Lecture: Professionalism & Ethics

1. Lecture: Professionalism & Ethics

2. Agenda • Professionalism • Ethics • Accreditation

3. What is Professionalism? • Profession (Sage Canadian Dictionary): • An occupation requiring special postgraduate education and training, especially law, medicine, teaching, engineering, or the ministry • People collectively engaged in a profession (i.e. doctor, lawyer)

4. What are professions? • Full-time, paid occupations • recognized in society: • as requiring advanced knowledge and/or skill, • with at least one association members can or must join, • and a code of conduct/ethics. • Some professions are legally recognized • Governments have passed laws recognizing members • In turn, members have a legal responsibility to uphold the interests of society, above other interests • Others professions are less formal

5. Professions with legal recognition • Professions with signoff-restricting licenses or certifications • A licensed/certified person must approve certain types of work done, but may delegate most of the work to others • Engineering (in some places), Financial Analysis (CFA), Chartered Accountancy (CA), Certified Management Accountancy (CMA), Logistics, certain ‘trades’ (Electrician, Plumber) • Professions with legal standing but where there is no license issued nor legal requirement for signoff of work • Information Systems Professional (I.S.P.) in Canada

6. Professions with legal recognition • Professions with practice-restricting licenses in many jurisdictions • Practice/aspects of practice are limited to license holders • Medicine, Dentistry, Chiropractic, Pharmacy, Law, School Teaching, Engineering (in theory in Canada), Architecture • Some licensed professions in Ontario http://www.citizenship.gov.on.ca/english/working/career/ • *Divinity (those licensed can perform marriages, etc), etc. • Those requiring less education are commonly called ‘trades’ • *Truck Driving, (required training and drivers license) • *Hairdressing, barbering

7. Professions without legal recognition • Professions with optional certifications that do not have legal weight • Software Development (CSDP), Project Management (PMP) • Discussed later • Professions not generally licensed or certified, but where a degree or diploma provides evidence of competence • Scientist (various types), Journalist • Other professions or trades where an apprenticeship model is typically followed • Mason • Professions where the limiting factor is simply that you must have sufficient skill or knowledge that someone is willing to pay you enough to do it full time • University or College Professor, Sport player (Hockey, Golf, Football), Actor, Artist, Musician, Politician

8. Key attributes of a profession • Public recognition: Others outside profession X understand what a member of profession X does and can do • So outsiders know who to consult when they want some service • So outsiders can feel confident they are getting work done by someone competent • To ensure public recognition: There must be • A defined scope of practice • A recorded body of knowledge (principles, facts, best practices, required procedures such as the building or plumbing code) • A code of ethics • consequences when it is violated • Methods to educate/train, accredit education, and ensure continuing education • Well-understood criteria for membership • Organizations to establish and administer the above

9. So what does it mean to exhibit professionalism? • Obtain the required education and ongoing education (D) • Adhere to the code of ethics (C) • Apply the principles and knowledge properly (B) • Practice within the scope of your expertise (A, D) and defer to others when boundaries are reached • Obtain and maintain appropriate credentials (E) • Participate in the appropriate professional organizations (F)

10. Other attributes of many professions • Membership and practice may be limited or controlled • The profession may be self-governing • The profession controls all attributes described on the last slide • Members are disciplined by their organization • There may be legal recognition and responsibility • Includes the concept of malpractice • Being a professional may confer respectability / status / social privilege

11. Specializations / Specialties • Most professions have well-defined specialties, often with their own certifications and associations • Medicine: Board-certified specialties • IT/Computing: • AI - American Association for Artificial Intelligence • Project management Professional http://www.pmi.org • Information security (Certified Information Security Manager) http://www.isaca.org/Template.cfm?Section=CISM_Certification • Hacking (Certified Ethical Hacker) http://www.certifiedethicalhacker.com/ • Certified Information Technology Professional • Information Systems Professional • Vendor-specific certifications (Microsoft, Oracle) • etc.

