Jennifer Fiedler – Chapter One : Case Study Questions

Bausch & Lomb
1. When a consumer product is thought to cause harm, it should be recalled and tested immediately. Lack of consumer confidence in a company’s integrity can cause irreparable damage.
2. Zarrella should have recalled the product as soon as the complaints were found and investigated the complaints further before dismissing them.

Martha Stewart
1. I believe the basis of Martha’s reputation was her seemingly innocent, “homemaker” TV personality. I’m assuming people thought she was a good person, honest and ethical. I am not a fan or within her target market, so I have no first hand experience or comments regarding her personality, especially before this controversy.
2. The stock prices of MSO declined due to decline in her reputation because the public lost confidence in her has an honest and ethical person.
3. I would assume that Martha’s target market is “homemakers”.
4. Being unfamiliar with her brand, especially prior to this controversy, I’m assuming quality and trust were associated with her brand in the past. These qualities were would be affected by a public controversy and accusations of unethical behavior. In order to find this out for sure, I would think you could search the internet for commentary regarding Stewart during the time the controversy was on-going.

Where were the Accountants?
1. Not all accounts or companies are honest and ethical. It is up to each individual person