An Ethical and Corporate Social Responsibility

TOYOTA RECALL

An Ethical and Corporate Social Responsibility

Management 505

Spring 2013

We know that Toyota was so successful in the global market especially when Toyota replaced General Motors’ 77 years dominant position as the largest automaker in the world in 2008 (Johnson, 2010). However, the first issue was in 2009 when NHTSA stated that the recall was due to the risk that unsecured “all weather” type floor mats could move forward and trap the gas pedal that led to four dead in two car accident. Second recall was in 2010, this time in response to reports of accelerator pedals sticking in cars without floor mats even though Toyota installed the brake overdrive system. Another recall in the same year was about the braking system/software on Prius. Three of fourteen reports claimed that brake problems had led to the car crashing, with one accident in July 2009 occurring when a Prius crashed head on into another car injuring two people (Ramsey, Mike, 2011). What did Toyota do in responding to society in term of ethics and corporate responsibility? 1-Toyota’s over-rapid growth, impropriate management in supply chain as well as insufficient crisis management, result in these quality issues in such a short amount of time. The quality issues of Toyota were then highlighted. According to Connor (2010), the desire of Toyota to replace General Motors as the No.1 automaker in the world has pushed this organization to have a relative ignorance on its products’ quality. 2-Toyota blamed the problem on incompatible floor mat, internal conflict, didn’t apologize to the public, and denied National Highway Transportation Authority (NHTSA) allegation about accelerating pedal. 3-Toyota was slow in responding to the public and denied the quality problem until the pressure from media and governments.

Toyota was growing too fast that it ignored the quality (Connor, 2010). It knew it would be a problem later but still preceded this wrongful practice. It hid the safety...