The Boeing 737 Max controversy, which is covered in the Ethics Unwrapped article, reveals alarming ethical failures in corporate responsibility and engineering that are reminiscent of actual problems in a number of other sectors. In order to compete with Airbus, Boeing hurried the delivery of the 737 Max, putting profit and market competitiveness ahead of safety. “The company’s culture prioritized profits over safety, and the pressure to keep costs down led to a series of poor decisions,” the paper notes. Similar instances of corporate irresponsibility, such as the Volkswagen emissions crisis, where emissions data was falsified to satisfy environmental regulations while putting profits first, are not unique.These scandals show how corporate cultures that put profit ahead of moral obligation may have disastrous results, ranging from monetary losses to serious damage to public confidence and even fatalities. The Boeing controversy is unique in that it involves direct, preventable hazards to human life, even though many corporations follow strict safety regulations and conduct thorough safety inspections. On the other hand, businesses that put ethics and profit first, such as Patagonia in the environmental space, show that social responsibility and business success can coexist. The Boeing crisis is a reminder that moral leadership is crucial to saving lives and preserving public confidence over the long run. https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/engineering-ethics-and-the-boeing-scandal