“We Googled You” article, Fred Westin perspective
B: select the best candidate for the China position
D: hire Mimi
A: ensure the future success of Hathaway Jones
Click on the icons on the arrows to see assumptions and injections
C: protect the image and reputation of Hathaway Jones
D': not hire Mimi
In order to ensure the future success of Hathaway Jones I must select the best candidate for the China position and in order to select the best candidate for the China position I must hire Mimi. But, in order to ensure the future success of Hathaway Jones I must also protect the image and reputation of Hathaway Jones and in order to protect the image and reputation of Hathaway Jones I must not hire Mimi. I can't both hire Mimi and not hire Mimi.
| Relation | Assumption(s) | Injection(s) |
| D-D' | There is no way to only partially hire Mimi. She will either get the job, or the position will be given to a different candidate. | |
| B-D | 1. She speaks Mandarin and another local dialect 2. She graduated cum laude from Berkeley and has an MBA from Stanford 3. She has both business management and retail clothing brand experience | 3. Mimi has good experience and references, but former employers have described her as "aggressively creative, original, opinionated, and a risk taker." These are all great qualities for Western businesses, but the Chinese way of life is more structured and based on collectivism. These personality traits may overshadow Mimi's qualifications if she clashes with local Chinese customers or businesspeople. |
| C-D' | 1. Mimi may still be involved in Chinese trade protests, and this will weaken the image of our company. 2. Even if Mimi is currently not involved in protests against the World Trade Organization, her name is associated with these protests and this could generate bad press for the company 3. It is not illegal or unethical to refrain from hiring someone based on informal internet searches | 1-2. Mimi's involvement with these protests could have the opposite effect, and could build a loyal client base with Chinese customers who share the same views. 3. Current legislation may invoke limits on the amount of online searching that can be done on employee candidates |
| A-B | 1. Entering China's luxury goods market is an important step towards gaining sales and market share 2. The venture in China will greatly impact the success of the company 3. The success of the China venture depends greatly on the quality of the employees chosen for this team | |
| A-C | 1. Bad press or media buzz about a company employee could reduce sales 2. Competition could use publicly available employee information to harm our reputation and grab market share 3. The success of our company relies the clean image presented to the public |