Unit 3ISSUES OF

PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

Ethics are the rules or standards governing the conduct of the members of a profession.A work ethic is a belief or guiding philosophy that motivates a person to do a good job. Badmouthing other firms, over billing clients,

taking supplies to use at home, and taking copies of software are all examples of unethical practices in interior design, as well as in any career.

Many professional organizations for interior designers offer a code of ethics and also a way to file a complaint.

ETHICS OF PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

The American Society of Interior Designers Code of Ethics is a handbook outlining the ethical behavior interior designers should follow as a professional. This handbook includes the following: Your responsibility to the public:

projects should always be in line with local, state, and federal regulation as well as be safe to the public.

projects should always be supervised and approved by your firm you should never bribe or mislead people, clients or otherwise, to do a

project. Your responsibility to the client:

Inform the client fully, truthfully, and clearly of project expectations and cost Be fully qualified to perform the work put forth Be fully confidential about client and project information unless otherwise

expresses Act in the best interest of your client

Your responsibility to the profession Maintain a standard of profession at all times and represent the society well Continually educate yourself about the profession

ASID CODE OF ETHICS

Your responsibility to your colleagues You shall not interfere with another professionals contractual relationship Avoid slandering your colleagues or other forms of character defamation You shall not encourage an individual to become an interior designer

knowing they are unqualified for the profession Only take credit for your work

Your responsibility to your employer When leaving an employer you must leave behind all work done/created

unless otherwise expressed You must be confidential about information obtained during your

employment How these standards are enforced

If members believe another professional has violated this code of ethics they are obligated to report it

If in violation of this code, you will be subject to disciplinary consequences How to file an ethics complaint

This is outlined in detail in the handbook

ASID CODE OF ETHICS

The preceding was a synopsis of the ASID Code of Conduct and is by no mean a comprehensive list detailing the Code of Conduct. Students should follow the link and read the handbook for

themselves! http://www.asid.org/NR/rdonlyres/66CADE03-0D87-4B9A-806B-

A2766BE863F2/0/2006CodeofEthicsLogo.pdf It should also be noted that this code of ethics only apply to

members of the American Society of Interior Design. Each interior design professional organization has their own code

of Ethics. Example: IIDA Ethical Code for the International Interior Design

Association https://www.iida.org/resources/content/6/3/6/0/documents/IIDA-Code-of-

Ethics_Designer.pdf

ASID CODE OF ETHICS

Scenario 1: Mary knows that her client is very interested in another interior designer’s design methods because she has seen their design boards at her client’s home. She needs to keep her client’s business, so she

develops a design board that looks extremely similar to the ones her client likes.

Scenario 2: James does not understand why he has lost several of his biggest clients to another firm. He will be attending an interior designer conference

and plans on asking other firms if they have lost clients to the same firm. Hopefully, they can brainstorm on how to better improve their firms.

ETHICAL OR UNETHICAL?

Scenario 3: Heather’s email signature reads: “Heather Miller, Member of ASID” even though she has not renewed her membership in five years.

Scenario 4: Sean has been badmouthing the firm, LMH Designs, where he was recently fired. His new clients do not know that he used to work for

this firm, but because of the comments, they do not want to consider LMH Designs as a back up firm.

ETHICAL OR UNETHICAL, CONT.