ethics of business

The chief executive officer of the company, the board of directors, the shareholders, and the consumers of the company's products, including the media and clients in France and the UK, are the stakeholders in this scenario.

Consumers of the items who are based in France and the UK should be prioritized as stakeholders. Customers must receive the precise requirements that the company has set forth. Customers who buy products they assume will satisfy their needs may be impacted by any car that has attributes that differ from those described by the firm. What should be done about the CEO and Board of Directors?

The board of directors and the CEO of the firm should be responsible for any challenge that may exist with the products of the company. The CEO and the Board of Directors knew about the degree of speed in miles per hour which was less than 4 and the 25 horsepower from their specifications at 40 horsepower. They should be taken to court to explain the disparities that exist in the products’ specifications and the reality that exists with the above specifications. If they are found guilty, they should be charged with business offence after testing the company specifications with multiple agents that will confer high degree of accuracy before being charged with the offence.

How should we handle the Media?

The role of media in the society is to ensure that virtues are maintained and have the moral authority to expose the filth or the rot that reckons the society. The media should be allowed to do their duties as pertaining to professionalism without interference as long as they have enough evidence beyond any doubts on whatever they are talking about. Moreover, the media should be handled cautiously to avoid any catastrophic implications that might befall the company pertaining to the scandal. Even if the media exposes the truth concerning the dubious activity championed by the firm, the organization has a chance to redeem itself through the same media by assuring the public that the problem will be fixed and previous buyers compensated. If the company tactically handles the media before and after exposing the activity in the company, the lost glory among the consumers of the products from the company can be redeemed.

Should we alert the customers and how should we handle claims?

The company has the moral obligations of making the customers aware of what has happened whether it occurred intentionally or accidentally. Again, the claims should be authenticated by doing various tests from different providers to ascertain the reliability of the claims. The results will form the platforms of decision making for the company. If the tests conform to the specifications of the company, the firm will have the obligations to declare the claims invalid and request for compensation from the claimers. However, if the test show that the claims are true, the company should cautiously treat the claims and make necessary adjustment to ensure that the claims do not impact negatively on the reputation of the company. The company through the technical team can assure the customers that all the errors will be fixed and those severely affected compensated some amount equivalent to the deficient specifications if indeed the claims are true.

Is the 4mph difference really a difference worthy of any response? What about the fact that LeRoadster is sustainable?

With other factors constant, 4 mph is significant especially for customers who need to drive to different places which cover fairly longer distances. For other consumers, it may not be worthy of any response and the specifications may meet their needs. The fact that LeRoadster is sustainable does not have any effect on the speed since they are both independent variables. Some customers may prefer durable and sustainable products while others focus on the speed of the car especially if they have to constantly move from one place to another.

(7) Are the slogans fraudulent advertising? Should they be changed? Are the local groups just complainers without an interest? Should they be treated as a priority?

The slogans ""LeRoadster, a beautiful car for beautiful people"" and ""LeRoadster, when you want to get somewhere fast and look fantastic doing it"" are fraudulent advertising. A beautiful car which has specifications inferiors to the reality is very sarcastic and does not reflect the business ethical values. A car is beautiful not only on the outward appearance but also on the features that makes it better and most preferred compared to others in the market. From the claims on the ground, the horsepower is 25 and not 40 as specified by the company and the miles per hour is 50 as opposed to the company specifications of 54. The same fraudulent activities are implicated on the durability of the company due to lack of sincerity and honesty in displaying the features of the car. The Slogans need to be changed and should reflect the exact features of the car. The local groups complain with interest concerning the products. The local groups are also consumers of the products and may be directly or indirectly affected by the lack of efficiency of the vehicles. Moreover, owing to implications on them, they should be treated as priority as they influence a large number of consumers of the products. The media group can either build or destroy hence the company need to treat their concern with a lot of seriousness and care.

Any other recommendations?

The company should shuffle the management team to deal with problems that are facing the firm

The organization should plan and strategize on redeeming the lost glory of the customers on the company.

More advertisement is required to instill reliability, efficiency and market the products of the company after the solving the existing problems present in the public domains.

Q2.

Is this deceptive?

It is not deceptive since the bag marker, American Tourister, specified the contents of the lifetime warranty. Moreover, the bags depreciate overtime and it is illogical in business perspective to provide lifetime warranty for the products made in the company or else it means that the company must produce double products for goods they produce. With limited resources available and expensive expenses incurred in the process of producing the products, the company will make huge losses if it decides to offer lifelong warranty to the products it distributes in the market. However, the firm can provide partial warranty such as repair which does not require too much costs to conduct and is a way of keeping in touch with the customers as it happens with the American Tourister.

