Doug Case
Doug should be patient because he has already paid Primary $12,000 that he will not be able to get back. The new vendor is only offering a one month difference and it would be very difficult to make up that $12,000 in that little amount of time. Even with the extra training and support the new deal is offering, it does not guarantee anything extra with sales. Also, either way Doug is getting it later than the laptops, which was his original thought. Therefore the extra month sooner still is not giving him exactly what he wants. Doug needs to wait out his first vendor and deal with the software once he gets it.
Doug could talk with Primary and discuss a discounted rate on the software because it is coming 3 months later than what they had promised. He could also tell them about the offer from the other company and see if there is any way he could get any of the $12,000 back, or if Primary can promise the software any sooner than the 3 months. He could also contact the laptop company, and see if he can prolong the shipping of the laptops. There is no sense in having the laptops without the software. Or Doug could tell Primary about AllBright’s offer of extra training and support. Explain to them how important it is for Shield’s employees to be able to use the new software without problems, and since they are shortening the amount of time they have to get acclimated with it they need to provide some sort of training.
There are ethical issues involved by all parties. Primary is ethically wrong for not delivering the promised software on time to Doug. If Doug was to leave Primary and go to AllBright he is ethically wrong because he is wasting $12,000 of the company’s money, and setting them back for a reason that could be prevented. Lastly, AllBright is ethically wrong in trying to steal Shield’s business from Primary. They are exploiting Primary’s weakness and trying to take away a contract from Primary that already exists. All