12. Different Types of Professionals in Computing • Computer Scientist • Conceptually: Researches/develops new techniques in computing • In practice: Develops software, often specializing in some areas of practice such as particular types of architecture • Software Engineer • Conceptually: Has deep skills in the areas of the SE lifecycle: Requirements, design, implementation, plus management • Focus on systems where safety or other areas of public interest are of concern • In practice: Very little difference from a computer scientist • just one of several computing specialties that employers consider to largely overlap • But: A software engineering graduate has a straight-forward path to the P.Eng • Also: Computer Engineer, programmer, technician, business analyst, database administrator, technical writer, user-support specialist, cognitive scientist, engineer or scientist developing software, etc.

13. General Professional Associations for Computer Professionals • CIPS - Canadian Information Processing Society • The national society for computing in Canada • US-based associations with international membership • ACM - Association for Computing Machinery • IEEE Computer Society • Australian Computer Society • British Computer Society

14. Certification • An earned professional designation which assures qualification as a professional • Earned through a professional body (society) who sets the criteria for eligibility of the qualification • Usually: • Course of study in an accredited program • Proof of professional accomplishments (work experience) • Examination

15. Certification • Value of certification: • Demonstrates commitment to your profession • Increases your professional credibility • Adhere to the code of ethics • Mastery of a BOK (Body of Knowledge) • Committed to ongoing education

16. Certification • Must be renewed periodically (usually annually) • Types: • Legal (doctors, dentist, lawyers, truck drivers, teachers) vs: non legal (PMP, apprentices, athlete) • Product-Specific (i.e. MCSE, CISCO) • Professional-wide (i.e. CGA, CA)

17. IT Certification • Vendor specific • Cisco • IBM • Microsoft • Red Hat • SAP • ….. • Third party • CompTIA • CISSP • ITIL • General Certification • IEEE • CITP (BCS) • I.S.P./ITCP (CIPS)

18. CIPS • Canadian Information Processing Society • Started in 1958 • Helped strengthen the Canadian IT industry by establishing standards and sharing best practices for the benefit of individual IT professionals and the sector as a whole • Has thousands of members nationally • Student Memberships: http://www.cips.ca/studentsjoin • Offers: • Networking opportunities • Certification of IT professionals (I.S.P. and ITCP designations) • Accreditation of IT university and college programs • A voice to government on issues that affect the profession and industry

19. Some Activities of CIPS • Presents professional development and social-networking events • Certifies individual practitioners (I.S.P. and ITCP) • Accredits academic institutions • CSAC - Computer Science Accreditation Council • ISTAC – Information Systems and Technology Accreditation Council • Adopts standards of practice • Advocates on behalf of the profession

20. CIPS Wants Us to BecomeTrusted Professionals • Trusted Competence • Mastery of a defined body of knowledge evaluated in one of several ways • Includes a set of best practices • A considerable period of experience • Trusted intentions • Adhering to a code of ethics

21. The Information Systems Professional (I.S.P.) Certification • http://www.cips.ca/isp • Goals • Protection of the public • Professional credibility • Personal integrity and competence • Enhanced customer confidence • Enhanced professional profile • Increased value to employer

22. The I.S.P • A provincially-administered national standard • Recognized by statute in 6 provinces as a self-regulating profession • Canadian Information Processing Society of Ontario Act, 1998, c.Pr5 • See http://local.cips.ca/ontario/documents/pr21_final.pdf • And http://local.cips.ca/ontario/ • Mutual recognition with other countries (British Computer Society, Australian Computer Society, New Zealand Computer Society, and in the US-ICCP http://iccp.org)

23. Routes to the I.S.P • Education plus experience • An accredited degree makes this faster • CPD, CPAand BSD programs at Seneca are accredited • Exam based • Professor at a university/college • Industry leader / Senior established professional

24. ITCP • Information Technology Certified Professional • http://www.ipthree.org/ • http://on.cips.ca/ITCPEvents • Certifies a higher level of knowledge than the I.S.P • SFIA (Skills Framework for the Information Age: http://www.sfia.org.uk) level 5 • IP3: International Professional Practice Partnership • A body that uses accreditation standards (IP3P) to certify national professional certifications like ITCP • Sponsored by IFIP (http://www.ifip.org/) • The International Federation for Information Processing • A variety of countries have IP3-accredited certifications • Australia • UK • US (IEEE Computer Society is working on it)

