6. A broader view of the issue
There are common issues which happens in our everyday lives, which somewhat involve the same principles as Ben’s actions.
Having analyzed Ben’s misrepresentation of what he really did, let us look across the table to some allegations of misconduct by people already in an organization.
Superior claiming full credit for what subordinates have done
This scenario, absurd as it sounds, does happen from time to time and is even portrayed in movies since the early days. In Working Girl (1988), for example, the protagonist was a secretary whose big idea was blatantly claimed by her manager. Fortunately, she managed to prove the move was originally hers and so the opportunistic and unethical boss ended up getting fired
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Customers were lured into paying more for the yogurt’s purported nutritional benefits without a doubt that it was pretty much the same as every other kind of yogurt.
(http://www.businessinsider.com/false-advertising-scandals-2011-9?IR=T&op=1 - 14 False Advertising Scandals That Cost Brands Millions)
Blatantly fabricated the "clinically" and "scientifically" endorsed nutritional benefits of the product, Dannon went one step further to hire a famous celebrity, Jamie Lee Curtis, for the supposed digestion-regulator. Apparently, the trick did not last long as it eventually boiled down to the product’s real benefits. No customer is naive enough to fall for the false claim over and over again, thus actions that undermine ethics like misleading claim are never a long-term business solution.
Sometimes, consequences of such a misconduct does not stop at customers’ turning away from the brand or even boycotting. In Dannon’s case, the company faced a class action settlement of up to $45 million in damages in a lawsuit with its deceived customers. The spotlight on Dannon also led to the company being forced to limit its health claims, adhering strictly to factual