In 2010, more or less 20,000 barrels of oil being shipped south by the Enbridge spilled into Michigan's Talmadge Creek, polluting wetlands around Battle Creek and the in close proximity county seat of Marshall, as well as an extention of the Kalamazoo River. The timing of the event could not have been worse. The pipeline was carrying contentious tar sands oil at a time when Enbridge and its own challengers were seeking to considerably expand their pipeline networks across North America.
Moreover, the pipeline failure arrived amid a period of heightened public intolerance toward oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico, on the heels of the considerably bigger oil spill of BP. As a result, Enbridge confronted huge public relations (PR) and regulatory challenges. Enbridge's reputation was clearly at risk since the company had marketed itself as a true believer in corporate social responsibility, which had raised the positions when dealing with the industrial injury. He needed to prove to American citizens - and to business regulators, market watchers, company investors and Enbridge workers - that his company deserved to be judged on its own merits, not as a Canadian variant of BP. He needed to illustrate that Enbridge was run by people who not only desired to make amends but could be trusted to do this to fulfill this challenge.
PUBLICATION DATE: October 24, 2012 PRODUCT #: W12279-PDF-ENG
This is just an excerpt. This case is about LEADERSHIP & MANAGING PEOPLE
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