Crisis management - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

[VIDEO] Starbucks Will Temporarily Close 8,000 U.S. Stores For Racial-Bias Training

April 19, 2018

Last week, a manager at a Philadelphia Starbucks called the police on two African-American men who were waiting for a friend to arrive. Their subsequent arrest was caught on video and quickly went viral as thousands of social media users directed their outrage towards the coffee chain. Starbucks then took the drastic step of announcing that it would close all stores on May 29th for racial sensitivity training. Along with showing clips of the offending video, this short report also Continue reading →

Facebook Tests Users’ Trust with Data Sharing Scandal

March 22, 2018

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A couple of weeks ago, we looked at the hyperscale data centers that Facebook relies on to handle its userbase of more than 2 billion accounts. With so much information swirling around these enormous structures, it’s easy to assume that any data you provide to the social network will fade away in an ever-increasing crowd. But not only can Facebook access much of the data it collects, the company also routinely shares this information with scholars and researchers. Users consent Continue reading →

Data Mining, Facebook, Global, Security, Ethics, Legal, Social Media, Crisis management, Cambridge Analytica

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

2017’s Equifax Hack Affected Nearly 148 Million People

March 6, 2018

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Last year, hackers targeted the credit reporting firm Equifax in one of the biggest data breaches in history. While the company initially estimated the cyberattack had affected 143 million consumers, it increased that number by 2.5 million a month later. Then last week Equifax announced a further 2.4 million people had been harmed by the hack, placing the grand total somewhere in the neighborhood of 148 million. Unlike the vast majority of consumers who had their social security information leaked, Continue reading →

Cyberattack, Management, Equifax, Ethics, Regulation, Security, Crisis management

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Anticipating a Price Hike, Taiwanese Shoppers Stock up on Toilet Paper

February 27, 2018

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Last week, we took a look at the logistical nightmare that caused hundreds of British KFCs to close due to a lack of chicken. And while the company seems to have solved this issue for now, another strange supply chain problem is frustrating consumers halfway around the world. This time, however, the product in question is a bit more essential to daily life than fried chicken.

Over the weekend in Taiwan, panicked shoppers rushed to stores so they could purchase Continue reading →

Operations Management, Pricing, Global, Supply chains, Ethics, Product Distribution, Social Media, Crisis management, Taiwan

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Chicken Shortage Causes Hundreds of British KFCs to Close

February 20, 2018

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The world is home to billions upon billions of chickens, which would seem like more than enough birds to stock an average KFC restaurant. This weekend, however, hundreds of the chain’s locations in the U.K. closed after failing to receive their usual shipments of chicken. “We’ve brought a new delivery partner on board, but they’ve had a couple of teething problems – getting fresh chicken out to 900 restaurants across the country is pretty complex,” said the company in a Continue reading →

Supply chains, Product Distribution, Crisis management, United Kingdom, Global, Logistics, Food, KFC, Fast food

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 15: Distribution

Procter & Gamble Takes on the “Tide Pod Challenge”

January 23, 2018

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A few weeks ago, Tide’s official Twitter account posted a quick video of New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski talking about one of the brand’s best-selling products. While this would normally be standard procedure for a company spokesperson, the clip didn’t feature any footage of Gronk encouraging people to buy laundry detergent. Instead, he actively discourages the public from taking part in the “Tide pod challenge,” a dangerous viral dare that centers on ingesting containers of concentrated detergent. “No no Continue reading →

Social Media, Procter & Gamble, Crisis management, Tide, Management, Product Development, Ethics, Promotions

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

United Airlines Causes Outrage over Passenger Removal

April 11, 2017

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On Monday morning, people across the world woke up to find a disturbing video circulating in their social media feeds. The clip showed two men forcibly grabbing a passenger out of his seat on a United Airlines flight and then dragging his body down the aisle. Blood ran down the victim’s face and fellow passengers screamed in horror. Soon the video went viral as millions of social media users directed their outrage towards United for allowing this brutal incident to Continue reading →

Customer Service, Transportation, Air Travel, Crisis management, Ethics, United Airlines, Word of Mouth

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

The Bitter Backlash Against Mast Brothers’ Chocolate

February 3, 2016

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For almost a decade, the Brooklyn chocolate company Mast Brothers seemed to embody the New York borough’s newfound artisanal spirit. Touting their product as handcrafted “bean-to-bar” chocolate, founders Rick and Michael Mast took center stage in marketing campaigns that celebrated their candy’s quality and authenticity. Dressed in antiquated suits and sporting long Civil War-era beards, the pair soon became just as famous for their appearance as their $9 candy bars. But this meticulously crafted image may have been spoiled for Continue reading →

Branding, Marketing, Candy, Ethics, New York, Food, Mast Brothers, Brooklyn, Crisis management, Product Development

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion