Aaron Feuerstein Case Study

When Malden Hills was burned down in 1995, Aaron Feuerstein, the then-CEO, made a bold decision that was against most conventional managerial rules. He decided to maintain the employees’ payments while they waited for the factory to be rebuilt. This was a decision that he considered ethical but came at an extra cost to himself and the organization.

Do you think Feuerstein was a noble leader or very risky decision maker who got lucky, based on what you have learned about ethics, decision making, and analyzing stakeholders and issues? Be sure to research what happened to Malden Mills since 1995, and consider the position of all stakeholders in your analysis.

In making this decision, Feuerstein was ethical. He considered the value of the employees to be an important factor to protect. By choosing to pay the employees even though they were not working at the time, Feuerstein demonstrated ethical behavior on a personal level. Personal ethics are values and principles that a person chooses to follow (Weiss, 2014). His decision was based on his personal beliefs that it was his responsibility to value the company’s employees. The fact that his decision led to negative consequences for the company does not make his decision any less ethical. Good ethics is a factor that contributes to success but is not a guarantee for success. Employees’ good treatment is undoubtedly a factor that contributes to business success. It is important to take a chance at good ethics, even though some of the stakeholders may be negatively affected. According to utilitarian ethics, a moral decision is one that has the most utility (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2015). At the time, Feuerstein’s decision had the most utility.

Do you see any CEOs today who are prepared to do the same thing if faced with a similar crisis? If you do not see anyone in today’s business world modeling Feuerstein, state why.

It is unlikely that CEOs today would make the same decision as Feuerstein after the Malden Hills fire. Businesses today have demonstrated their concern for making profits rather than the affairs of their employees. There have been cases such as Amazon overworking its employees, numerous companies choosing to lay off employees to maintain high profits, and other cases that demonstrate a higher value placed on financial value rather than the workforce. If the same thing that happened to Malden Hills were to happen today, most CEOs would focus on rebuilding their company with less concern for the workers.

References

Ferrell, O. C., & Fraedrich, J. (2015). Business ethics: Ethical decision making & cases. Nelson Education.

Weiss, J. W. (2014). Business ethics: A stakeholder and issues management approach. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

We’ll write everything from scratch

Discussion u3d2 Aaron Feuerstein Case Study

Figure 1.3 on page 46 of your text describes the actions of Aaron Feuerstein after his company, Malden Mills, burned down on December 11, 1995. Some might say his initial response to employees was an emotional reaction and not prudent. Others may say he was an inspired leader with uncompromising moral integrity.

Aaron Feuerstein Case Study

In your post, answer the following:

• Do you think Feuerstein was a noble leader or very risky decision maker who got lucky, based on what you have learned about ethics, decision making, and analyzing stakeholders and issues? Be sure to research what happened to Malden Mills since 1995, and consider the position of all stakeholders in your analysis.
• Do you see any CEOs today who are prepared to do the same thing if faced with a similar crisis? If you do not see anyone in today’s business world modeling Feuerstein, state why.

Refer to the Discussion Participation Scoring Guide for posting expectations.

Discussion Participation Scoring Guide