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7921IBA International Business - Case Analysis Assignment - Griffith University, Australia
Overview - This is an individual written assignment that requires you to demonstrate your understanding of Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) issues & challenges faced by managers in an international business context.
Please choose one of the following two scenarios to conduct your analysis. Each scenario briefly describes a corporate scandal faced by a multinational corporation (MNC) in recent years. Your task is to evaluate to what extent the actions of the MNC prior and related to the corporate crisis were consistent with international CSR norms; identify factors that help explain these actions, especially where corporate actions inconsistent with international norms were found; evaluate the response of the MNC to the crisis and its impacts on the firm's strategies, relationships and business sustainability; and offer recommendations on how the MNE's response could be improved.
Case Scenario I: Takata Airbag Scandal
Takata started its operation as a textile company in 1933. In the 1950s, Takata started producing seat belts and then airbags, child restraint system and other safety products. At its peak time, Takata was the second largest airbag manufacturer in the world. One of the company's mottos was to achieve its dream of "a society with zero fatalities from traffic accidents". Ironically, Takata has been at the centre of the auto industry's biggest-ever product recall. Takata's airbag has caused 23 reported deaths and 230 injuries worldwide. In Feb 2018, the Australian Government announced a compulsory recall of all Takata airbags installed in Australian vehicles, as the previous voluntary recall by suppliers of vehicles with defective Takata airbags have not taken satisfactory action to prevent those vehicles causing injury to drivers and/or passengers. The recall will affect two in seven cars on Australian roads and involves a diverse list of major car manufacturers including Ford, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mazda, BMW and Toyota. The ethical issues presented in this case are quite shocking, since Takata manufactures safety equipment, designed to protect its users, but it could actually injure or even kill them.
Case Scenario II: BP and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
On 20 April 2010, the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig exploded, killing 11 workers. Gas erupted into a massive fireball, and then the rig gushed 4.9million barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil spill is one of the largest and most expensive marine oil spills in human history, with billions of dollars damage to properties, fisheries and tourism industry across the Gulf Coast.
BP that leased the rig and Transocean that owned it accuse each other for the disaster. A report by the Joint Investigation Team of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement and the U.S. Coast Guard emphasized BP's ultimate responsibility for the disaster.
Case Analysis Questions - Your case analysis must be structured to answer the following questions:
1. To what extent and how did the Takata/BP actions prior to the corporate scandal comply with or contravene international (e.g. OECD, UN, ILO) guidelines for Multinational Enterprises?
2. What factors (at the individual, organisational, national and/or international level) help explain these actions and the company's approach to CSR prior to the scandal?
3. Briefly describe and evaluate the response of Takata/BP when faced with the corporate scandal. Specifically: What was the Takata's/BP's response? How did it affect the firm's strategies, relationships within the firm and with external stakeholders, and business sustainability?
4. What should the Takata's/BP's management have done differently in their response to the scandal/ crisis, if anything? Note: We can always 'wish' for a lot, but remember to consider feasibility in implementation when making recommendations.
Attachment:- International Business Assignment File.rar