bility: Ethical and Social Responsibility Dimensions 375 ESOLVING ETHICAL BUSINE
ID: 348560 • Letter: B
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bility: Ethical and Social Responsibility Dimensions 375 ESOLVING ETHICAL BUSINESS CHALLENGES After griduating from Ohio State, Keisha got a job in After two days of phone calls, she finally contacted the marketing and public relations department at a small someone who had been involved in the actual develop- called Smith's Sodas. Smith's Sodas spe m ment of the plastic. soda cializes in high-quality fruit-flavored soft drinks with company "Yes, it's true the plastic only degrades under certain unique flavors such as pomegranate, raspberry, blue conditions,; he informed her. "But that's still better than a lot of other plastics berry, and coconut. The company had great plans for the future. In 10 years Smith's Sodas wanted to become a competitor to its larger rivals, Pepsi and Coca-Cola. The company sold sodas with lower calories than its rivals and offered them in a variety of flavors. However, the product was only half the battle. The rest was up to the marketing department to promote the sodas as being superior to the competition. Keisha approached her manager, Louis, to discu the issue. Louis did not understand Keisha's concern. "I don't see what the problem is, Keisha, other than the fact to cause trouble. As long as that this reporter is trying the plastic biodegrades under certain natural conditions then we are fine Yes, but Louis, our claims made it seem the bottles degrade fairly easily, when in reality people must com post them. Even then they only degrade under certain Recently, Keisha was called d in a marketing initiative that promoted a new fea- ers came up with a soda bottle made with a new bio into her supervisor's su office and assigned a new project . She would take the conditions. Isn't this a type of greenwashing?" ture meant to appeal to the eco-conscious consumer: biodegradable packaging. One of the company's s Louis frowned at the mention of greenwashing. "Kei sha, the term biodegradable is vague. We have a supplier up- and it is not our responsibility to prove the packaging is degradable plastic manufactured with plant materials. biodegradable. We are not being deceitful, and it is up to Keisha was told the supplier struggled to develop this the consumer to know how to dispose of the package so plastic for years and Smith's Sodas was staking much of it degrades properly. We can't control what happens to its credibility on developing an image as an environmen the product after the consumer buys it. Many may sim ply toss it into the garbage tally friendly organization What happens if the reporter publishes her find Keisha immediately began learning about the plas tic and writing up press releases to send to local news ings?" Keisha asked stations. She put in long hours working on a marketing campaign touting the product's sustainability and how say the plastic is biodegradable. Besides, most compa mach better it is for the environment. She stressed the nies have to rely on supplier claims. I don't see any rea fact that the plastic should be composted rather than son why we need to change our marketing claims. simply thrown in the trash to biodegrade properly Louis looked adamant. "We are not lying when we Keisha received a call from a cat QUESTIONS | EXERCISES r A few days ago eporter. "I've heard all of the hype concerning these s your company is using. I wanted o test just how biodegradable this plastic really is. I ontacted scientists at the local university to test its bio- gradabillty. They tested the bottle under 10 different nditions with different types of soil. Only four out the ten tests resulted in the plastic degrading to any 1. Are Smith's Sodas's marketing claims accurate and iodegradable bottle truthful? 2. Discuss the justifications Louis uses to argue for the 2. Discuss the justifications Louis uses to 3. Assume there is a news story questioning the sustain- ability of Smith's Sodas sha respond? packaging. How should Kei jor extent. When Keisha hung up the phone, she decided to This case is estigate whether the reporters claims were accurate. canies, or situations is concintatmblance to real persons, strictly hyporthetical: any resemblance to real personsExplanation / Answer
Smith soda’s marketing claims accurate & truthful:
According to my view, smith soda’s claims can’t be considered as accurate and truthful. Because in the beginning the company claimed that the plastic used in the bottle packaging is fully degradable, but later when a call was received by Keisha from one of the reporter, a test was conducted on its degradability which stated that it is degradable only under few conditions.
Hence this part of action can’t be considered fair on the part of the company, as it misleads the customers who buy the product and also if the customers are not aware of how to dispose the package, it may not degrade properly and ultimately result in the environmental issues.
Justifications used by Louis on the truthfulness of the company’s claims:
According to louis, he is not ready to accept what Keisha’s explains to him. For him it is sufficient that if the plastic degrades under certain conditions. As far as the plastic degrades under the natural conditions, it won’t affect the company. Further he is also not willing to take responsibility as he says that it is the fault of the supplier. From this it is clear that he is aware of the issue, but does not want to take the fault on him. Furthermore, if there is a claim on the product or its packaging, there must be evidence to support it. The company can make claims that doesn’t abuse the consumers.
Keisha’s response:
Keisha can start her response saying that the company is always interested in protecting the environment. She should accept the fact that the packaging bottles were not up to the mark as the news report suggested. She can also broad her explanation saying that the supplier did not disclose the full information about the bottles.
She can conclude her response saying that the company would take steps in removing the defects in the bottles and can apologize on behalf of the company. Such an explanation would prevent the company’s reputation being affected.
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