← All questionsGS4 · 2022 · Case Studies — Private Sector ·Shoe Company and Defective Consignment (Case)
QUESTION 10
GS4
20 marks

You have done MBA from a reputed institution three years back but could not get campus placement due to COVID-19 generated recession. However, after a lot of persuasion and series of competitive tests including written and interview, you managed to get a job in a leading shoe company. You have aged parents who are dependent and staying with you. You also recently got married after getting this decent job. You were allotted the Inspection Section which is responsible for clearing the final product. In first one year, you learnt your job well and was appreciated for your performance by the management. The company is doing good business for last five years in domestic market and this year it is decided even to export to Europe and Gulf countries. However, one large consignment to Europe was rejected by their Inspecting Team due to certain poor quality and was sent back. The top management ordered that ibid consignment to be cleared for the domestic market. As a part of Inspecting Team, you observed the glaring poor quality and brought to the knowledge of the Team Commander. However, the top management advised all the members of the team to overlook these defects as the management cannot bear such a huge loss. Rest of the team members except you promptly signed and cleared the consignment for domestic market, overlooking glaring defects. You again brought to the knowledge of the Team Commander that such consignment, if cleared even for domestic market, will tarnish the image and reputation of the company and will be counter-productive in the long run. However, you were further advised by the top management that if you do not clear the consignment, the company will not hesitate to terminate your services citing certain innocuous reasons.1) Under the given conditions, what are the options available to you as a member of the Inspecting Team?2) Critically evaluate each of the options listed by you.3) What option would you adopt and why?4) What are the ethical dilemmas being faced by you?5) What can be the consequences of overlooking the observations raised by the Inspecting Team?

WRITE IN
14 min
250 words

What the examiner wants

As a new inspector supporting aged parents and a new family, you are told to clear a defective export consignment for the domestic market or lose your job. Answer all five parts.

Case studyName the stakeholders and the issues, weigh the options, and say what you would do and why.

Demand-wise check

  1. 1Options: sign and clear; refuse and resign; refuse and escalate in writing to the board or ethics committee; suggest alternatives (rework, sell as seconds with disclosure, scrap)≈40 words
  2. 2Evaluation: job security vs consumer safety and honesty; company's long-term reputation≈40 words
  3. 3Choice: refuse to sign, record dissent in writing, propose rework or discounted sale with disclosure, escalate; seek legal advice if terminated≈40 words
  4. 4Dilemmas: livelihood vs integrity, loyalty vs consumer rights, peer pressure≈40 words
  5. 5Consequences of overlooking: consumer harm, legal action under Consumer Protection Act, brand damage, loss of export markets, moral injury to employees≈40 words

Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.

Answer plan

FactsOptionsEvaluationChoiceDilemmasConsequencesConclusion

Where marks usually go

  • Only resigning, without proposing constructive alternatives
  • Not covering consequences (part 5)

Draw this

  • Option table

Value addition

  • LawConsumer Protection Act, 2019 provides product liability for manufacturers of defective goods.Consumer Protection Act, 2019
  • ThinkerKant: treat people as ends, not merely as means — consumers are not just a way to recover losses.Immanuel Kant

Mapped topper copies

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