The Marketing Director.
The vice president of marketing for a major brewing company is aware that college students account for a large proportion of beer sales and that people in this age-group form lifelong loyalties to particular brands of beer. The executive is personally uncomfortable with the tasteless gimmicks used by her competitors in the industry to encourage drinking on campuses, including beach parties and beer-drinking contests. She worries about the company’s contribution to underage drinking and alcohol abuse among college students. Should she go along with the competition?
1) Identify the main moral problem of the case. Explain why it is a moral problem as opposed to a legal or economic problem.
The moral problem of the case is that the company’s marketing director does not want to contribute to underage drinking and alcohol abuse among college students.
2) Do your best to put yourself in the shoes of the agent of the case. How would you deal with the issue and the decision? In your response to that question following the five steps of the decision-making methodology. (i) Again, what is the moral issue of the case? (ii) What are the most relevant and important facts? If there are some facts that you would like to know, for which information is not provided in the case, ask questions. What questions would you ask in identifying and exploring these facts? (iii) What would be the grounds or reasons for making your decision? Explain those reasons. Are there any feelings or emotions involved in your decision? What are they? (iv) What would you decide? (v) Reflect on your decision. Do you think this is the right decision? What might change your mind?
3) Lastly, are there any predispositions or assumptions derived from your personal experience, or your cultural or civic background that influence your decision (with artificial case studies this reflection is not easy to evaluate. If you cannot identify any clear, personal dispositions or assumptions at work in this artificial case, just say so and no penalty will apply.)