Hurricane Katrina Analysis Case Study PDF

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A weekly case study that counts towards the final grade for BUS300s at CSUMB. ...

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xxxxxxx BUS 300s - 03 Professor Glenn February 7th, 2019

Hurricane Katrina Analysis Step 1. 1. Stakeholder groups that were harmed and how they were harmed: a. Of course the citizens of New Orleans, regardless of social or economic situation. Almost 2000 people lost their lives during the hurricane, homes and even entire neighbourhoods were completely destroyed. The total damage cost after Katrina was almost 125 billion. b. Business owners that lost their business and everyone else that lost their source of income due the hurricane. 2. Stakeholder groups that were benefited and how they were benefited. a. It is sad to read that some people saw an opportunity to earn money or improve their business on the behalf of the victims of the hurricane, but examples of groups that were benefited are motel/hotel owners that raised prices in order to increase profit. 3. Stakeholder groups that were denied rights, what those rights were and how their rights were denied: a. Citizens of New Orleans that could not afford to leave the city during the evacuation. It should be the government’s responsibility to evacuate everyone, regardless of their social or economical situation. b. Everyone that had to quit their job due to ethical dilemmas they were faced with. Example from our textbook (The Ethics of Management , page 15), where a clerk who worked for a local motel quit her job due to ethical dilemmas she faced when her boss wanted her to raise the price after the hurricane. 4. Stakeholder groups that were able to exercise their rights and what those rights were,

a. Many of the local hotel/motel owners that exercised their power for their own winning or good. b. The wealthier part of the population that could afford to evacuate the city and pay motel/hotel prices even though they were higher than normal. 5. Stakeholder groups that were economically damaged and how they were economically damaged: a. Everyone that lost their home, company and other valuable assets. Damages, replacements, or irreplaceable assets can be included in this group. b. The country and government as a whole. Hurricane Katrina was the costliest storm in the history of the United States. As I mentioned above, The total cost after Katrina was almost 125 billion. 6. Stakeholder groups that were economically benefited and how they were economically Benefited: a. Of course, the hotel/motel owners that raised the prices for their own benefits. b. All the inland grocery stores, drug stores, etc that could offer anything of value to people that evacuated New Orleans. 7. Stakeholder groups that were legally impacted and what legal requirements applied to the situation: a. A lot of hotel/motel employees were forced to follow higher directives and break the law and face ethical dilemmas. b. Rescue workers that had to choose who should be saved due to legal requirements.

Q1. The ethical dilemma: the ethical dilemma (what they risk vs. what they gain) of the one of the primary decision makers: I t is in my opinion hard to argue why someone should try to raise hotel/motel prices in order to maximize profit after a catastrophe like this. You have to be very greedy to do something like that. According to our textbook (The Ethics of Management) is raising prices during a time of emergence against the law. You are playing with people's lives.

Just a side note: You would probably gain customers in the long run if your hotel/motel became known for lower prices during hurricanes and other catastrophes .

Q2: What  you would do and why:  I would probably try to enforce a law that stated that you can be punished if you raise prices with purpose during situations like this. It should not be up to the upper management or owners to set prices during circumstances like this. A possible punishment for breaking this law would be to repay the victims and also pay them for additional damage.

Step 2. I chose Holiday Inn Hotels 1. Balancing personal, social and community needs (People): Holiday Inn is doing a great

job when it comes to social and community needs. Holiday Inn is working daily to improve human rights worldwide. For example, they are educating their employees to recognize and solve issues like modern slavery. “Modern slavery is a serious, and often hidden, crime and we recognise that we have an important role to play in combating it” (ihgplc.com, 2019). 2. Ethical behavior (Ethics): Holiday Inn hotels are committed to complying with the laws and regulations of all the countries and jurisdictions in which they operate. Holiday Inn has very strict policies, processes and requirements that also creates a responsible business. “It is extremely important that our people feel comfortable reporting ethical concerns. To facilitate this, we have a confidential reporting channel which provides employees with a means to share any ethical concerns they may have. Employees are made aware of this through regular internal communications, as well as through a dedicated website, w  ww.ihgethics.com” (ihgplc.com, 2019). 3. Concern for issues of fairness (Equity): I could not find anything on their website about this certain issue but they refer to their code of conduct when it comes to difficulties that employees might face. 4. Environmental stewardship (Planet): Hotels Inn are using 100 % environmentally friendly products. In 2016, Holiday Inn created and rolled out a Sustainable Seafood Policy, which applies to all Holiday Inn’s hotels globally, and Holiday Inn has also set up

a goal to only source 100% cage-free eggs at all their hotels globally by 2025. According to their website, did Holiday Inn implement a series of programmes designed to reduce our carbon footprint and minimise waste in our hotels and corporate offices. 5. Business value-added (Profit): H  oliday Inn hotels generated approximately 6.3 billion US. dollars in gross revenue in 2018 (statista.com, 2019) and they seem to do the right things because their gross revenue is looking even better and Holiday Inn has also established a Global risk team to help them develop more. 6. Outsider’s view: Holiday Inn social responsibility regarding offering programs to help refugees and fight human and sex trafficking as well as run harvesting and clean up activities is something that other hotels should try to mimic.

Step 3: Since our textbook did not mention any specific hotel brand can I only summarize and analyze Holiday Inn’s actions: Q1) What they are doing well: Holiday Inn is one of few hotels that will welcome you and your pet during a hurricane. During hurricane Katrina, more than 100,000 pets were left behind. Because of the catastrophe with Katrina, Holiday Inn decided to allow pets to enter shelters after Hurricane Harvey hit in 2017.’ Q2) Are they overall CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) focused? Holiday Inn is doing a great job with their Corporate Social Responsibility. Their website is very easily accessible and it is easy to find and read about their CSR actions. As I mentioned above, Holiday Inn hotels are committed to complying with the laws and regulations of all the countries and jurisdictions in which they operate. Q3: Are they a “green” company/industry: Yes Holiday Inn is working very hard to be a “green” company and they are running a handful programs in favor of the environment. Sustainable Seafood programs, reduce carbon footprints are two examples of this.

Q4: Can you respect their leaders? Yes, everything I have read (both internal and external sources) so far has been positive. Holiday Inn is working hard to work against corruption and bribes. To date, more than 30,000 employees have completed Holidays Inn’s online anti-bribery training (www.ihgplc.com, 2019). Q5: what are a couple of things they need to address as a company/industry? ● Keep working with human rights, environmental goals, and of course the rights for their employees. -

Human rights: Keep developing and engage in human rights programs.

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Environmental goals: Property improvement planning (PIP) is another big thing, keep developing their hotels to be more environment friendly. Find ways to be more eco friendly.

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Employee benefits: Many employees are working for minimum wage. Holiday Inn would be a true role model in the industry if they would start to pay their employees more!

Reference Page: Clausing, J. (2018). CITIZEN HOTELIER. (cover story). Travel Weekly , 77( 41), 14–40 Retrieved from: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=132387123&site=bsive Responsible attitudes and ethics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 7, 2019, from https://www.ihgplc.com/responsible-business/our-culture-of-responsible-business/respo Sible-attitudes-and-ethics

Holiday Inn hotels: Gross revenue 2017 | Statistic. (n.d.). Retrieved February 7, 2019, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/223345/holiday-inn-hotels-revenue/

Roskopp, J. (2018, October 10). These hotels will welcome you, your pet during a hurricane. Retrieved February 7, 2019, from https://www.wsls.com/weather/hurricane/these-hotels-will-welcome-you-your-pet-durin -a-hurricane

Hosmer, L. T. (1991). The ethics of management. Pp 15. Homewood, IL: Irwin....