StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill It would not only be arrogant but also foolish to attempt to single out one item as the root cause of the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill disaster. Firstly, there are four parties who are arguably blameworthy for this catastrophe…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER93.5% of users find it useful
BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill"

Download file to see previous pages

Secondly, there is the complex management structure at the site as BP, Halliburton and Transocean never seemed to be fully in synch with each other (Roberto 10-12). Thirdly, there is BP’s own internal complexity. On the basis of the case it could be argued that BP and the other parties involved exploited this complexity to downplay business ethics. With business ethics out of the way, BP continued to make a series of bad decisions that have eventually led to this disaster. In general, there are two kinds of complexity: an inevitable or naturally occurring one and a self-generated or unnecessary one.

With the former one has to come to terms with, while the latter needs to be addressed. This disaster could have been avoided if all four parties had tackled the self-generated complexity. However, as we believe, they did not do so because they chose not to take into account the possible effects of their decisions on other stakeholders. They were only concerned with their bottom lines. Proof for this is shown in Exhibit 3. The exhibit highlights nine crucial decisions regarding the Macondo that were made with the view of saving time and lowering cost at the expense of more utilitarian alternatives (Roberto 19).

Business ethics includes principles and values used to conduct the activities of an organization and manage the workforce. Business ethics raise the question of decisions to be made when one faces moral or ethical problems. One of the theories often used to explain business ethics is the principle of utilitarianism. According to utilitarianism, one’s obligation or duty in any situation is to perform the action that will result in the greatest possible balance of good over evil. Utilitarianism calls for considering the interests of everyone before taking a decision.

Decisions by BP – as when the company dismissed Schlumberger personnel before they could perform cement testing, and other decisions shown in Exhibit 3 – were clearly taken with only the interests of the company in sight. This question of ethics and utilitarian principle seems to bedevil BP more than the other parties. One could argue that the oil rig operator and Halliburton chose to lower their standards or cede to BP’s demands even where they had doubts because they cared more about their paychecks than the possible cost of the outcome in case of an incident.

In a way, these providers opted for a higher-risk operation in order to retain BP as a client regardless of having misgivings. BP, though, seems to have had a history of repeat disasters, with its management doing little to prevent them from occurring. For example, BP’s failure to correct sufficiently the problems at its Texas City refinery even after receiving recommendations from the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration demonstrates disregard for business ethics (Roberto 7).

Lastly, it is also evident that BP’s leadership lacked both tact and sensitivity, two critical attributes for a leader who believes and practices the principles of utilitarianism. Senior leadership has a lot of bearing on the attitude, behavior and manners adopted by the rest of the staff. Tony Hayward’s decision to go yachting with his son at the height of the crisis and to issue a late and half-hearted apology avows whose interests he considers more important. The staff looks up to the leaders and mimics them.

Company men are especially vulnerable to this because they are more engrained into the

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/business/1454664-final-case
(BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words)
https://studentshare.org/business/1454664-final-case.
“BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/business/1454664-final-case.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF BP and the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

BP Oil Marketing Plan

The oil spill went on to flow for a total of three months in the gulf of mexico.... The Deep Water was built in 2001, and was managed by BP in the gulf of mexico.... Managing People Case: British Petroleum KCB number: XXXXXXXXX XXXXXXX 28 – February – 2011 Number of Words: 2798 (Excluding Bibliography) Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Weaknesses 6 Bibliography 13 Introduction One of the biggest disasters of the year 2010 was the oil spill of British Petroleum – ‘Deep Water Horizon'....
11 Pages (2750 words) Assignment

The groups that were affected by the BP Oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico

hellip; The groups that were affected by the BP Oil spill disaster in the gulf of mexico It has impacted all walks of life, has prompted thought provoking questions in the mind of concerned as well as unconcerned parties.... With the oil spill came the disastrous damage that the gulf of mexico's natural habitat had to face as the slick oil destroyed marine life.... As the oil slick reached the shores engulfing the gulf of mexico, tourism was hit....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

The BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico

This paper ''The BP Oil Spill in the gulf of mexico'' tells that Technology has been affecting our lives and speeding them up for quite a few decades since the industrial revolution.... A few years ago, it executed one of the names of its large projects 'Deepwater Horizon', on the gulf of mexico (Miller, et.... In particular, this paper includes discussion and evaluation of different aspects of BP oil spill to identify ethical issues related to it and lessons that can come from it....
7 Pages (1750 words) Research Paper

THE BP OIL SPILL IN MEXICAN GULF 2010

The case The case study chosen, in this context is about BP oil spill in the Mexican Gulf in 2010.... The major concept of this work is crisis management, and will employ a special focus on the BP oil company, and the oil spillage crisis of 2010.... This was the worst marine accident in the oil industry, which put the reputation of the company at stake.... The crisis that bp found itself in was a great test to the company's reputation, which has taken many years to build....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Business Continuity Management

However, they finally managed to stop the spillage, the gulf of mexico oil spill was the best lesson to the most of the oil companies in the world, especially the BP.... After Task On 20April an explosion happened on the Deep-water Horizon rig in the gulf of mexico (Hiles 565).... Two days later, they had managed to stop oil flow from one of the three leaking points on the riser in the gulf of mexico and the spoiled oil well.... After president, Obama… He said that the company would take responsibility for the spill, pay all genuine rights, and be responsible for the clean-up cost (Jennings 365)....
1 Pages (250 words) Essay

The BP Oil Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico

After the gulf of mexico oil spill, both the American government and the company started their investigations to establish what exactly led to the disaster.... Apart from killing more than ten people, the oil spill caused a lot of harm to the sea animals, fishing, and tourism industries.... Some of the organizations given the authority by the American government to carry out investigations included National Academy of Engineering, Mineral Management Service, and the National oil spill Commission (Slorach, Embley, Goodchild & Shephard, 2013, p....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Developing a Critical View of the Leadership and Coaching Literature

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the organization crisis and evaluate the critical role of management in the British Petroleum oil spill at gulf of mexico.... The oil spill in deep water over the ocean and also the shores have also had a critical impact on the ecology of the region and also the environment in general (Corkindale, 2011).... The post spill initiative like burning of oil and water mixtures and leak of hazardous materials might have a tremendous impact on the atmosphere as well....
7 Pages (1750 words) Essay

Utilitarianism and Ethics of Care

… Business Ethics1- What makes the following two ethics theories so attractive?... utilitarianism and ethics of care 

Utilitarianism theory proposes the forms of action in certain circumstances intended to bring about the greatest benefit to the greatest Business Ethics1- What makes the following two ethics theories so attractive?...
10 Pages (2500 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us