Business Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Business Ethics - Essay Example The manager in charge of the project, John Fisher was accused of paying somebody to buy the frozen drinks worth 10000 dollars to help in convincing the Burger king to become a pioneer in frozen Coke promotion that would take place nationally the following year (Lovell, 2012). From this case study, several stakeholders are involved in the malpractice. There is the Burger king franchise that was the organ to help in the testing as a business partner. From their point of view, they felt cheated and moved to court to seek compensation for the loss and expenses incurred. They also were angered that a partnering company used their reputed business name in a malpractice in business. The other stakeholder was the customer that was taking the frozen coke. The customer in this scenario was neither aware of the malpractice nor harmed by the malpractice. The customer however was betrayed by the fact that the biggest beverage company could afford to generate false results to promote a new brand. Though the research was not done to evaluate the drop in the customer loyalty of Coca-Cola then, this angered the customer and made the customer question the trust of other famous products of Coca-Cola (Laufer and Coombs, 2006). The other main stakeholder was Coca-Cola itself. Given the reputation of the company, it was hard for the company to explain the malpractice as well as the firing of employees who attempted to blow the whistle on the company. From the employees’ perspective, the question of ethics in this scenario is whether to quit or to blow the whistle. For the employee, Matthew Whitley, who blew the whistle the dilemma was in either choosing his job or his integrity. In the end when he chose his integrity, he and other employees lost their job. The management of the company had a decision to either preserve their name and fire the then manager, John Fisher or retain the manager and deny the claims of malpractice. In

Marketing research and market evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing research and market evaluation - Essay Example An online focus group is one type of research method, particularly falling under focus groups which makes use of the internet, thus people do not meet physically but are able to exchange ideas and converse through conferencing software (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). In particular, this is how it is done: "A moderator invites prescreened, qualified respondents who represent the target of interest to log on to conferencing software at a pre-arranged time and to take part in an online focus group. Some researchers will offer incentives for participatingbut this raises a number of ethical questions. Discussions generally last one hour to 90 minutes. The moderator guides the discussion using a combination of predetermined questions and unscripted probes. In the best discussions, as with face to face groups, respondents interact with each other as well as the moderator in real time to generate deeper insights about the topic" (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Some consider online focus group as a breakthrough in conducting market research and is found to be an effective way to lead the select groups to a more in-depth discussion about the topic on hand (BioInformatics, LLC ). This is so as both clients and respondent participants can comfortably participate from their own office or home. This then allows for a greater number of participants and extends the geographic scope of possible participants world wide (Insights Online). Online focus group is a relatively new way of conducting market research. It is one of the innovations brought by an increase in the use of technology. The online focus group is seen to be an alternative to the traditional face-to-face focus group done for the same purpose of market research. "Online focus groups are appropriate for consumer research, business to business research and political research. Interacting over the web avoids a significant amount of travel expense. It allows respondents from all over the world to gather, electronically for a more representative sample. Often respondents open up more online than they would in person, which is valuable for sensitive subjects. Like in-person focus groups, online groups are usually limited to 8-10 participants" (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Basically the methodology observed is this: clients are able to observe the focus group while it is in session. They can also communicate with the moderator; therefore can influence the direction to which the discussion leads without necessarily interrupting the session. Since participants type their own responses, there is no room transcription errors are completely avoided. (Insights Online). Online Focus Groups are conducted in the following step-by-step process: 1. Develop screener and discussion guide. 2. Program screener into HTML/CGI format. (if neccessary) 3. Screen/recruit participants for desired qualifications. (if neccessary) 4. Moderate the Online Focus Group session with client observers. 5. Provide transcript. (normally within 24 hours after group session) 6. Provide topline report. (normally within one week after closing survey) 7. Compile final written or oral presentation. Source: Insights Online Some view online focus group as advantageous compared to the more traditional market research methods. In summary, online focus group has the following advantages: Responses are more objective. Respondents participating in online focus