A Question of Ethics
The issue of business, and personal ethics abounds in all industries with the subject being discussed, debated and argued ad nauseam. I’m firmly believe that the ethics that govern your business actions should mirror those of your personal life. Yes, occasionally in business we’re forced to push the boundaries to “get a job done”. You know what I mean… perhaps extending a deadline so we can make that weekly tee time, or maybe faking a cough to get out of an annoying client meeting! What I’d like to talk about here is a basic “code of conduct”, if you will, when it comes to dealing our fellow colleagues, friends and clients.
What I’d like to do now is share with you a story about a very good friend of mine, also a local Art Director/Graphic Designer, about an upsetting situation he recently faced:
I very good friend of mine, I’ve known for 20 years, a designer, who works at a well paying steady job as a designer, has done free logos for a group of people, who I also know very well, recently laid off from the same big company he works for. I might add also these folks received hefty severance packages from their lost jobs.
This group of people, individually, are setting up their own business’. I was hoping to engage these folks for paying work.
One of the group, I have engaged, to design a logo for but not for free – I did offer to do the business card design and set up, as a professional favour.
My friend has essentially made the price and value of a logo design at zero.
I have spoken to my friend about how this has put me in a difficult situation with my “client”. And how he has valued my work at zero and potentially hurt my future business relationship with my new client. He said to me… “In some peoples mind, a business card design is a logo design”…
He’s been in the game long enough to know better.
He doesn’t understand why this would be a problem, and why I am upset with him. In his mind, he’s just doing his friends a favour to help them out. Oblivious to how it hurts my business and the trust I have in him as a friend.
Sadly I’ve seen situations like this far too often. While I’m sure the “friend” designing the free logos is trying to “help” his recently layoff friends, he has definitely stepped over the ethical line. As designers, art directors, writers, etc., we value our craft as do our clients. We’ve worked for years to finely tune our skills and built a level of confidence and expertise for our clients. When someone from our own industry moves in and starts giving away work (to a friend or not) they completely de-value everything we stand for and have worked so hard to achieve.
Secondly, this individual has also stepped over a personal line in my opinion as well. He currently works as a designer, and I’m using that term loosely to describe him now, yet somehow didn’t feel unethical about taking work away from a close, longtime friend who makes his living on freelance work.
I hope the friendship can survive.
In one of my first jobs as a production artist I remember my boss used to hang a sign in his from office that read, “I’m sorry my friends, I have to charge you, my friends don’t shop here”
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