Not Guilty

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I do not think an ethical dilemma is necessarily involved in an employee, well paid and well trained, leaving a company to start up her own company in a related field. In the article, you ask what an employee owes his or her company and employer. However, you do not raise the parallel issue of what an employer owes his or her employees (other than a pay-check). It is not an ethical issue as much as it is a question of sound management practices.

Perhaps the combination of Judy George's personality and the opportunity she foresaw would have outweighed any inducement to remain in even the most attractive of corporate environments. However, an owner might consider what it takes to retain talented and creative executives.

First, he or she has to identify these employees, find out what they need to stay and contribute, and deliberately work out a system providing it for them. Second, as the company grows, the owner has to be able to change from saying "my company" to "our company," where recognition, planning, and goals are shared responsibilities. Third, a company must be willing to grow.