CCC Professional Ethics & Standards 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A cost consultant discovers a material error in an estimate already submitted to a client. According to AACE International's Canons of Ethics, what should the consultant do?
- Promptly disclose the error to the client and correct it (Correct answer)
- Wait to see if the client notices the error
- Correct it quietly in the next revision without mention
- Disclose it only if the error exceeds 10% of project value
Correct answer: Promptly disclose the error to the client and correct it
Professional integrity requires prompt disclosure and correction of known material errors regardless of magnitude.
Question 2: A client asks a certified cost consultant to lower a contingency estimate to make a project appear more fundable. The consultant believes the original figure is accurate. What is the ethical response?
- Decline to alter the estimate and explain the professional basis for it (Correct answer)
- Lower it slightly as a compromise
- Lower it as requested since the client bears the risk
- Resign immediately without explanation
Correct answer: Decline to alter the estimate and explain the professional basis for it
Consultants must not misrepresent professional judgments to please clients; they should stand by defensible estimates and explain their basis.
Question 3: Under AACE ethical standards, a cost consultant may accept a commission from an equipment vendor whose products are specified in a project estimate only if:
- The arrangement is fully disclosed to and accepted by the client (Correct answer)
- The commission is under a nominal threshold
- The vendor's products are the lowest cost option
- The commission is paid after project completion
Correct answer: The arrangement is fully disclosed to and accepted by the client
Conflicts of interest such as vendor commissions are permissible only with full disclosure to and consent of all affected parties.
Question 4: A cost consultant is asked to provide an expert opinion in litigation. Which practice violates professional ethics?
- Accepting a fee contingent on the outcome of the case (Correct answer)
- Charging an hourly rate for testimony
- Basing opinions on documented cost data
- Disclosing prior work for the opposing party
Correct answer: Accepting a fee contingent on the outcome of the case
Contingent fees for expert testimony compromise objectivity and are considered unethical for professional experts.
Question 5: A CCC-certified consultant learns that a colleague has been falsifying progress measurement data on a joint project. What is the appropriate first ethical step?
- Address the issue through appropriate reporting channels within the organization (Correct answer)
- Ignore it since the colleague is responsible for that data
- Publicly expose the colleague on social media
- Quietly adjust the data without telling anyone
Correct answer: Address the issue through appropriate reporting channels within the organization
Ethics codes require reporting known professional misconduct through proper channels rather than ignoring or improperly publicizing it.
Question 6: Which action best demonstrates a cost consultant's ethical duty of competence?
- Accepting only assignments within their area of expertise or obtaining qualified assistance (Correct answer)
- Accepting all assignments to maximize firm revenue
- Relying solely on experience from decades-old projects
- Delegating all technical work to junior staff without review
Correct answer: Accepting only assignments within their area of expertise or obtaining qualified assistance
Professionals must perform services only in their areas of competence or engage qualified experts to fill gaps.
Question 7: A former client's confidential cost breakdown data would be useful in preparing a bid analysis for a new client who is a competitor. Ethically, the consultant should:
- Refuse to use or disclose the former client's confidential information (Correct answer)
- Use the data since the engagement has ended
- Use the data but anonymize the source
- Sell the data to the new client at fair market value
Correct answer: Refuse to use or disclose the former client's confidential information
The duty of confidentiality survives the end of an engagement, so proprietary client data cannot be used for a competitor's benefit.
CCC Professional Ethics & Standards 2
A cost consultant discovers a material error in an estimate already submitted to a client.
According to AACE International's Canons of Ethics, what should the consultant do?