**3. Incorporating values/ethics in IT systems and products**

### **3.1 Why we should incorporate values/ethics into IT systems and products**

Incorporating values / ethics into IT systems and products enables creators or developers to build products which better serve humans through functionality and behaviour which prioritise human values such as security, transparency, accountability, including the traditional organisational values such as efficiency, effectiveness and whatever values the organisation concerned subscribes to.

Although the significance of values and ethics is beginning to be realised more now and in the age of 4IR, the need to incorporate values / ethics in IT systems and products was realised some years ago. Notable early efforts include those made by Professor Mumford who developed an integrated methodology for systems implementation called Effective Technical and Human Implementation of Computer Systems (ETHICS) which incorporates job design as an important component of any systems planning and implementation effort [1]. Professor Mumford is known to have participated in the socio-technical movement which advocated for improvements of the quality of working life at the forefront of organisational design. ETHICS was viewed as a method of work design and change related to the introduction of computer systems. The methodology was developed to become a method of participatory systems implementation and is said to have evolved with each case study to suite an organisation's needs. It was popular because it promised management better success and gains, and workers better involvement and democracy in the workplace. Although there was no specific mention of terms such as values and ethics, the methodology's approach had focus on human values.

#### **3.2 Some current methods of factoring or incorporating values into IT systems and products**

In this chapter we will look at some of the existing and upcoming methods and frameworks which can be used to facilitate incorporation of ethics/values into IT

systems and how these methods encourage innovation. A proposed framework on how the individual frameworks can be integrated to drive innovative development of IT systems, products and services will be also presented and discussed.

The importance of values in IT Systems, Products and Services started receiving attention in recent years with one of the key drivers being the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and AI. In the past, the focus was on requirements for economic gains and achieving operational efficiency with little or no attention to other values. The following are some of the methods:
