Tag Archives: ethics

by | Thursday, March 9, 2023 · 8:10 am

How to Apologize in Business

Everyone makes mistakes. Every company makes mistakes. It happens. But what should happen after the mistake? Should apologies be made? How should the apology happen?

It’s not unusual for mistakes to happen inadvertently. This past holiday season Graza, a startup company that produced squeezable bottles of extra-virgin olive oil, made a mistake. It shipped holiday gifts late – and badly packaged – disappointing many customers and turning away prospective new customers.

The company’s chief executive decided to take the apology into his own hands and apologized to every customer who had purchased the products within the previous 60 days and asked for a second chance. He sent a 835-word apology to more than 35,000 customers. He wrote it honestly and didn’t worry about crafting the perfect letter. It came from his heart.

The results were also heart-warming. Within minutes of sending the message, hundreds of customers responded, thanking him for his honesty. Most of the customers also pledged to continue to support Graza and buy its products.

What makes a good apology?

  1. Say you’re sorry for what you did.
  2. Show you understand why it was bad.
  3. You can explain, but don’t make excuses.
  4. Say why it won’t happen again.
  5. And offer to make up for the mistake.

Mistakes happen. Apologies should follow.

How would you apologize?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:  

  1. Discuss what happens when a company makes an error in its marketing or business.
  2. Check out Graza’s website: https://www.graza.co/
  3. Show the Graza apology letter: https://s.wsj.net/public/resources/documents/GrazaApologyEmail.pdf
  4. Divide students into teams. Have each team research a time a company made a public mistake that annoyed its customers.
  5. Another example: Southwest Airlines flight cancellations over the holidays: https://www.npr.org/2023/01/04/1146865858/southwest-airlines-apologizes-and-then-gives-its-customers-frequent-flyer-points
  6. Now have each team craft an apology.
  7. Include the wording, the placement of the apology, and any potential remedies for customers.

Source:  Cohen, B. (12 January 2023). What happened when the olive oil startup apologized. Wall Street Journal.

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by | Thursday, January 5, 2023 · 7:37 am

Forever Ware to Cut Take-out Waste

Take-out containers and cups account for a large percentage of trash in the U.S. And according to the Energy Department, only 5% of plastic waste in the U.S. is recycled. During Covid, even more take-out containers were needed while restaurants were closed for in-person dining. More trash.

Although we would all like to use recyclable containers for our take-out orders, most of the time we don’t have that option. We don’t mean to cause excess trash, but it happens. Perhaps the solution to that problem is to encourage restaurants and cafes to place take-out orders into reusable containers that can be returned and used again, and again, and again.

This is the basis of Forever Wear – to provide recyclable containers to businesses for them to use with their customers. The restaurant is the point of contact and offers the containers to customers for a fully refundable deposit.

It works like this – restaurants and cafes pay a monthly fee to license Forever Ware software that in turn, allows the restaurant to checkout and track stainless steel containers and mugs. Customers pay a refundable fee to use containers that can be returned to the store, where they are then provided with clean, sanitized containers for their next order.

The restaurants benefit by saving thousands of dollars on disposable containers and decreasing landfill trash. The customer benefits from the clean healthy containers while also doing good and lowering their carbon footprint. 

Sign up and do some good for the environment!

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Poll students: How much do they think their takeout food containers contribute to a trash problem?
  2. How would use a different system if it reduced waste?
  3. Show Forever Wear website: https://foreverware.org/
  4. Videos are available at: https://www.youtube.com/@foreverware9208
  5. Discuss organizational buying compared to consumer buying.
  6. Divide students into teams.
  7. Have half of the teams develop a marketing program directed at getting restaurants to sign up for Forever Wear.
  8. Have half of the teams develop a promotional campaign to convince customers to use the containers.
  9. Debrief the exercise.

Source:  Williams, N. (9 November 2022). Putting a lid on takeout waste. Minneapolis Star Tribune.

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by | Wednesday, June 22, 2022 · 2:28 pm

“Shrinkflation” Takes Hold in Product Sizing

The small things matter. Small in this case meaning the quantity in a package. In case you haven’t noticed lately, prices are going up and contents are going down.

If you’re not sure about this, consider the new sizes of common household products such as toothpaste and toilet paper. Example: A Crest toothpaste once contained 4.1 ounces of teeth-whitening product, but now contains 3.8 ounces. Gatorade was 32-ounces, but not it is down to 28 ounces. And (in case you are counting sheets) a roll of Cottonelle toilet paper has shrunk to 312 sheets, compared to its former count of 340 sheets.

Meal portions at restaurants have also been impacted. At Subway restaurants, the chicken wraps and sandwiches have less meat now. Domino’s Pizza reduced the order size of boneless wings to 8 pieces from the usual 10 pieces. Burger King is also downsizing its nugget meals from 10 to 8 pieces. What is going on?

At first glance none of this seems too alarming, but this movement is called “shrinkflation” and tends to not retreat once implemented. Shrinkflation is when manufacturers cut down on the product size or volume in a package, rather than raising the price on the customary size. This happens during times of increasing raw materials and supply chain cost increases. It’s not illegal, but it does seem a little sneaky. And, once the new sizes and prices have been accepted, new standards are in place for consumers and their wallets.

Are your foods shrinking?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Poll students: What have they observed in their purchases? Are the sizes or prices the same?
  2. Show video about shrinkflation: https://youtu.be/q13_06F4_HI
  3. Discuss why manufacturers are making these changes. What are the reasons?
  4. How is shrinkflation accounted for in pricing?
  5. Discuss various pricing models: demand-oriented, cost-oriented, profit-oriented, and competition-oriented.
  6. Which pricing model is being used with shrinkflation?
  7. Offer an outside assignment for teams of students. Have them visit a local store and examine products that illustrate shrinkflation.

Sources:  Patton, L. (12 May 2022). Fewer nuggets, smaller salads: Shr9inkflation hits U.S. Restaurant Diners. Bloomberg.; Skores, A. (16 May 2022). Inflation up, product size down. Dallas Morning News.; other news sources.

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