Chapter 5: Product safety PDF

Chapter 5: Product safety
This lecture was about product safety. Companies should always provide customers with safe
products that do not cause harm or injury while using it. It is viewed as unethical and unsafe to
sell defective products to customers. As a result the manufacturer or seller is liable for any
damage or harm caused to the customer (Ryan 2003.
However Governments and independent authorities act as regulators to prevent firms from
supplying unsafe goods and services to customers. Like for instance, in Australia, The
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission caters for consumers as they make sure
that firms sell safe goods and services. It also provides information about safety, product recalls
and people can also complain about a defective product (ACCC 2017).
The ford Pinto case
According to Cowley (2016), there was an issue regarding product safety in the automobile
industry in 1978. The automaker Ford commercialized the Ford Pinto which caused 27 deaths
and 24 injuries. (Cowley 2016). The car was not safe as its fuel tank was too close to the rear
bumper which made the car explode in accidents (Gioia 1992). The company knew the issue but
did not take any actions because re designing the car will make the trunk smaller in space and at
that time a large trunk was highly demanded by customers. Following this, the pinto model was
recalled and auto safety regulations were implemented to minimize similar problems in the
future (Lee 1998). To conclude, it was unethical that Ford sold the Pinto as it was harmful to its
users. The company did not cater for their customers but instead focused on maximizing sales of
this car.
Chapter 6: How can you reconcile competing values and priorities? (e.g. your personal values
and organisation values)
Personal values
Each of us has a set of moral guidelines and beliefs which guides us in our life. Personal values
can be trust, forgiveness, love and honesty. Our personal values help us to take decisions in a
given situation and also help us to distinguish between what we think is right and wrong (Suar
and Rooplekha 2010).
Organization values
Organizational values are the qualities and standards that an organization follow and put forward.
It may include integrity, equality and commitment which form part of their organizational culture
(Jaakson 2010). These values will help the organization to achieve their goals and objectives set.
Reconciling personal and organization values

Personal and organization values can be different. An employee personal values may differ from
those of the company for he or she is working thus conflict of interest may occur unfortunately.
For instance, concerning the Nike child labour scandal, the company did not value fairness as
they have employed children thus violating their human rights as it is unethical and illegal to hire
children to work (Boggan 2001). So some employees of Nike may have found it unfair as they
value equality and fairness which is a good example of conflicts between personal values and
those of the organization. Unfortunately, many firms like Nike want to maximize profits leaving
behind values and standards.
To reunite personal and organization values, it should start early from the recruitment process.
During recruitment, the organization should clearly state their values so as to know if it matches
the candidate’s profile. Secondly, after the recruitment process, training should be offered to the
employees to make them adapt better to the organization culture and values. If personal and
organization values are aligned, the company will achieve their goals faster in an efficient
manner (Branson 2008).
Chapter 7: Environmental ethics in business
Topic 7 is about “environmental ethics in business. Nowadays, businesses are adopting more
sustainable business practices as it is highly demanded by consumers (Simas and Antonio 2013).
Companies follow the triple bottom line where they have to cater for people, planet and profit
together which help to minimize unethical practices like environment degradation, pollution and
other malpractices in the business world (Høgevold et al 2015).
Siemens and sustainability
The article “The World's Most Sustainable Companies 2017” positions Siemens in first place as
the most sustainable company (Kauflin 2017). The company is the most energy efficient firm
and has also the lowest carbon footprint around. It has also a low employee turnover.
Additionally, Siemens has invested in creating environmental friendly air conditioning systems
and heaters by using less energy.
Local businesses in Mauritius
In Mauritius, many businesses have adopted the green lifestyle to be ethical. Cottons, a textile
shop, has adopted the use of eco bags to decrease pollution and this was done before the law to
ban plastic bags was implemented in Mauritius (Cottons 2017). Another example of a local
business adopting sustainable practices is the radio station Top Fm (Top Fm 2017). The firm has
recently created a “No car day” where employees would come to work by foot or bicycles. This
shows that they are caring for our planet as this will lower the emission of carbon dioxide.
Chapter 4: CSR and Corporate Governance