Diebold is a $3 billion company whose core products are ATMs, bank vaults, and security systems. Until the 1990s, it was a global market leader. Then, its rival NCR surpassed it in sales. As a result, Diebold began acquiring suppliers around the world. One company it purchased was a Brazilian manufacturer of ATMs. Around this time the Brazilian government was looking to fully automate its voting system, and Diebold got the contract through its Brazilian company. The Brazilian presidential election went off without a hitch with Diebold machines. Emboldened by this success, Diebold decided to enter the voting machine market. The U.S. seemed a likely market, especially after the passage of the Help America Vote Act when local governments were told to replace punch-card voting machines with touch-screen machines. The big contracts meant big problems for Diebold. Orders were lost, manufacturing fell way behind schedule, and its technical staff was overwhelmed by the demand. In addition, allegations of the potential for voter fraud filled the Internet media and Diebold was labeled "an enemy of democracy." After a study revealed how easy it was to hack into the Diebold voting machines and how it did not provide voter security, Diebold responded with a 27-page report that basically said that there were “checks and balances in place to prevent fraud.” Rather than trying to fix the problem, Diebold chose to engage in _____, or what it though was a “good enough” alternative to the problem. A. framing constraints B. optimizing the solution C. satisficing D. benchmarking E. keystoning
Diebold is a $3 billion company whose core products are ATMs, bank vaults, and security systems. Until the 1990s, it was a global market leader. Then, its rival NCR surpassed it in sales. As a result, Diebold began acquiring suppliers around the world. One company it purchased was a Brazilian manufacturer of ATMs. Around this time the Brazilian government was looking to fully automate its voting system, and Diebold got the contract through its Brazilian company. The Brazilian presidential election went off without a hitch with Diebold machines. Emboldened by this success, Diebold decided to enter the voting machine market. The U.S. seemed a likely market, especially after the passage of the Help America Vote Act when local governments were told to replace punch-card voting machines with touch-screen machines. The big contracts meant big problems for Diebold. Orders were lost, manufacturing fell way behind schedule, and its technical staff was overwhelmed by the demand. In addition, allegations of the potential for voter fraud filled the Internet media and Diebold was labeled "an enemy of democracy."
After a study revealed how easy it was to hack into the Diebold voting machines and how it did not provide voter security, Diebold responded with a 27-page report that basically said that there were “checks and balances in place to prevent fraud.” Rather than trying to fix the problem, Diebold chose to engage in _____, or what it though was a “good enough” alternative to the problem.
| A. |
framing constraints |
|
| B. |
optimizing the solution |
|
| C. |
satisficing |
|
| D. |
benchmarking |
|
| E. |
keystoning |
The correct answer is C. satisficing.
Satisficing is a decision-making strategy in which an individual chooses the first option that meets a certain threshold of acceptability, rather than searching for the best possible option. In this case, Diebold's threshold of acceptability was to simply have something in place that they could say was preventing fraud, even if it wasn't actually effective.
The other options are incorrect because they do not accurately describe what Diebold did in this situation.
- Framing constraints are the factors that limit the range of options that are considered when making a decision.
- Optimizing the solution is the process of finding the best possible solution to a problem.
- Benchmarking is the process of comparing the performance of an organization to that of other organizations in order to identify areas for improvement.
- Keystoning is a pricing strategy in which a retailer sets a price for a product that is much higher than the cost of the product, in order to make a large profit.
In this case, Diebold was not limited by framing constraints, they were not trying to optimize the solution, they were not benchmarking, and they were not using a keystoning pricing strategy. They were simply trying to find a quick and easy way to address the allegations of fraud, even if it wasn't effective.
Diebold's decision to satisfice in this situation had disastrous consequences. The allegations of fraud continued to mount, and Diebold's reputation was severely damaged. The company lost millions of dollars in sales, and it was forced to recall millions of its voting machines.
Diebold's story is a cautionary tale for all businesses. It is important to remember that satisficing can be a dangerous strategy, especially when it comes to important issues like voter security.
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