Watch this short video, Volkswagen Comes Clean on Emissions Cheating (Links to a

Question

Watch this short video, Volkswagen Comes Clean on Emissions Cheating (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. that deals with how Volkswagen was accused of rigging computer systems to pass U.S. emissions standards. These cars were sold in the U.S. and in Europe.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/volkswagen

Then respond to these four questions listed below. You do not need to conduct any research. Your responses should be based strictly upon what you learn from the video and your own interpretation, good judgment, and opinion.

1. Why did Volkswagen cheat to meet US emissions standards for cars sold in Europe?

2. Who in Volkswagen should be held accountable?

3. Based upon what you learned from the video, describe the organizational culture in the company.

4. How could Volkswagen, and the automobile industry as a whole, regain consumer trust?

Please answer all of the questions, if you can not answer all of the questions do not reply.

Explanation / Answer

1. Volkswagen wanted to become the number one company when it came to being the market leader in selling diesel vehicle. Since their vision was hard to achieve with the current technology of engines they had present, they decided that in order to compete with companies such as Toyota and the efficiency with which all its systems worked, they needed to be able to compete with them in the marketplace right now, they could not wait for the time, or the opportunity to do so, as a possibility in the near future. This is the reason that the company decided to go down the path they did and cheat on the emissions test.

2. The blame for this incident, while lies with the entire organization, should be held accountable towards the company’s board, the management and the primary stakeholders of the company which includes the CEO. As a general courtesy and ethical wrongdoing, the CEO of the company eventually decided to resign from the post, in order to regain the trust they had lost in the eyes of their customers.

3. Volkswagen was regarded to have one of the most sophisticated cultures in the industry before this incident went public. Now, even though the company is actively trying to regain their position in the eyes of the masses, their organizational culture seems to have been changed to reflect these values in their work and conduct. Ethics have now become a large part of the organization's culture as well as principal value over which the entire organization seems to be functioning right now. They want to work towards achieving efficiency, quality work as well as gain the support of the public in order to make up for the past mistakes.

4. As a motor company, if such an incident has been a part of their past, it is hard to shake off. The public does not forget such incidents and this is the reason that Volkswagen is still struggling to gain back the trust that they had costed by indulging in such unethical conduct. For a company or the industry to gain the trust back, there should be a realization that the perception of the individuals have changed since the beginning and therefore, instead of tricking the customers, there is a need to maintain ethical standing, providing quality services and offerings as well as never to repeat any such activity no matter the current cost. There is a need to bring reforms at the organizational level in the structure and function of the nature of the work that is taken and therefore, necessary changes be introduced to allow the best possible implementation of culture as a whole to allow the people to realize the value of quality service and provide assurance.

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