Does This Milkshake Taste Funny? Quality Control Case Study of Eastern Dairy

After careful consideration, we believe that this case is about ethics and organizational control and quality improvement. George has been directed by Paul to take shortcuts that will contaminate the milkshake mix with maggots; George must decide how to respond to Paul’s order, and the company must develop solutions to prevent future occurrences of similar problems – flaws in components of organizational control systems and ambiguous situations resulting from management’s unclear ethical stance.

While having maggots in milkshake is problematic by itself, the issue reveals Eastern Dairy’s deeper concerns. The company is rife with symptoms of inadequate control. For example, the night shift frequently experiences idle facilities or personnel when employees shut down production to engage in horseplay and storytelling. In addition, the same shift demonstrates evidence of waste and inefficiency, as the crew regularly loses many gallons of mix per shift.

The immediate problem finds its basis in faulty policies and procedures and questionable organizational culture, as well as poor correlation between objectives and standards. George discovers that the only expectations are to meet production orders and clean the equipment. These policies and procedures are scantily enforced by an informal supervisor, Paul. Organizational culture appears shaky due to the distance between management and employees, as well as the pressure placed upon employees to maintain objectives while possibly sacrificing quality. Also, the company’s emphasis on the objective of completing production orders and cleaning only loosely correlates to standards; standards for the work environment (i.e. production rates per hour, expectations for on-the-job behavior, etc....

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...ll reveal ongoing issues and trouble spots. In addition, the company should consider an increased emphasis on benchmarking, reviewing objectives and standards and revising them, so that goals continue to challenge employees and reduce wasted time and resources. From an ethical standpoint, Eastern Dairy must develop a clear code of ethics to decrease the ambiguity surrounding situations like George’s. In addition, the company ought to conduct ethics training to inform employees of the changes. Not only will this action assist employees in understanding their ethical position in the company, but it will also improve the communication between managers and employees, resulting in an overall boost in company culture.

Works Cited

Cassidy, Carlene M. "Chapter 6, Chapter 16." Management. By Robert Kreitner. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2010. N. pag. Print.