Chipotle’s Response to 2015 Outbreak
By Lonnie Clardy
In 1995 the fast casual restaurant Chipotle Mexican Grill experienced a major organizational challenge when it was struck with five major food contaminations that were investigated by the Center for Disease Control. Two E.coli, two norovirus and a salmonella outbreaks affecting more than ten states. Beginning in July and continuing until December people continued to get sick and at one-point Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) stock had fallen by more than forty percent. By December this was clearly a crisis for the Chipotle company and in handling the court of public opinion they made several mistakes but ultimately their strategy was sound and is helping them to rebound from this food handling crisis.
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Chipotle placed full page ads in sixty-one newspapers across the country where they published an open letter from Chipotle CEO Steve Ells. Ells apologized saying “The fact that anyone has become ill eating at Chipotle is completely unacceptable to me and I am deeply sorry.” (“A Letter from Chipotle Founder Steve Ells,” n.d.). Ells went on to explain that Chipotle would be making safety changes saying “we are committed to becoming known as the leader in food safety, just as we are known for using the very best ingredients in a fast food setting.” (“A Letter from Chipotle Founder Steve Ells,” n.d.). Ells concluded his open letter by thanking loyal customer for standing by Chipotle during this very difficult time. (“A Letter from Chipotle Founder Steve Ells,” n.d.). Steve Ells also appeared on the Today Show in an interview with Matt Lauer where Ells said “It's a really tough time,'' Ells said. "I have to say I'm sorry for the people that got sick. They're having a tough time. I feel terrible about that, and we're doing a lot to rectify this and make sure it doesn't happen again.” (Stump, 2015). There is no question that Mr. Ells could have done a better job in communicating the Chipotle apology but taking out the ads and appearing on television in order to reach out and apologize to those affected, was the right thing to …show more content…
Moving quickly to work with local investigators and closing stores for cleaning, apologizing to those affected and making food handling changes were all appropriate steps. There is little doubt that Chipotle made some mistakes while handling the situation and looking back I’m sure they would have handled some of it differently as would many companies caught in the same situation. The actions of Chipotle will likely become study material for those who are tasked with crisis management at other companies and they will likely find the good in the actions taken by
Most of them reported eating food from Chipotle within the week before their symptoms began. Twenty of those individuals have been hospitalized.
Simpson, S. (2015). Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.: Strategy with a Higher Mission or Farmed and
C. Thesis Statement- The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate why Chipotle is an undisputed leader in the growing fast food casual.
When Chipotle was revealed as the source of multiple outbreaks of illnesses that sickened nearly 600 people in 13 states in 2015, it came at a significant cost. We closed stores, spent several months under investigation by the CDC and other health organizations, and we faced a criminal investigation in connection with the incidents. With significant decreases in same store sales, operating margins as well as a 44% drop in our net income for the final quarter of 2015, it is evident that this crisis plunged Chipotle to a never before seen depth.
“Subway says boosting sales at existing restaurants is its biggest priority right now (Peterson, 2015).” From 2012 to 2014 Subway saw a decrease in sales and realized some of their competitors like Chipotle were making more money. How were they making more money? Well Chipotle starting advertising with antibiotic free meat. Just recently Subway decided to follow the trend and do the same, at the beginning of 2015 Subway started advertising antibiotic free meat. The restaurant has already seen a drastic increase in profit. Once Subway and Chipotle put these antibiotic free labels on their food they quickly received more interest in their restaurants. This leads to the fact that the American consumer is not very educated about not only where their food comes from, but also how it is processed. These restaurants should not be getting rewarded with an increase in profit for providing the consumer with false information; in order for this to stop people need to realize they are being taken advantage
Even though there are more than 1700 Chipotle locations around United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, all of Chipotle's restaurants are company-owned, rather than franchised. Chipotle insisting on company-owned is an effective way to take control easily and ensure the high quality of food products. This is seen as a smart move because experienced individuals run all of the restaurants.
The first recommendation is that Chipotle needs to create a separate mission statement. This is critical to success because it explains who chipotle is, why Chipotle exists, what their core values are and how it will serve their stakeholders. By doing this Chipotle can achieve its vision and have their entire team on the same page. Collaboration with stakeholder to accomplish this recommendation should take between one and three months (Strategic Management, 2014).
Essay 2 – Present a critique of Direct Action Everywhere’s campaigns against Whole Foods and Chipotle (directactioneverywhere.com). Thoroughly assess its strong points and its shortcomings and explain why you do or do not support this campaign.
Operations: Chipotle has set standards from when the food is bought, to when it's produced and to when it's sold. This quality control is performed by their Quality Assurance group, which foresees all of these positions.
Chipotle is my favorite place to eat. As I am sure it is for other people. Chipotle is a fast food Mexican grill. They are most known for how big they make your burritos. Now it is fast food but it isn’t actually fast, they’re like a restaurant but without the wait. They serve all naturally raised meat and organic beans. So there food is pretty healthy and worth eating. The employees are always nice and it just a great place to eat over all. Chipotle is a great choice for a quick fast food stop because it gives great service, atmosphere, food and value. My experience there is always a good one.
In visiting Chipotle’s website, it is adherently clear that they are trying to do a few things to overcome their recent faux pas from the past. Putting a majority of their site’s focus on their sustainability story, how they are helping the environment,
Chipotle Mexican Grill founder Steve Ells had a vision to “change the way people think about and eat fast food” (Gamble, Peteraf, & Thompson, Jr., 2015). He wanted to create a
Although the lawsuit was ultimately dropped, Taco Bell has experienced some hardship after the crisis, which has in turn created another crisis for Taco Bell. Taco Bell’s crisis management team has had to devise a way to encourage their customers to return to their restaurants. Even though the lawsuit was dropped, Taco Bell has had to focus its efforts on repairing their brand due to the negative publicity from the lawsuit. Taco Bell succeeded in telling their side of the story through the “Thank you for suing us” tactic, but they still experienced a decline in their sales.
When Chipotle first opened in 1993, the goal was to serve quality food fast, but not be considered “fast food.” To avoid falling under the fast food stigma, Chipotle strives to find the best ingredients with respect to animals, farmers, and the environment. In order to achieve these goals, Chipotle has created a matrix organizational structure that is divisional by location and functional by authority. Chipotle recently expanded internationally to the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, each following strict guidelines assigned by corporate employees from their headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Similarly, each location is functionally organized according to authority: regional manager, district manager, store manager, assistant manager, and
Chipotle Mexican Grill is one of the most popular Mexican restaurants in the United States, which offers burritos, bowls, tacos, and salads. It is one of my favorite restaurants to visit.