Case Study: The Corporate Blame Game: Firestone Tires and the Ford Explorer

Abstract

This case focuses on ethical decision-making during a corporate crisis. Recounting the Ford Explorer/Firestone tire case of 2001, it places students in the boardrooms of the two companies, corporate partners for close to a century who suddenly found themselves fighting for survival. The case includes extensive background information on which to base a decision, questions for use in preparing the case write-up, and a detailed teaching note to simplify class preparation. In classroom testing, this case generated lively debate and convincingly demonstrated the difficulty of objectively interpreting data when one’s corporate survival is at stake.