Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
A Cola
Crisis In
Belgium
Advanced
Holly Organizational
Benavente Communication
Introduction
On June 14, 1999, the Coca Cola Corporation faced a severe crisis after it was reported
that 200 people in Western Europe had become sick after drinking the company’s products.
In Belgium, Coca Cola was severely criticized for what many saw as a negligent response to the
crisis. This response paper examines how Coca Cola’s organizational culture and pre-existing
is placed on efficiency, predictability, calculability, and control. Coca Cola produces a product
that is predictable (a Coke produced in Congo tastes similar to a Coke in Iceland) and effi-
ciently produced. In the addition, the corporation has gone to great lengths to control costs and
streamline operations.
Ritzer, however, also argues that there is a negative element to this type of organiza-
tional culture. As organizations strive for more rationality, they also become more irrational.
Ritzer argues that as more emphasis is placed on quantitative results (how many Cokes are
sold), less emphasis is placed on quality. Coca Cola, in the late 1990s, exemplifies this irra-
The Crisis
A dysfunctional organizational culture is clearly evident in how Coca Cola handled the
crisis. When the first reports of poisonings emerged, Coca Cola responded by denying that a
problem existed and went as far as to blame those who had fallen ill. The crisis did not abate.
The Belgian government was the first to order the company to recall its product. Other coun-
As time passed, the slow response affected levels of trust among consumers. Many felt
betrayed when the company refused to believe their claims of illness. It wasn’t until 9 days af-
ter reports of sickness had been reported that Coca Cola’s CEO finally flew to Belgium to ad-
2
dress the situation. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.
sponse was one of the harshest. There are several reasons for this. The primary reason was
that in the months prior to the tainted Coke crisis, the Belgian government had been severely
criticized for failing to properly handle a problem poisoned livestock feed. Humiliated by this
scandal, the Belgian government sought to make an example of Coca Cola so as not to be ac-
Other clues to why the Belgian response was harsh can be seen by looking at Geert
Hofteede’s (1984) classification of cultures. Hofstede argues that cultures differ in four pri-
mary areas: Power distance, Individualism, Masculinity and Uncertainty Avoidance. Much can
be learned about a culture by simply by breaking it down using these four categories.
Belgium is characterized by what Hofstede calls a high power distance. In this type of
society, individuals are more likely to look to government (rather an a corporation) to lead a
response to a crisis. Belgium also scores high on the masculinity index. What this means is
that unlike in feminine cultures (where the emphasis is on dialogue) masculine cultures stress
action that is often impulsive. Denmark, Sweden and Norway (which rank high on the femi-
nine index) were slower in recalling and took time to engage in dialogue with Coca Cola.
Belgium also scores high on the avoidance index. This characterizes societies in which
people have a high tendency to feel threatened and uncertain in ambiguous situations. In con-
trast, Norway and Sweden score lower on the avoidance index. This gives insight into why
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be seen that both external and internal culture played an important
role in how the Coca Cola crisis manifested in Belgium. Coca Cola’s dysfunctional organiza-
tional culture, a preexisting crisis with tainted products, and the nature of Belgian all played a
Hofstede, G. (2004). Cultures and Organizations: Software for the Mind. New York: McGraw Hill
Ritzer, G. (2004) The McDonaldization of Society Thousand Oaks, CA, Pine Forge Press.