25. Some Benefits of Professional Status in Computing • Social and societal standing • Computing professionals have similar responsibilities to society as engineers, doctors, lawyers, accountants, financial analysts, etc. • Other professionals, members of the public and the media need to know who to consult • Legal reasons • Judges and lawyers need to know who can be considered an expert witness in a court case involving computing or IT • The Chief Information Officer (CIO) of a corporation needs to know who has the expertise to certify that the corporation has adhered to laws and regulations • Privacy acts like PIPEDA • Corporate regulatory compliance • E.g. Sarbanes Oxley Act in the US

26. Benefits of Professional Status in Computing • We need better software and IT services, hence better people to develop and deliver these • Professional status comes with a requirement to maintain competence • The more professionals there are, the more clients and employers will decide to insist on hiring a certified professional • It will give them extra confidence • As a result, the quality of products and services should rise

27. Bodies of Knowledge in Computing • Body of Knowledge: • Body of Knowledge (BOK) is a term used to represent the complete set of concepts, terms and activities that make up a professional domain, as defined by the relevant professional association. • While the term body of knowledge is also used to describe the document that defines that knowledge - the body of knowledge itself is more than simply a collection of terms; a professional reading list; a library; a website or a collection of websites; a description of professional functions; or even a collection of information. It is what defines a specific domain. • Some examples: • Software Engineering Body of Knowledge • SWEBOK • Skills Framework for an Information Age • SFIA • CIPS Body of Knowledge • Under development

28. SWEBOK • An IEEE Computer Society effort: http://www.swebok.org • Basis for Certification, Curriculum Development and US Accreditation • Knowledge areas • Requirements • Design • Construction (detailed design) • Testing • Maintenance • Configuration management • Software Engineering management • Process • Tools and methods • Quality • The upcoming version will have: • Engineering economics • Computing foundations (core computer science) • Mathematical foundations (discrete math and statistics) • Engineering foundations (cost benefit analysis, etc.)

29. SFIA: Skills Framework for the Information Age • Developed in UK, but used worldwide • http://www.sfia.org.uk/ • Basis for IP3 accreditation • Seven levels • Level 1: New entrant • Level 5: Senior professional (e.g. ITCP) • Level 7: Director • At different levels • Basics of additional knowledge categories should be learned • Greater depth in certain categories needed

30. SFIA Knowledge Categories • 1-21 Strategy and architecture • Information, Business/IT, Technical • 22-31 Business change implementation and management • Project management, business analysis and modelling • 32-48 Solution development and implementation • Systems development (requirements; software/network/data design; programming; safety engineering; information content authoring; testing) • Human factors (ergonomics, usability requirements and evaluation) • Installation and Integration (installation, porting, decommissioning) • 49-66 Service management • Service strategy (IT management, financial management for IT, capacity and availability management • Configuration, change and release management • Service operation (system software; security; support of applications, network, database; service desk and problem handling) • 67-82 Procurement and management support • Supply, quality, resource and learning management • 83-86 Client interface: Marketing and client support

31. Agenda • Professionalism • Ethics • Accreditation

32. Ethics • What is Ethics: • Study of what it means to “do the right thing” • Assumes people are rational and make free choices • Rules to follow in our interactions and our actions that affect others

33. Ethics • No simple answers to many ethical questions • Do organizations (businesses) have ethics? • Important Distinctions: Right, wrong and okay • Difference between wrong and harm • Wrong: May cause harm, but may not • Harm: Bad consequence actually occurs • Personal preference and ethics • Collective rights vs. individual rights • Law and Ethics

34. Summary of the CIPS Code of Ethics • http://www.cips.ca/ethics 1. Protect the Public Interest and Maintain Integrity • Work with due regard for health, safety and the environment • Report problems that may injure persons, organizations, property or the economy • Not discriminate on any grounds, such as race, sex, sexual orientation, nationality, social origin, family status or disability • Not bring the profession into disrepute

