The Blind Spot - A study on the ethical dilemmas that senior leaders and experts face in collaborations to address Grand Challenges.

How will the ethics of a project professional affect their ability to address the Grand Challenges our planet and society faces? This is the focus of a new APM study, titled ‘The Blind Spot’. The study is led by Dr Efrosyni Konstantinou, Associate Professor in Strategic Management of Projects, Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction, UCL.

What is a Grand Challenge?

Grand Challenges are defined within the research as global problems that cannot be solved by one individual, organisation or nation alone, and are used interchangeably with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). They include, but are not limited to:

• Climate change
• Food and water shortages
• Social injustices (e.g., restricted access to education, voting, fair labour conditions, Human rights and political participation)
• Global health and international aid development investments
• Cyberspace security
• Human space exploration
• Blockchain

As such, extensive, international, interdisciplinary, and cross-sector collaborations are key in addressing Grand Challenges. Grand Challenges Collaborations (GCCs) include teams of senior leaders and experts such as law professionals, academics, engineers, doctors, technologists, activists, technocrats, politicians, government officials and management consultants.

What did the study find?

In answering the question on whether the project profession is ready to address Grand Challenges, the research findings suggest:

• Yes, because 100% (62 interviewees) of GCC trailblazers are fundamentally preoccupied with ethics on a day-to-day basis. GCC trailblazers being senior leaders and experts whose power and influence are formidably channelled in strategically managing GCCs and related interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral, international work.)
• And, no, because ethics is the ‘blind spot’ of GCCs. There is no institutional – professional, educational or other – infrastructure that adequately prepares GCC trailblazers to understand and work with ethics in interdisciplinary, international, cross-sectoral collaborations designed to address Grand Challenges.

The study uses the analogy of the blind spot, in that the personal codes of ethics of GCC trailblazers are concealed. They remain in the blind spot of high-stakes GCCs and remain here until they are challenged and become the force that (re-)define the boundaries of the project - the who, when, why, how, and what will and will not be happen in the project. One survey participant captured the prominence of ethics by saying: “If it’s between the collaboration and the ethics, we will choose the ethics.”

Key findings:

• When personal codes of ethics are violated, GCC trailblazers resolve ethical disputes or dilemmas in one’s ethics shelter or ethical ‘comfort zone’ where the GCC trailblazer debates alternative courses of action, decides what they are prepared to do and not do in the GCC, and makes key, strategic GCC decisions for the collaboration– all based on their personal code of ethics. GCC trailblazers almost exclusively rely on their personal codes of ethics to resolve ethical disputes or dilemmas.
• There is an urgent need for the project profession (but also for academics, funders, investors, policymakers and others who are involved in GCCs) to acknowledge, to build awareness and act so that (personal codes of) ethics appear visible to

GCC trailblazers as well as providing a series of recommendations and implications for each. This is important so that GCC trailblazers who address Grand Challenges can be prepared and supported in working with ethics.

• The project profession can play a leading role in legitimising and advocating for a set of approaches to addressing Grand Challenges, and accordingly, develop its contribution and own legitimacy in the global community.

Daniel Nicholls, Research Manager at APM says, “The research uncovers some enlightening aspects on ethics and professionalism which we can all draw on. It also plays an important part in APM’s ongoing commitment to further professionalism across the project profession, following other recent APM studies including Fairness and Unfairness in Projects research, and the introduction our Chartered Project Professional Standard for those working in projects.”

Download the full report here

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