Midwestern Community Action is experiencing turmoil following the resignation of its long-time director, Sally May, who operated with a hands-off approach. Her successor, Josiah Lang, faces resistance from staff due to his abrasive personality and attempts at instituting structured evaluations, leading to low morale and several resignations. Despite internal conflicts, the organization maintains a positive public image and is in the process of interviewing a qualified candidate for a critical housing coordinator position.

1. Case Study 5.2: Hiding the Real Story at Midwestern
Community Action
Recently, life at Midwestern Community Action has been
anything but smooth. The nonprofit runs a variety of programs
in a midsized city, including preschools, teen drop-in centers, a
food pantry, a medical clinic, and low-income housing. Health
problems forced founding executive director Sally May, who
was well loved by staff, to quit after 20 years in her position.
The board then appointed Josiah Lang, who had served as the
manager of a local government service agency, as the next
executive director.
When Lang arrived at Community Action, he discovered that
May had been a hands-off leader. She allowed coordinators to
run their programs without much supervision. Used to operating
on their own, they resisted Lang’s efforts to institute
performance evaluations, to evaluate the effectiveness of each
program, and to reallocate funds between programs. It didn’t
help that Lang made little effort to get to know his subordinates
and has an abrasive personality. Three coordinators and a half
dozen front-line staff quit. Lang has the support of the board,
which believes that the organization needs more structure and
accountability, but staff morale is low. Employees have lost
faith in the organization’s leadership. However, they remain
committed to helping the disadvantaged and to Community
Action’s mission. For that reason, they largely keep their
frustrations to themselves and are careful to protect the
organization’s public image. Community Action continues to be
well regarded by clients, government officials, donors, and the
public at large.
This week Community Action will interview an applicant for its
housing coordinator position, a vacancy created when the
previous coordinator left in frustration. This is the most
important open position to fill. The housing coordinator
oversees three apartment complexes with 200 tenants and

2. manages the most employees. Failure to fill the vacancy soon
could reduce Community Action’s outreach to the homeless.
The applicant, Albert Singh, appears to be highly qualified. If
he takes the position, Singh will move his family from out of
state. He has no idea that Community Action is dealing with
significant conflict and poor morale.
Singh will make a brief presentation to the entire staff during
his visit and then meet for an extended time with the current
program coordinators. During this session, the coordinators
(without the director present) will question him and present an
overview of Community Action. Albert will also have an
opportunity to ask questions of the coordinators.
Discussion Probes
1. What ethical duties are in conflict in this situation?
2. Are Community Action employees justified in keeping their
concerns “in house,” out of the public eye? Why or why not?
3. If you were one of the current program coordinators, how
much would you reveal about the turmoil at Community Action
to Singh?
4. As a coordinator, what would you say if Singh asked why the
previous housing coordinator quit? How would you answer if
asked your opinion of the executive director?
5. Is withholding the truth as damaging as lying? Why or why
not?