INFS5730 - Social Media Analytics in Practice

INFS5730 - Social Media Analytics in Practice

o Boeing 737 Max crisis involving the grounding of fleets and safety scrutiny following fatal crashes attributed to software defects.

In a groundbreaking revelation that shook the automotive industry, Volkswagen became the subject of criticism for its involvement in the Dieselgate scandal, marking a significant case of misconduct. On September 18, 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the United States announced that Volkswagen had violated the Clean Air Act by installing illegal software, known as a defeat device, in their diesel vehicles. This software enabled the vehicles to pass emissions tests in controlled laboratory settings while emitting pollutants, such as nitrogen oxide, far above regulatory standards in real-world conditions. The environmental impact of the emissions cheating scandal was severe, with millions of vehicles worldwide emitting excessive pollutants.

Volkswagen initiated one of the largest automotive recalls in history to address the affected vehicles, including 2.8 million vehicles in Germany, 1.2 million in the UK, and significant numbers in other countries.

The recall process incurred significant financial losses, leading to a significant drop in Volkswagen's stock price. Additionally, the company faced significant fines and penalties from regulatory authorities in various countries. For instance, in Australia, Volkswagen was fined $ 125,000,000 for making false and misleading representations about compliance with Australian diesel emissions standards. In the United States, the EPA levied fines totalling billions of dollars against Volkswagen for violations of the Clean Air Act. On 21 September 2015 the EPA announced that should the allegations be proven; Volkswagen Group could face fines of up to US$37,500 per vehicle (about US$18 billion in total) for environmental mitigation and clean-emissions infrastructure. Similar fines and penalties were imposed by regulatory agencies in other countries where Volkswagen vehicles were sold. On 29 March 2016,

Volkswagen was additionally sued by the United States Federal Trade Commissionforfalse advertisingdue to fraudulent claims made by the company in its promotion of the affected models, which touted the "environmental and economic advantages" of diesel engines and contained claims of low emissions output. In April 2017, a US federal judge ordered Volkswagen to pay a $2.8 billion criminal fine for "rigging diesel-powered vehicles to cheat on government emissions tests.

The scandal had far-reaching consequences, highlighting the importance of corporate responsibility and ethical conduct in the automotive industry.

The Boeing 737 MAX Crisis refers to a series of events surrounding the Boeing 737 Max aircraft, culminating in the grounding of the entire fleet worldwide. The crisis stemmed from two fatal crashes— Lion Air Flight 610 on 29th of October 2018, and EthiopianAirlines Flight 302 on 10th of March 2019— both involving the Boeing 737 Max aircraft. Investigations revealed that a flaw in the aircraft's Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), designed to prevent stalls, played a role in both accidents. This prompted safety concerns and scrutiny over Boeing's certification process, software development, and pilot training. In November 2018, after the Lion Air accident, Boeing instructed pilots to take corrective action in case of a malfunction, when the airplane would enter a series of automated nosedives. Boeing avoided revealing MCAS until pilots requested furthe the FAA privately predicted that MCAS could cause 15 crashes over 30 years. In April 2019, the Ethiopian preliminary report stated that the crew had attempted the recovery procedure, and Boeing confirmed that MCAS had activated in both accidents.

The following are the requirements for the Team Assignment. Please read these requirements carefully before you commence your assignment and then again when you have completed your assignment to ensure that it meets the requirements.

In a hypothetical scenario, your team is approached by Boeing to analyse their current social media strategy, compare it with the current social media strategy implemented by Volkswagen, and suggest a set of actionable recommendations for improvement based on the lessons learned from both companies’ strategies. Overall, your client Boeing seeks your help to design a new effective social media strategy to recover from the damage caused by the 737 Max aircraft's product safety failure, highlighting the serious repercussions of compromised engineering and oversight, regain their customers’ trust and boost their customer’s positive engagement on Twitter.

Typically, creative content would engage customers through "posting more appealing, interactive, and vivid content that captures and holds consumers'attention." (Dhaoui & Webster, 2021). But in a situation of brand crisis, brand responsiveness on social media is crucial (Schultz, Utz, & Goritz, 2011). A significant appeal of social media during brand crisis is its cost effectiveness as conduit for displaying content that reflects brand voice, providing clarity about the situation and resonating with the audience. Social media is also a fast channel to reach the wide public before a negativity spiral lead to an online firestorm.