International Legal and Ethical Issues in Business - Essay Example

The other aspect that needs highlighting is that the company must not violate the ethical and normative rules of business by pushing defective products into the market. Hence, I would stress on the damage to the company’s reputation and consequently to the bottom line apart from issues of ethics and responsibility.* How would you specifically notify customers of such an occurrence?In the case where defective products have been shipped to the customers, I would deal with care and caution as there are multiple issues involved here.

First, customers have to be informed in a manner that would not alarm them and also alert them as to the steps that the company is taking to ensure the recall or replacement of defective products. At the same time, the customers should not perceive the company in a bad light and hence, the communication regarding the recall or replacement of the defective products must be done in a responsible and honest manner. Honesty is especially important as the trust that has been built up by the company must not be lost.

Hence, I would assure the customers of the company’s resolve not to repeat the occurrence of defective products being sold. Further, I would invite them or the representatives of consumer watchdogs to come and visit our facilities to see for themselves the steps being taken by us to ensure that we sell only quality products. (Wired.com, 2010)* What kind of internal actions would you take to prevent future problems?The answer to this question flows from the last few sentences of the previous answer.

First, I would take to task the employees responsible for the situation and ensure that key personnel who are in charge abide by the company’s directives and are committed to the vision and mission of the company. Next, I would immediately order a review of the processes and procedures and remove any bottlenecks that are holding up quality. Finally, I would direct the marketing and corporate communications departments to convey and communicate the company’s resolve not to repeat the same in a clear and honest manner.

* What can be done to ensure that a strong sense of business ethics permeates your company?A top-down approach that involves practicing what one preaches about ethics right from the senior management to the people on the floor would be the first step to inculcate a strong sense of ethics in the company. Next, there would be no tolerance for unethical behavior at any level and action would be taken against anyone indulging in instances of unethical behavior. Finally, I would recommend setting up a compliance department to oversee the implementation of the ethical and normative rules of behavior and ensure that the quality department conducts regular checks and does rigorous testing of the products.

The compliance personnel would directly report to the CEO and would be empowered to take action against erring employees. (Kotler, 2007)