Ethical Dilemmas in Uber: Forum Analysis and Consultation Essay

Task 1: Forum Discussion on Uber's Ethical Issues

This TMA is intended to assess the following:

• paraphrasing
• summarising
• structuring a coherentargument
• using information from a range of sources to build an argument (identifying an issue, analysing it and providing recommendations to resolve it)
• using a range of business concepts and/or frameworks to solve problems
• using digital tools to take part in an online forum discussionand make an individual audio recording
• communicating effectively in speaking, showing recognition of audience, contextand purpose.

The tasks (1 and 2)

In this section you will find detailed information about the two tasks that form part of TMA 03:

• Task 1: forum discussion
• Task 2: recorded oral discussion of business ethics issue(s)

Read the tasks for both parts before starting your TMA.

Task 1

Using the following reading materials, complete the task below.

• Article 1: ‘Uber drivers in UK cities strike over pay and conditions’ (Butler, 2019; Cumiskey, 2020)
• Article 2: ‘California has become a model for how not to regulate Uber’ (Titcomb, 2020)
• Relevant module materials (see ‘Guidance notes for Task 1’).

Together with other students allocated by your tutor, post messages to a dedicated forum discussion thread on the ethical issues facing Uber. Your discussion should focus on these questions:

• What do you think the ethical issues are?
• Why do you think they are ethical issues?

There are two parts to the forum discussion:

1. an introduction in which you and your group members state your respective positions in relation to the ethical issue (no more than 250 words)
2. a response to the other group members’ viewpoints on the ethical issue (there is no word limit for this part).

Complete this part by the deadline given by your tutor.

Task 2

Imagine that you are an external consultant working for Uber. Based on your case study reading and forum discussion for Task 1, make a 3–5 minute audio recorded presentation to the senior management team of Uber. Your presentation should explain the ethical issues faced by the organisation and make at least two recommendations to address these issues.

In preparing for TMA 03: Task 2, you have the option of sending a draft version of your audio presentation to your tutor by email in Week 14, to benefit from their comments. Although you may not have engaged in a forum discussion, it would be beneficial for you to have your tutor’s comment on an early draft such as notes to prepare for your presentation. Be sure to confirm with your tutor (in advance) the deadline by which your draft should be with them, in order to allow them sufficient time to respond to you. Note that the feedback will be at a general level and your draft audio presentation will not be assessed.

Guidance notes (Tasks 1 and 2)

You should submit the following to the eTMA system, by the TMA 03 deadline:

• the file containing a copy of your forum discussionfor Task 1
• the audio file of your recording (in WAV or MP3 format) for Task 2.

You will need to zip the audio file together with the Task 1 file to compress them into a single, smaller file before submitting the single file to the eTMA system.

Guidance notes for Task 1

For this part of the TMA, you will be teamed with a group of other students from your tutor group in advance. Your tutor will have created a dedicated group discussion thread within your Tutor Group Forum for your group to use.

Task 1 is worth 15 marks. These marks relate to ‘Criterion E: Written interactive communication’ in the marking criteria. You should complete this task in order to proceed to Task 2.

Step 1: Prepare for the forum discussion

Task 2: Audio Presentation with Recommendations for Addressing Uber's Ethical Issues

To help you prepare for this task, read the two sources (articles) listed in the task.

While you read, keep in mind these two questions:

• What do you think the ethical issues facing Uber are?
• Why do you think they are ethical issues?

There are relevant concepts introduced in the module materials in Sections 13.1  and 15.1, and look at the example discussion on zero-hours contracts in Section 13.7. Look back at the sections on language and techniques for discussion: Sections 13.5 and 15.5.

Think about the ethical issues and prepare a written introduction that states your views on them and supports these views with evidence or provides some justification for them.

Include the citation of the relevant sources in your introductory post. It should also include the full reference list at the end.

Your introductory post should be no longer than 250 words. The full reference list does not count towards this word limit.

Step 2: Forum discussion

Visit the group discussion thread within your Tutor Group Forum allocated to you by your tutor. Post your introduction to the ethical issues faced by Uber to the group discussion. This means responding to the two questions in Task 1: ‘What are the ethical issues?’ and ‘Why are they issues?’

Read all other members’ viewpoints on the ethical issues. Make a note of any similar or different viewpoints to yours.

Choose two introductions posted by the other students in your group. These may reflect similar or different viewpoints to your own. Write and post two responses, one to each of their arguments, which acknowledge their viewpoints and put forward your argument for agreeing, disagreeing or modifying their ideas. Make sure that you support your argument with evidence from the two sources you read as a part of the task or by providing an explanation based on the module materials.

When you respond to other students’ posts, you may cite the relevant sources given but there is no need to include a full reference list in your response posts. Your responses to the other students’ posts do not have a word limit.

If your forum post simply agrees with the other students’ viewpoints without extending the discussion, you may not be awarded more than 6 marks for this task.

Save the forum discussion by copying and pasting it into a Word file or converting it into a PDF file on your computer. Give it a clear and relevant name, and remember where you have saved it on your computer. You will need to submit this to the eTMA system along with your work on Task 2.

Guidance notes for Task 2

This short audio-recorded presentation by you as an external consultant is to the senior management team of Uber on how to resolve the ethical issues it faces. You should introduce yourself and the topic, present your argument and make at least two recommendations to address the issues. You should conclude your presentation by thanking the audience appropriately.

You may wish to include some of the alternative viewpoints expressed in the forum discussion if you feel they are useful to your argument. However, if you include those viewpoints, you should not mention the names of the other students who expressed them in your presentation.

In your audio presentation, you should cite the relevant sources given by mentioning the name of the author(s) and the source(s). However, it is not essential to give the full references list at the end of your presentation.

Task 2 is worth 85 marks. These marks relate to Criteria A–D in the marking criteria.

Record and submit your audio presentation

For the recording, use an appropriate audio recording tool, such as the OU Audio Recording Tool, or other audio recording software that you are comfortable with, as long as the output file is in WAV or MP3 format and the file size does not exceed 10MB

Follow these guidelines for recording and submitting your presentation:

• Make sure that you will not be interrupted during your recording, and that any background noise is low.
• Test and ensure that the audio recording software you are using works properly.
• Check the sound level by recording a short test. Do not place your mouth too close to the microphone. Ensure that you are in the same position as you will be in for the actual recording.
• Record your nameand PI, before you start your introduction to the topic.
• When you have finished, stop the recording. You should save the recording and keep a copy on your computer with a clear and relevant filename.
• Listen to your recording to ensure that it is audible.
• Before you submit your recorded audio presentation, check the marking criteria for this task to make sure that there is nothing you want to improve. If you want to change anything, you will need to record your presentation again.