Chiquita Brands International and its leaders learned a very hard lesson about paying off terrorist groups to secure their employees. Over the past 25 years, no place has been more perilous for businesses than Colombia, a nation that's finally beginning to emerge from the effects of civil war and narcoterrorism. In 2004, Chiquita voluntarily revealed to the U.S. Justice Department that one of its Colombian banana subsidiaries had made protection payments to terrorist groups from 1997 through 2004.
The Justice Department started an investigation, focusing on conduct and the role of Chiquita and a number of its officers in this unlawful activity. To make matters worse, the industry was facing pressure from increasing retailer purchasing power, important changes in consumer tastes and preferences, and Europe's imposition of an "onerous tariff" on companies that sourced bananas from Latin America.
With this in your mind, Chiquita's CEO since 2004, Fernando Aguirre, reflected on the way the business had arrived at this stage, and what had been done to correct the class thus far. He faced major challenges in this dynamic business to the company's competitive position. What would it take to position the business on a favorable trajectory that is competitive? Would this even be possible in the business climate Chiquita and in this sector?
PUBLICATION DATE: November 11, 2010 PRODUCT #: TB0245-HCB-ENG
This is just an excerpt. This case is about GLOBAL BUSINESS
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