albert carr is business bluffing ethical pdf

But this scenario strikes many others as unethical. Many in the business community assess actions such as Kahn’s as clever, and would blame the salesperson for not doing his homework on the company before extending the credit. It seems clear that Kahn’s intention was to deceive the Byte salesperson. Kahn’s strategy raises important questions about truthtelling and deception. Clearly, everyone benefitted and no one got hurt. The ad sold roughly $150,000 worth of software, Byte got paid, and Borland International was on its way. And in fact, that is precisely what occurred. His intention, as he admitted in a later interview in Inc. magazine, was to make the salesperson believe that his company was strong enough to generate the sales from the ad to repay the loan. So he rented office space for the day, hired temporary employees to answer non-existent phone calls, left a folder open that indicated that Byte was far down the list of potential advertisers, and told the salesperson that he didn’t think Byte was the right forum to advertise his product. The only way he knew to get credit like that was to attempt an elaborate bluff, to convince the sales person for Byte that his company was much more of a going concern that it actually was. But the ad cost $20,000 that he didn’t have, and he had insufficient collateral for a loan that size. What he really needed was an ad in the niche magazine Byte. But Kahn had no employees (beyond his assistant) and no money to mount an expensive advertising campaign.

His software was field-tested and ready to market and distribute, and all he needed was an opportunity. Philippe Kahn was the head of startup software company Borland International, and needed a break to launch his company. Sometimes it even seems that the workplace is a different realm from the world Jesus inhabited, and that truth is actually out of place at work. Sometimes it seems that it is impossible to succeed at work by telling only the truth. Even though we recognize there are exceptions-protecting the innocent, guarding national security, and a few others-we remember how Jesus described himself as “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6), and we understand that truth is the way of life God calls us to.īut our commitment to truth is often stretched thin in the workplace.

Virtually everyone knows that the people of God are supposed to tell the truth. If you're interested in a specific aspect of the topic, the table of contents can help you jump there quickly. Note: 'Overview' articles are full-length explorations of major topics in the theology of work.

Learning From the Psalms How to Pray Through Your Work.

Beyond Rank and Power: What Philemon Tells Us About Leadership.

Evangelism - Sharing the Gospel at Work.

10 Key Points About Work in the Bible That Every Christian Should Know.

Albert carr is business bluffing ethical pdf