6. Defend the course of action you’ve decided to take to a small group of your classmates.

You have recently been hired as the purchasing manager at CDI Electronics, a small electronics research firm. You’ve been getting settled in your new position and becoming acquainted with the other 26 CDI employees. You’ve also started getting to know the vendors with whom CDI does business.
It’s late November and the holidays are approaching. In your mail for the day is a small package containing an expensive watch from one of CDI’s main vendors. Your first reaction is to send the watch back because accepting expensive gifts from vendors clearly violates all the company policies you’ve ever seen in larger companies you’ve worked in. It is a very fine watch with your name engraved on the back, along with the vendor’s logo.
Before you get a chance to return the watch, Jim Fitzpatrick, an employee who’s been with CDI since its beginning 12 years ago, approaches you about the situation. Apparently, everyone at CDI except for Joe Balsam, the founder and current CEO, received similar watches. According to Jim, this vendor sends some type of gift each holiday season, and CDI employees look forward to receiving the gift. He goes on to say that while everyone enjoys the gifts and is most appreciative, no preferential treatment is given to the vendor, nor is any expected.
Jim is concerned. He and the other CDI employees have noticed that your watch has just been sitting on your desk for the past two days. Employees are wondering why and what you may be thinking. They’re concerned that if you make an issue of the gift, there will be trouble over gifts accepted in past years, because no one knows how Joe Balsam might react if he knew. Joe is apparently unaware of the annual gifts.