“Ethics in Business”: 'The Informant' Style
November 11, 2009

As a part of 'non classroom' pedagogic innovation, the movie The Informant was used as a visual case study to learn “Ethics in Business”.

The Informant (starring Matt Damon), based on New York Times investigative reporter Kurt Eichenwald's book of the same name, deals with the greatest fraud in price fixing by a 100 year oldUS company Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), the global giant food processing company. Their products can be read in fine print on the packaging of all processed food. Mark Whitacre, a Ph.D fromCornell, and senior Vice- President decides to help FBI record evidence of the price fixing game by becoming an 'Informant'. The movie gives a feel of human compulsions and stress, under which ordinary people like us,make unusual choices.

What was of greater interest to the participants was the fact that post imprisonment, Mark Whitacarewas hired by Cyprus Systems in a senior position and made COO recently. When contacted, Mark offered to answer the participants' queries on ethical issues in business. The effort initiated by the ADMAP committee, was well received by all the participants who attended the movie at PVR Juhu on November 11, 2009. It was a unique learning experience for thePGDMbatch.