Tom wants to know if this ethical?

Yes, it is ethical in the sense that the producers specified the contents of the lifetime warranty. The company has the right to provide or deny warranty basing on the terms and conditions set by the organization. If the company establishes a warranty with its specifications, it becomes ethical if the customers are provided with the required warranty services and will be unethical if the customers’ requirements fall within the scope of the terms and conditions of warranty but denied such crucial services. In this scenario, the bag marker established clear terms of the provision of the lifetime warranty which was not met by the buyers hence the maker is ethically right to deny the provisions of the services required by the customers. The minimal provision for warranty as stated by the American Tourister “our lifetime warranty only covers the leather material and not the zipper or straps"". From the statement, clear guidelines show that the company is ethically right in refusing to provide the lifelong warranty demanded by Tim Tom after losing the bag.

Q3.

Is the employment-at-will doctrine fair to both employer and employee?

The employment at will doctrine states that the employer can terminate the relationship with the employees by firing the employee without any just cause or the employee can make sound decision to stop working for the organization without any implications. The doctrine enables the employee and employer to terminate their relationship anytime. The principle has is not fair to the employees and favor mostly the employers. The doctrine subjects the employees to harsh working conditions where they have to follow the rules set by the bosses without questioning or adding inputs that may affect the organization positively. Most cases, the employees are fired without any warning or cause and are forced to be jobless for long periods as they search for greener pastures in other areas. For the employers, they rarely fire workers whom they believe is valuable to the organization in terms of skills and in that case, open talks to solve conflicts may be tabled unlike the junior workers who can be replaced easily in the company. In most cases, it is extremely hard to get a worker resigns from the job since the wages provides a sense of fulfilment within the company unless more lucrative jobs are available in other organization. In this case, the company may opt to increase allowance or promote such individual in order to continue providing the valuable services to the company.

Should employees have more protection?

Yes, the employees should have more protections. Some states such Texas have enacted Texas discriminatory act that aims at protecting the employees from harsh treatment by their employers. The employees need to be notified and even warned in case there are misconduct among the customers. The employers should not fire the workers without any prior notifications and rules that warrant the termination of their contracts. Likewise, the employees should not have any moral authority to leave the organization at their own will rather, they should notify the employers with early notification on their intentions to leave the firm.

Should the government begin to regulate private employee contracts?

Yes, the government should regulate the contracts of the private employees. There is high propensity to fire workers in the private sectors as they operate partial autonomy where they have the right to make decisions of employment without consulting and following the law. The government should establish laws that regulate the firing of the workers in the private sectors and the terms and conditions of working. Most workers in private sectors carry duties for long hours with minimal pay and unfavorable working conditions. The employees are subjected to harsh terms set by the firms that makes them lose their job easily when one does not comply to them. The government should set aside the working conditions and minimal terms that must be met by both parties to guarantee firing of the employees in the private sector.

Q4.

What advice would you give George about being a potential whistle-blower?

I would advice George to discuss the issues that concerns him on the Price is Right with Drew Carey and solve them before reporting them to the supervisor. The whistle blowing may have negative consequences on his friend which are not limited to suspension or termination of contract with the service providers. All these implications can be prevented through objective talks with his counterparts to make everything a success.

If you were advising management, what advice would you give to management faced with a potential whistle-blowing situation?

I would advise the management to discuss the issues that occurs on the Price is Right with the game host and sidekick on the price adjustment that aims at making the show “more fun and more suspenseful” while at the same time interfering with the process of the show. Discussion the issue occurring during the game is more likely to solve the challenges seen and improve the quality of the games as the participants will be aware of the requirements needed while conducting the game.

What other issues do you see here?

From the case scenario, there is ineffective leadership in the management of the television from the top officials to the host employees. The management does not care of what happens in the show which makes the employee to get involved in dubious activities rather than maintaining professionalism while providing the services to the viewer. Again, the host, Drew Carey show lack of ethical values and professionalism in conducting the game from the evidence he said, ""Every time I say the word ""Tums"" in a game of chance like the ""Grocery Game"", I get a kick back so I want to make sure I say it a lot.""

References

Business & Society Ethics, Sustainability and Stakeholder Management 9th Edition - Carroll