This Week – Stink bugs, and Gillette vs Napa videos
Stink bug infestation delays new car shipments
The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug is causing havoc with the Australian motor vehicle industry. Tens of thousands of vehicle imports have been delayed due to quarantine issues caused by the discovery of the insect infestation in recent shipments.
Volkswagen have claimed that three of their new car shipments have been turned around causing delays on the delivery of 1,800 vehicles. At the same time the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries states that many other vehicle brands have been affected due to the insects.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, the stink bug is an “exotic pest that could cause major damage to agricultural crops, nursery stock and ornamental plants”.
This issue is not new with shipments from the US and Europe being delayed over the past three years due to the same insect. The infestations needs to be treated with both chemical fumigation and heat treatments before unloading.
The brands impacted are Kia, Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen, Peugeot Citroen and Nissan.
The fact that the infestation is likely caused by third parties whose consignments are loaded on the same ships adds further complexity to the issue which must be costing the industry significantly through delays and loss of customer sentiment. It has been reported one vessel has incurred over A$250,000 in direct costs after being ordered to leave Australia due to the discovery of the bugs.
As this appears to be an ongoing issue and one that involves a range of vehicle brand importers, a whole-of-industry approach to managing the crisis is likely required. This will ensure a better coordinated response and the ability to leverage greater influence for all involved.
Market segmentation – from Gillette’s ‘toxic masculinity’ to Dylan Napa’s sex tapes
Gillette’s polarising ‘toxic masculinity’ advertisement has been applauded from some sectors of society and lambasted by others. Gillette, whose video has now been viewed some 24 million times on YouTube, claims that it is ‘challenging men to do more … to say the right thing, to act the right way’.
From one side, the campaign is being praised for tackling masculine stereotypes. The other side are saying that Gillette is capitalising on the # MeToo movement and practising “leftist” politics – with calls for the brand to be boycotted.
In complete contrast, at around the same time, a third sex tape involving Bulldogs player Dylan Napa has been circulated on social media. It is believed the videos are part of a closed social media group involving as many as 25 other players. While the NRL integrity unit has been informed, there appears greater focus from both the NRL and Napa’s lawyer on stopping the release of additional videos rather than reprimanding those involved or offering any kind of apology (from anyone).
Is this poor handling of the incident or has the NRL correctly identified the sentiment of the demographic most interested in football? Supporting the later, most comments attached to online media articles reporting the issue support Napa, many excusing him by saying, ‘boys will be boys’ and similar sentiments. Even sports media stories subtly make out Napa may be a victim of revenge porn.
Alternatively, was Gillette’s decision to hire a feminist director to produce their commercial a ploy to broaden their brand exposure through the controversy that the ad was bound to generate?
These two contrasting incidents show how important it is to accurately understand your stakeholders when making strategic decisions. Market segments of society with interest in the # MeToo movement and tackling masculine stereotypes are obviously not the same as those with interest in footballers and their off-field lurid antics.
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