1) Recalling all Tylenol bottles nation wide
This was the decision that James Burke implemented in order to handle the Tylenol poisonings crisis. This was by far the most effective decision out of all possible choices. Although J&J suffered for the first year after the recall they were able to bounce back and regain 28% market share. Johnson & Johnson did an effective job by immediately recalling all tylenol bottles and informing the public about the incident.
Pros
- Eliminating the risk of another death
- Market share returned to 28% after the first year
- Reassured safety in the eyes of the consumer
- Customer loyalty regained
- Development of a new, safer bottle
Cons
- The removal and destruction of 31 million Tylenol bottles
- Market share decrease by 28% for the first year
- 200 million spent in removal and bottle development costs
2) Recalling Tylenol only in the Midwest
James E Burke felt that there was no other decision he could have made and that eliminating the Tylenol products only in the Mid-West (where the fatalities took place) was not an option. If he did however only recall the products in the Mid-West there would be both pros cons to this decision. It would have saved Johnson and Johnson millions of dollars in the recall process and would have been less work for employees. However, customer loyalty would decrease and consumers not located in the Mid-West would be reluctant to purchase any Tylenol product. Inevitably J&J would not have been able to recover from this crisis as well as they did if they only recalled the products in the Mid-West.
Pros
- Less of an expense for the company
- Less work from employees and drug store owners
- Millions of dollars saved
Cons
- Customer willingness to buy Tylenol products
- Risk of another customer fatality
- Loss of overall brand loyalty and trust
- Decrease of Tylenol sales in the future
- Risk of lawsuit
3) Giving recalled products to a third world country
If Johnson & Johnson decided to give the remainder of the Tylenol products to a third world country in need there would be a number of pros and cons to this scenario. It would benefit Johnson & Johnson in not having to destroy millions of products. The products would not go to waste and J&J would have saved a large sum of money in not having to destroy many products that may not have been tampered with.
Pros
- Not having to waste millions of Tylenol products
- Saving money by selling the products to a third world country
- Giving a less fortunate country medicine they desperately need
Cons
- Threat of an individual dying from tampered product
- Other countries viewing this as unethical and unsafe
- Consumers may view the Johnson & Johnson brand negatively
4) No Recall of Tylenol products
With crisis management a company needs to evaluate every possible scenario when dealing with a dilemma. In order to make the best decision all scenarios need to be considered. Out of all the possible choices and decisions, this by far would have been the most ineffective. I believe that Tylenol would not exist today if J&J decided to not recall the products what so ever.
Pros
-No hassle for company to recall products
Cons
- Risk of multiple more deaths to individuals
- Public outrage
- Multiple lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson
- Complete loss of brand trust and loyalty
- Millions of dollars lost in future Tylenol sales
- Chance of J&J going bankrupt
This was the decision that James Burke implemented in order to handle the Tylenol poisonings crisis. This was by far the most effective decision out of all possible choices. Although J&J suffered for the first year after the recall they were able to bounce back and regain 28% market share. Johnson & Johnson did an effective job by immediately recalling all tylenol bottles and informing the public about the incident.
Pros
- Eliminating the risk of another death
- Market share returned to 28% after the first year
- Reassured safety in the eyes of the consumer
- Customer loyalty regained
- Development of a new, safer bottle
Cons
- The removal and destruction of 31 million Tylenol bottles
- Market share decrease by 28% for the first year
- 200 million spent in removal and bottle development costs
2) Recalling Tylenol only in the Midwest
James E Burke felt that there was no other decision he could have made and that eliminating the Tylenol products only in the Mid-West (where the fatalities took place) was not an option. If he did however only recall the products in the Mid-West there would be both pros cons to this decision. It would have saved Johnson and Johnson millions of dollars in the recall process and would have been less work for employees. However, customer loyalty would decrease and consumers not located in the Mid-West would be reluctant to purchase any Tylenol product. Inevitably J&J would not have been able to recover from this crisis as well as they did if they only recalled the products in the Mid-West.
Pros
- Less of an expense for the company
- Less work from employees and drug store owners
- Millions of dollars saved
Cons
- Customer willingness to buy Tylenol products
- Risk of another customer fatality
- Loss of overall brand loyalty and trust
- Decrease of Tylenol sales in the future
- Risk of lawsuit
3) Giving recalled products to a third world country
If Johnson & Johnson decided to give the remainder of the Tylenol products to a third world country in need there would be a number of pros and cons to this scenario. It would benefit Johnson & Johnson in not having to destroy millions of products. The products would not go to waste and J&J would have saved a large sum of money in not having to destroy many products that may not have been tampered with.
Pros
- Not having to waste millions of Tylenol products
- Saving money by selling the products to a third world country
- Giving a less fortunate country medicine they desperately need
Cons
- Threat of an individual dying from tampered product
- Other countries viewing this as unethical and unsafe
- Consumers may view the Johnson & Johnson brand negatively
4) No Recall of Tylenol products
With crisis management a company needs to evaluate every possible scenario when dealing with a dilemma. In order to make the best decision all scenarios need to be considered. Out of all the possible choices and decisions, this by far would have been the most ineffective. I believe that Tylenol would not exist today if J&J decided to not recall the products what so ever.
Pros
-No hassle for company to recall products
Cons
- Risk of multiple more deaths to individuals
- Public outrage
- Multiple lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson
- Complete loss of brand trust and loyalty
- Millions of dollars lost in future Tylenol sales
- Chance of J&J going bankrupt