University of Colorado Boulder Accusations of Mislabeling Products Memo

Introduction

Throughout this course, you as a communication researcher or practitioner will critically examine one or more moral problems that surface while working on a project in an organization.  If you already have professional experience in communication, draw from the experience as much as possible while completing your assignment.  The problem may be something that you currently face or that you have faced in the past.  If you have no communication experience, think of your dream job as a communication professional.  The problem could be something that you have heard others discuss or that you anticipate facing in the future.

Moral problems in any workplace can vary substantially, so the kind of moral problems on which your memo should focus requires some clarification.  Your moral problems must relate to a communication research study or communication project.  For example, they cannot focus on how an organization would address an employee’s experience with sexual harassment from a supervisor, but they could focus on how the organization would communicate with other employees if they were to find out about the incident and subsequently demand that senior management inform them about how the organization will respond.  As another example, your moral problems could not relate to how an organization would respond to an employee discovered to have committed fraud, but it could focus on how the organization would communicate to the press, which has found out about the incident.  Before you start your memo, you will have an opportunity to share with your instructor what kind of moral problem or problems you want to address, so that your instructor can provide feedback in case the scenario needs adjusting before you begin the memo.

Share your work’s key insights through a memo that you will build in four stages throughout the semester.  Use not an academic but a business style.

Directions

Below is detail about this stage.

Include the following in your assignment: (a) heading, (b) body, and (c) references.

Limit this stage of your memo to a maximum of 2 pages with 1-inch margins, 12-point serif font, and double-spacing.

Create your memo’s heading, which identifies who you want to read the memo.  In particular: 

At the top of your paper, write the name of the organization in which the moral problem takes place.  It will serve as your letterhead.

Provide the date when you submit the memo to your instructor.  (The date should change for each subsequent stage of your memo.)

In the “TO” line, (a) name the decisionmaker in your organization who plausibly will read the memo to understand the moral problem and make the ultimate decision about whether to enact your recommendations on how to solve the moral problem and (b) list his/her title.  This person is likely to be a senior manager.  The number of individuals can be one only, unless the position is shared by two people (e.g., co-directors).

In the “FR” line, provide your (a) name, (b) title, and (c) communication project title.  If you have no communication experience, search for a job position that you dream of having through portals such as Indeed.

In the “RE” line, give a brief name for the moral problem, ensuring it explicitly connects with the rest of your memo.

1. Start the body of your memo by stating the purpose of the memo in the context of your communication project.  Also write one or two sentences that summarize the project, giving just enough detail to help the reader understand the remainder of the memo.

Next insert the section title “The Challenge.”

1. Use the present tense for this section.

Then use prose to answer the questions below.  Do not merely restate the questions and provide their answers.  Instead, ensure that the body has a narrative flow. 

1. What does the organization need to decide?  Ensure the decision relates to communication research or practice.

What are the one or more moral problems?

1. How are different stakeholders affected?  If you identify more than 3 stakeholders, limit your analysis to the 3 most important stakeholders.

For each stakeholder, could this individual or group of people voluntarily choose whether to be affected?

1. Throughout this section, provide sufficient support for your statements with (a) facts and (b) values from organizational overviews (e.g., an “About Us” page on a website) or codes of conduct (e.g., “Code of Ethics,” “Principles of Professional Practice,” or “Responsible Code of Conduct”) and professional codes of conduct.

When drawing from sources, provide citations in the body and a “References” appendix in accordance with APA.

1. Upload your assignment here by the deadline.

I chose to analyze Nestle, the world’s leading drinks and food company. As such, it partakes in producing different brands of edible products for both children and adults. However, for years, several stakeholders, such as UNICEF, have called out Nestle for mislabeling their products and not taking precautionary measures to ensure their products do not contain harmful ingredients. They failed to meet their published commitments to remove contradictory nutritional advice from their brands. Nestle has also been linked to indirect participation in child trafficking and labor. It is also negatively implicated in the water crisis facing residents of Michigan.

1. The memo you choose:

I chose to analyze Nestle, the world’s leading drinks and food company. As such, it partakes in producing different brands of edible products for both children and adults. However, for years, several stakeholders, such as UNICEF, have called out Nestle for mislabeling their products and not taking precautionary measures to ensure their products do not contain harmful ingredients. They failed to meet their published commitments to remove contradictory nutritional advice from their brands. Nestle has also been linked to indirect participation in child trafficking and labor. It is also negatively implicated in the water crisis facing residents of Michigan.