ABSTRACT

One of many things than any manufacturing company will have to worry about is the possibility of producing defective products. If a company finds out that there have been defective products that have been produced and put out into the market it would be in their best interests for the company itself to find out first instead of their consumers. When consumers are the ones to notice first about the defective products, it can make news and the trust and credibility of the company can or will be lost. A few prime examples were when Firestone made headlines about producing defective tires and Toyota made headlines about their vehicles having a bad brake system. The last example would be Microsoft when it came down to their production of Xbox 360s, but is a little different compared to the first two because they knew they were defective but put it out into the market anyway which cost them a loss and millions in profit and is still making it up to this day. Although Microsoft has done everything they could possibly do in order to rectify their consumers of these defective consoles, it has in fact taken them years in order to once again gain their consumers trust.

In this paper I am about to attend a meeting with the new CEO and other executives and will like to share my knowledge of the potential of defective products being sold. Although I am not sure if the others are aware of this issue knowing that the defective products could possibly lead to serious issues I will try to effectively present the issue of potential defective products to the CEO, directors and managers. I will also explain how I would specifically notify consumers of the occurrence in the kind of internal actions I would take to prevent future problems. I will lastly do my best to try and ensure that a strong sense of business ethics permeates the company. The only issue that I have that may complicate all these matters is the uncertainty I have about the organization's ethical guidelines because none have been properly communicated.

How would you effectively present the issue of potentially defective products to the CEO, other directors, and managers?

The most effective way to present the issue of potentially defective products to these individuals would be to be a straightforward as possible without sugarcoating the kind of damage this company may suffer. These defective products can in fact damage the reputation of this company and may in fact get the type of publicity we would not want to receive which can lead to product liability litigation. Unless we take the appropriate action, the defective products will become a financial threat and have a severe financial impact to the company. Defective products can also become under scrutiny according to federal regulations which is of the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1972. I would recommend that we have a recall program and if we do, we have to be sure as many angles of a recall can be covered and make any revisions that need to be done.

How would you specifically notify customers of such an occurrence?

As much as a company may not want to do so, one way of specifically notifying consumers would be through the newspaper or media. The pending on the seriousness of the defect, consumers need to be notified within a maximum of 24 hours. Any retail store that sells our products will need to be notified of the defects and will need to be asked if they can post on their entrance of a picture of our product informing them that it is defective.

If our consumers subscribe for e-mail updates of our products, we will need to e-mail every individual of our defective product and what it is they need to do in order for us to rectify the problem. We will also need to find any traceable consumers and contact them through mail or telegram (registered or certified mail). There will need to be a number for all consumers to call to give specific instructions on what it is that need to be done. We can offer them a refund or initiate a recall of all products or do a partial recall whether it is voluntary or mandatory.

What kind of internal actions would you take to prevent future problems?

The first thing that needs to be done is for the company to stop production, distribution and sale of that specific product. Notify any and all retailers, distributors and dealers of the model, serial number and batch. The recall will also need to be publicized with the help of the company's legal counsel and also through the Public Relations Department.
A product recall program will need to come in to order and any indication of a defective product will need to be notified to the Consumer Product Safety Commission within 24 hours. We need to be sure what are primary reasons are that will call for a product recall. A couple of reasons could be that new additional research and product testing suggests for a recall or that we have been mandated by agency that we have violated a government act. We as a company may feel that are recall program covers all the bases on what needs to be done if a recall is in order but as surefire and any company may think they're plan is the still needs to be a contingency plan on standby in case things do not go as planned. Doing so, our recall plan can save time and effort on our response time through preplanning for every angle for the foreseen future events or circumstances that could not be predicted with the utmost certainty. With a contingency plan, we will be less likely to duplicate an effort that has already been done which can in turn reduce costs.

One way that I have personally learned in my lifetime to the military is to perform a dry run. A dry run will allow the company to perform the recall plan more efficiently and effectively by helping us to address any problems when it comes to storing, collecting or disposing the products that have been recalled. This will give each department an idea of what they need to do and what needs to be done and also on how to improve and correct any mistakes that have been made.
What can be done to ensure that a strong sense of business ethics permeates your company?

One way that a company can be sure that strong business ethics is spread throughout the company would be to have mandatory ethics classes. This will give every individual an idea and a sense on how to conduct themselves and know what the company expects from them. Leading by example would also be a way to spread business ethics within the company. Many employees look up to their supervisors in order for them to give them guidance on how to become a better person for the company. If employees begin to see the CEO, directors and managers conduct themselves with good business ethics, many others will also follow in the footsteps in this will also give everyone a sense of pride working for our company. Leading by example is a good motivational tool.

REFERENCES
Consumer Product Safety Act. (Oct 27, 1972). Retrieved November 10, 2011, from http://www.herc.org/library/cpsa.pdf
US Customer Product Safety Commission. (May, 1999). Recall Handbook. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/8002.html
News Releases In Product Recall Public Relations (N.D.). Retrieved November 11, 2011, from http://www.unm.edu/~dirkcgib/newsrelease.pdf
Working in retail has also shown me the procedures that are implemented for recall items.