35. Summary of the CIPS Code of Ethics 2. Demonstrate Competence and Quality of Service • Serve client in conscientious, diligent and efficient manner • Not undertake a task unless you have competence or can become competent without delay, risk or expense to the client • Exercise uncompromised judgment • Be honest and candid when providing service • Maintain competence (constantly update knowledge) • Be aware of and compliant with legislation, standards and bodies of knowledge • Respect rights of third parties, such as giving credit where it is due • Respect property rights

36. Summary of the CIPS Code of Ethics 3. Maintain Confidential Information and Privacy • Duty of Secrecy: Clients have a right to expect that anything disclosed, seen or overheard will remain confidential • Do not even disclose having been retained by the client • Respect PIPEDA (Privacy Act) and other laws 4. Avoid Conflict of Interest 5. Uphold Responsibility to the IT Profession • Use courtesy and good faith when dealing with other professionals • Participate in professional societies • Support others in their professional development

37. What should guide ethical decision making? • Seven levels • International treaties and agreements • Laws (statutes) • Regulations • Standards of good practice • Professional codes of ethics • Corporate policies • Community and personal values

38. Ethical Judgment • Is a kind of pattern recognition • It gets better with experience

39. Method for Ethical Analysis • Take a set of ethical points of view • Equality, justice, respect, self-respect (integrity) • Gather all ethically relevant facts regarding the situation and people involved • Actions, roles, relationships (e.g. conflicts of interest) • Identify key issues • Look for an existing policy or law that matches • Pay attention to precedents and people who might be sensitive to any given solution • If a solution found, apply it • But watch out for conflicting policies, laws, principles and points of view • Otherwise apply higher-level general principles and consult with others

40. Example ethical situation 1 • You are developing software for the government that determines whether someone is eligible for a driver’s license • You think there is a problem in the law that will deny certain people licenses that is unfair in your opinion • E.g. old people when somebody has complained about their driving • You consider adjusting the software so that the public complaints are ‘ignored’ by the software • What are the ethical implications?

41. Example ethical situation 2 • You realize that the software a colleague developed has been over-billing customers. • If you reveal the problem and the company pays back the money, they company may go bankrupt and you may lose your job. • What do you do?

42. Example ethical situation 3 • You discover a vulnerability in your company’s software that could lead hackers to break in and obtain or alter critical information causing great harm • You could just work with the company to fix it quietly and say nothing to others • But perhaps you should notify the users and customers so they can take steps to protect themselves in case hackers break in before the fix is made • But this might cause great harm to the company’s reputation • What do you do?

43. Agenda • Professionalism • Ethics • Accreditation

44. Accreditation of Computing Programs • Provides evidence that computing education meets the standards of the profession • Performed in Canada by a CIPS agency • CSAC • Computer Science Accreditation Council • Accredits University CS and SE Programs in Canada • ISTAC • Information Systems and Technology Accreditation Council • Accredits College CST diploma and degree programs in Canada • CS Accredited programs: http://www.cips.ca/node/288 • SE Accredited programs: http://www.cips.ca/node/289 • CST Accredited programs: http://www.cips.ca/AppliedDegreePrograms and http://www.cips.ca/ComputerTechnologyDiplomaPrograms

45. Accreditation of Computing Programs • International recognition of CSAC accreditations through the Seoul Accord • http://www.seoulaccord.com/ • Analogous to the Washington Accord for engineering and Canberra Accord for architecture • US, Korea. Australia, UK, Canada, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan • Your degree will be recognized for certifications in these countries • All accreditation agencies are themselves accredited • AAAC: Association of Accrediting Agencies of Canada • http://www.aaac.ca

46. Overview of Criteria for Computing Program Accreditation • Elements assessed • College Environment • Faculty • Students • Facilities and Resources • Curriculum • General • Application domain • Basic and advanced technical • Applied • Communications and professionalism • Industry Support • Innovation and Research

47. Credit • Thank you to Timothy LethbridgePhD, P.Eng., I.S.P., CSDP for providing this lecture. Tim is a Professor of Software Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Ottawa.