The Tylenol Crisis

Paper Summary:

This paper reveals that the cost of the 1982 Tylenol crisis was devastating for Johnson & Johnson, the parent company of Tylenol. The paper relates that the best way to prevent this crisis from occurring in the future is for a company to do exactly what they are supposed to do as per the advice of the Food and Drug Administration. The paper discusses how the reaction to the Tylenol crisis involved several of Peter Grazier's factors of motivation, including the presence of a real purpose and a true challenge. The paper concludes that the continued success of Johnson & Johnson is a result of the strong team management techniques in practice at that corporation.

Outline:
The Case
Group Recommendations
Grazier's Factors of Motivation

From the Paper:

"Chicago, Illinois, was the setting for one of the greatest and most responded to consumer emergencies in the United States. In the fall of 1982, seven people died after taking Extra Strength Tylenol that they had bought over the counter (Science News, 1982). The response was rapid, and Tylenol's parent company, Johnson & Johnson, pulled all Tylenol off the shelves across the country before the eighth death could occur (Ruquet, 2004). An examination of the incident after it was recognized unveiled that someone, still unknown to this day, had tainted the capsules with cyanide."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Edwards, Paul. (1999) "Making a trauma out of a crisis." Marketing Week, 22(22), p. 26. Retrieved through the World Wide Web using SFX Ex Libris Database on October 24, 2006.
• Grazier, Peter (1998) "Teambuilding Inc. Article - Team Motivation." Retreived from the World Wide Web at http://www.teambuildinginc.com/article_teammotivation.htm on October 24, 2006.
• Johnson & Johnson 2005 Annual Report. (March 15, 2006) Retrieved through the World Wide Web from http://www.jnj.com/2005AnnualReport/index.htm?textOnly=false on October 24, 2006.
• Ruquet, Mark E. (November 11, 2004) "An apology would be nice, as a starting point." Science News, 108(43), p. 58. Retrieved through the World Wide Web using FirstSearch Database on October 24, 2006.
• Simola, Sheldene K. (2005) "Organizational crisis management: Overview and opportunities." Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 57(3), pp. 180 - 92. Retrieved through the World Wide Web using Ebscohost on October 24, 2006.

More papers on The Tylenol Crisis:

• Case Study # 101070 : "The Tylenol Crisis"
• Essay # 64654 : "Public Relations and Johnson & Johnson"
• Essay # 57953 : "Public Relations in Action"

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