Ethical dilemma: The burger murders - George Siedel and Christine Ladwig

Summary

The video script presents a crisis management scenario where a company that manufactures meatless burgers faces a deadly threat after three people die from consuming poisoned products. The company must decide between three strategies: doing nothing, pulling products from stores citywide, or worldwide. The lawyer advises against a recall, but ethical considerations are paramount. Stakeholder analysis, Utilitarian Test, Family Test, Newspaper Test, and the Mentor Test are suggested to evaluate the ethicality of each choice. The script references Johnson & Johnson's response to the 1982 Tylenol crisis, where the CEO prioritized customer safety over financial loss, leading to a successful recovery. The dilemma underscores the complexity of ethical decision-making in business crises.

Takeaways

• 🚀 **Company Background**: Founded a company that manufactures meatless burgers, now sold worldwide.
• 🔍 **Criminal Incident**: Three unrelated deaths linked to the product, caused by a targeted poisoning of the burgers in two stores.
• 🚨 **Investigation Findings**: Police found no trace on packaging due to an ultrafine instrument used by the perpetrator.
• 🛒 **Immediate Action**: The product was removed from the two affected stores.
• 📉 **Market Impact**: Negative press and a plummet in sales due to the deaths being headline news.
• 🤔 **Strategic Options**: Three options proposed - do nothing, pull products citywide, or worldwide.
• ⚖️ **Legal Advice**: No legal requirement for a recall, with a recommendation to do nothing to avoid admitting fault.
• 🧐 **Ethical Consideration**: A stakeholder analysis is suggested to weigh interests of different parties.
• 📈 **Sales Projections**: First option may lead to eventual recovery but with lasting brand damage and job losses.
• 💸 **Financial Implications**: Second and third options involve greater financial loss and layoffs but offer customer safety.
• 🌍 **Global vs. Local Impact**: The third option provides the broadest customer protection despite the lack of evidence for an international threat.
• 🤝 **Utilitarian Test**: Maximizing good for the greatest number, considering the impact of each strategy.
• 🏠 **Family Test**: Assessing how comfortable one would be explaining the decision to their family.
• 📰 **Newspaper Test**: Considering the public perception if the decision was reported in the media.
• 👴 **Mentor Test**: Contemplating what a respected figure would do in the same situation.
• 🛑 **Historical Parallel**: Johnson & Johnson's response to the Tylenol crisis in 1982, prioritizing customer safety over immediate financial loss.
• 🔬 **Regulatory Response**: The incident prompted the development of tamper-resistant packaging and stricter regulations.
• ❓ **Unresolved Questions**: The dilemma of whether different actions could have prevented copycat incidents and the balance between ethics and marketing.

Q & A

What was the initial crisis faced by the company that manufactures meatless burgers?

The company faced a crisis when three unrelated people in one city died after consuming their meatless burgers. It was later discovered that a criminal had injected poison into the product in at least two grocery stores.

What was the method used by the criminal to tamper with the meatless burgers?

The criminal used an ultrafine instrument to inject poison into the burgers, leaving no trace on the packaging, which made it impossible to identify the compromised products.

Why were the meatless burgers removed from the two stores where the victims bought them?

The burgers were removed as a precautionary measure after the deaths were linked to the consumption of the product from these stores, even though it was not clear which specific products were tampered with.

What are the three options proposed by the team to deal with the crisis?

The three options proposed were: 1) Do nothing, 2) Pull the products from grocery stores citywide and destroy them, and 3) Pull and destroy the product worldwide.

What is the legal stance on recalling the product according to the company lawyer?

The company lawyer explains that a recall is not required by law since the criminal is fully responsible for the tampering. She recommends doing nothing to avoid appearing as an admission of fault.

What is a stakeholder analysis and how could it be used to gauge the ethicality of each choice?

A stakeholder analysis is a method of weighing the interests of key stakeholders, such as investors, employees, and customers, against one another. It can be used to evaluate the ethical implications of each crisis management option by considering the impact on these different groups.

What is the Utilitarian Test and how does it apply to the decision-making process?

The Utilitarian Test is a philosophical approach that focuses on maximizing the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people. It can be applied to evaluate each option based on its impact on the overall well-being and safety of the largest possible group.

What are the Family Test and Newspaper Test, and how do they relate to ethical decision-making?

The Family Test asks how you would feel explaining your decision to your family, while the Newspaper Test inquires how you would feel if your decision was published on the front page of a newspaper. Both tests are used to assess the personal and public acceptability of a decision.

Who is James Burke and what decision did he make during the Tylenol crisis in 1982?

James Burke was the CEO of Johnson & Johnson during the 1982 Tylenol crisis, where cyanide was added to bottles of Tylenol, resulting in seven deaths. He decided to pull Tylenol from all shelves worldwide, prioritizing customer safety, and recalled and destroyed an estimated 32 million bottles of Tylenol.

What was the outcome of Johnson & Johnson's response to the Tylenol crisis?

Burke's decision helped Johnson & Johnson regain the trust of its customers, and product sales rebounded within a year. The company also became a leader in developing tamper-resistant packaging, prompting stricter government regulations.

What is the ethical dilemma faced by the meatless burger company?

The ethical dilemma is choosing between the interests of different stakeholders—prioritizing customer safety, which might involve costly product recalls, or protecting the financial interests of investors and employees by doing nothing, which could risk more lives.

How might the meatless burger company's decision impact its brand and reputation?

The decision will significantly impact the brand and reputation of the company. Choosing to do nothing might be seen as prioritizing profits over safety, damaging the brand. On the other hand, a proactive approach, such as a worldwide recall, could rebuild trust with customers, although it would be a costly move.