2 The Oregon Surveyor | Vol. 47, No. 3 From the PLSO Chair Some Thoughts on Ethics and Business Practices Scott Freshwaters, PLS Chair of the Board I had a phone call from a prospective client last week who, after relaying the basic information and me giving him particulars of the survey, excluding the cost, said, “I am in a hurry and can pay you more if you move it up in the schedule.” My response was, “I don’t work like that.” The next day, per his request and after doing the requisite research, I called him back with the cost and approximate time frame. We talked for a while and I found out that he called a couple of other surveyors about this project and still gave me the go ahead. He said he “had a good feeling about me.” Now, I can’t say for sure that he respected the fact that I wouldn’t delay some other project commitment for his project, and that isn’t the point. What is important is that the right ethical choice was made. Let’s continue with the definition of “ethic” according to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary 10th Edition: “the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation,” also “a set of moral principles or values.” Much of the following is paraphrased from Dennis Mouland’s book Ethics for the Professional Surveyor. In Chapter Two, he recalls a time when he was Party Chief on a highway bridge project. One day the PM called Dennis into his office and asked him to reduce the monthly elevation measurements by 0.2' in the borrow pit. This would greatly increase the amount of the progress payment since we are talking about a 25-acre site. The PM’s company needed cash now to buy an expensive piece of equipment for the project. The PM tried to convince Dennis that there was no harm, no one else would ever know, etc., and even went so far as to offer monetary compensation to Dennis. Needless to say, Dennis declined and the relationship with the PM went downhill from then, and two months later Dennis was no longer assigned to that project. However, he had a clear conscience and had retained his integrity. Chapter Seven is about multiple monuments at a corner. In that chapter, a couple of comments stand out: “This sends a terrible message to the public. We look like a bunch of prima donnas all trying to out-brag each other about our accuracies and precisions.” Then he starts a short hypothetical about finding an uncalled-for pipe that is six minutes off bearing 0.30' off in distance in comparison to the deed calls. Next, he lists nine important questions to ask before accepting/rejecting it. The book has 153 pages with 54 chapters and a short appendix that includes an Ethics Questionnaire that will make you think. Each chapter addresses a different topic along with numerous ethical breaches the author has uncovered. I highly recommend it no matter where you are in your career path. Another well-written and informative book that speaks to the issue of multiple monumentation is The Pincushion Effect by Jeffery Lucas. Dan Beardslee wrote a book about business practices for surveyors, called A Business Management Handbook for Land Surveyors. Dan was a presenter many years ago (2003) at the PLSO annual conference in the Albany area. He gave us his 20 rules and the following 10 are from my notes from his presentation. I may include the other 10 in my next article. 1. If your customers aren’t complaining, you aren’t charging enough. 2. If you have so much work that you can’t meet deadlines, you are not charging enough. Regulate workloads by charging more. 3. If you are not making money, you are not charging enough. Most surveyors
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