our development as people is to learn from these lessons. This past week has been no exception.
As you all know, Morry Morgan has produced a Power Point presentation called: "ClarkMorgan vs. TW Allison," which he has uploaded to his page on SlideShare.net. Mr. Morgan also has a personal blog, and in his latest article about the Laowai, (that's me) he has made a couple of statements that are completely false and which I would now like to correct.
First, he states that I quit my job with ClarkMorgan, told a client it was because ClarkMorgan did not pay me, and then I offered to take that client under my own company, and Poof,! a new training company in Guangzhou was born.
This statement is completely false!
In January of this year I was doing BE training for a ClarkMorgan client. I was expecting to receive my full monthly salary for the month of December, which should have been RMB 15,000. However, I was informed by Morry Morgan’s business partner that I would only be receiving 75% of my salary, a total of RMB 11,250. Apparently an e-mail had been sent out to all trainers explaining this, however I never received that e-mail. I have no idea why I did not receive it, it may have been a technical glitch, but I had no idea about the cut in salary and it was unacceptable to me anyway. This was because on top of this, I had not received my 3rd or 4th quarter training bonuses for 2008, which in themselves should have been a total of approximately RMB 12,000. I had been informed that I would not receive those bonuses because of the financial crisis.
So, I decided I had had enough. I went to the client and explained that I would not be able to complete the training for them. I apologized, but explained that I was only receiving 75% of my salary for the month of December, and that I also had not received my bonuses for the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2008. I never said that ClarkMorgan did not pay me, implying that I had received absolutely nothing from the company, which is what Mr. Morgan suggests in his blog. Obviously, if I had received absolutely nothing in compensation from ClarkMorgan, I would have filed a lawsuit against them to recover my pay.
I told the client that if ClarkMorgan was not able to find a trainer to complete the last four classes, I would do it myself, for no financial compensation. Obviously, I would not receive payment from ClarkMorgan, since I was quitting, nor could I expect the client to pay me for the last four classes, as they had already paid ClarkMorgan in full. However, I was more than willing to finish the training for them on my own time and on my own dime. I never suggested the client could now come under my company and we would finish the training for them. Additionally, we contacted the Shenzhen office of ClarkMorgan and told them they would need to find a new trainer to finish this client's BE classes. That is not something we would have done if we were attempting to steal a client.
Morry Morgan may not believe these facts. Frankly, it does not matter to me whether he does or not. I know the truth, and the individual I spoke to at the client's office that day also knows the truth. Additionally, the people closest to me and who know what really happened at that time know the truth. As far as I am concerned this is the end of this matter.
Secondly, Mr. Morgan states that I am a "born again Christian." I am not, never have been, and never will be a "born again Christian." I do not know where Mr. Morgan gets his information from, but I have never told him or anyone else that I am a "born again Christian." For those of you reading this and who are not sure what a "born again Christian" is, please go to the following site, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_again_Christian, and you can read information about the beliefs of such individuals. I do not believe these things.
For someone to call me a "born again Christian" would be similar to someone referring to a devout Muslim as a Jew or vice versa. I am sure that neither of them would be pleased with being mislabeled in such a manner. That is how I feel about being referred to as a "born again Christian."
Now that you know the facts, what about "Ethics in Cyberspace?" If Morry Morgan feels that he has a case against me personally, or our company, what is the ethical way of handling such a matter?
The Internet is a very powerful tool. It is being used for much good. However, it is also being used in a very negative way, such as spreading rumor, innuendo, half- truths and outright false information. Whether intentional or unintentional, spreading such information can leave the person posting it open to the possibility of being accused of and charged with defamation of character, libel, vilification, slander, etc. I am quite sure that none of us would want to be accused of such things. Being found guilty of such action is a serious matter. There can be heavy financial damages placed upon individuals or organizations that engage in such conduct. However, even worse than financial damages, would be the damage to a person's reputation should they be convicted of such behavior.
In this particular situation, if Mr. Morgan feels he must pursue this matter further, there are legal means at his disposal to do so. From an ethical standpoint, this is what most companies and or individuals would do. Of course he has the right to protect himself, his intellectual property and his company's materials. No one, least of all me, would disagree with this. The question is, how does one do this ethically?
I wish the best for ClarkMorgan and all of the people still employed with the company. Morry Morgan and Andy Clark have worked tirelessly to build their brand. However, they chose to close their GZ office as well as get out of the Business English segment of this industry. We chose to open an office in GZ and fill the gap in the BE segment as well as offer our clients soft skills training. Our clients are very happy with our training solutions and our excellent service.
What I have learned this past week is that a GM has a responsibility to respond in a measured, professional, and ethical way to the situations he faces in running his company. This is not always easy to do, especially if you are a person like myself, who tends to be an emotional individual. However, we must always remember that we are being watched by others. We need to set the best example possible for our staff, clients, and the public in general.
Finally, let us all remember that life goes by very quickly. Sometimes it is hard for me to believe how fast 48 1/2 years have gone by, but it has, and it is gone. Life and time are both too precious for us to have to spend our energies in conflict. There is certainly enough room for all of us to grow and prosper in the training industry.
If you would like to send me a comment regarding this article, I would love to hear from you. Also, please feel free to visit our website at www.twallison.com
