Defective Product Problem - Essay Example

“When a person is injured by a defective product, they may be able to sue the manufacturer or seller of that product in a defective product lawsuit” (Freeadvice, 2012). The company must take immediate action to eliminate any defective product units in the marketplace. A move that can ensure that the general public is protected is by issuing a product recall. The product recall idea will be verbally presented to the CEO and the directors during the upcoming meeting. Due to the urgency of the matter, the directors will vote on the matter at the end of the meeting to implement the recall procedure immediately after the action is voted on. Allowing customers to get injured without warning them about the defects would be a socially irresponsible move. The CEO of the company should vote in favor of the recall because this measure legally protects the company against potential customer lawsuits. The measure also positively impacts the corporate image of the company.

The recall measure is a reactive policy that serves as a quick fix to the situation. The company has a greater problem they must deal with. The company has a quality control problem. The firm must start an immediate investigation to determine whether the defective products occurred due to poor raw materials, defective machinery, or inadequate processes. The organization will spend the resources that are necessary to investigate this matter immediately. Upon conclusion of the internal audit, the results of the audit will be presented to the board of directors and to the managerial team of the company. “Internal auditing is an independent appraisal function that is performed in a wide variety of companies, institutions, and governments” (Answers, 2012). The company will develop a new manufacturing procedure that complies with all safety requirements to ensure the optimal quality control of the product.

The customers will be notified about the product recall by notifying local news stations about the recall so that they make a public notification during their newscasts. All the customers will be called to their homes and a letter will be sent as well. It is imperative for the company to properly notify the customers about defective product units. The company has to take measures to ratify the problem. The internal control audit will provide management with a series of ideas on how to fix the problem based on properly identifying its roots. If the firm is not able to determine how to fix the problem based on the results of the internal audit the company should hire an external consultant to intervene. Assuming that the firm can develop a new manufacturing procedure on its own the firm should be able to solve its quality control problem internally. A control mechanism that the company will start implementing is performing a physical check of the unit prior to packaging the merchandise. The company will also extend a one-year warranty on its products. The new warranty offering will be mailed to all the customers.

Quality control problems are important issues that need the immediate attention of the corporate directors of an enterprise. Bad quality can tarnish the reputation of a company and it can hurt its brand value. Branding is a technique that allows companies to charge a premium price for their products and services (Kotler, 2003). The production and engineering departments are responsible for ensuring the top quality of the products. Quality control problems can occur due to either machine or human error. A way to reduce errors associated with machinery is by implementing a good maintenance program. Human errors can be lowered by increasing training and developments. Employees should have training and development opportunities on a recurrent basis. For instance, companies can offer training and development opportunities monthly. “Training and development ensure that randomness is reduced and learning or behavioral change takes place in the structured format” (Traininganddevelopment, 2007). The product defect problems at the company must be attended to immediately by the CEO of the firm. Read More