Ben and Jerry’s Case Analysis

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Ben & Jerry Case

Analysis

ITB FINAL ASSESSMENT

AOSHIEANE GOPALI

Aoshieane Gopali
 Ben and Jerry’s Case Analysis

1. “Explain Ben & Jerry’s form of business and analyze the importance of relationship for
the success of such businesses”.
Answer: Ben and Jerry is a renowned brand. Not only is it one of the most popular ice cream
brands because of its flavor, but also because of the fruitful business relationship between Ben
Cohen and Jerry Greenfield. In 1978, they became partners, so they own a multinational form of
business.
A good relationship has been always important for anything to be successful and to grow.
Business partners should always understand personal limits, respectfully applaud and condemn,
display consideration, and be open to truthful discussions. Similarly Ben and Jerry appreciate
each other’s skills, learn from each other, moreover, they both share the common vision. If you
have a good relationship with your partners then you will have the following benefit: 

Gives Morale Boost:

When you start a company on your own, some things don't go according to plan. Sometimes the
money isn't enough to invest in something substantial, and sometimes the investor doesn't turn
up. Also, coping with several tasks at one time can be both physically and mentally tiring, which
often causes entrepreneurs to break down and fall into depression. But if you have a business
partner then they will motivate you at that time.

Decreases Workload
Sharing financial responsibility means more individuals who are involved in the overall success
of the organization and they are as inspired as you are to see the business thrive. That is why,
unlike workers, additional owners are more likely to be able to work long hours and go the extra
mile. Having partners to help divide the workload also allows for holiday coverage.

Learning Skills
Besides, if the partners have complementary skills, they can create a collaborative effort that can
be quite beneficial. Same as Ben and Jerry learned many things from each other. 

Overall, the company will touch the pinnacle of success as there will be more brains to chip in
various ideas and to divide various work. So because of the above reason and much other cause
Business relationships is important.

2. “Why do you think Ben & Jerry’s has a social mission? Does the firm’s social mission
conflict with its economic mission”?
Answer: Ben and Jerry know that once they were also a small business and they know every
effort they did to grow their business. So as a part of the social mission, they promote small
businesses and rely on them for production materials, provided 7.5% of its pretax profit in
charity.
Milton Friedman and others have argued that “as an organizational feature there is no room for
social responsibility". The primary duty of the corporation is to make a profit and, by doing so,
the company will provide goods, jobs, good shareholder value, and will also be socially
accountable to these groups of customers, workers and shareholders”. But this went wrong in the
case of Ben and Jerry because they both believed that business should be using its power to help

Aoshieane Gopali
 Ben and Jerry’s Case Analysis

address social & environmental issues, and not just making money. They believed that there is a
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and they have to follow it because in return the
company will be benefited. If you do good then good things will come back. The benefits which
Ben and Jerry’s got because of their social missions are:

 They earned a positive reputation in the marketplace.

 Increased sales and earned more profit.

Overall they fulfilled their social responsibility.

Ben and Jerry’s social mission had never conflict with its economic mission, in fact, their social
mission helped them increase the sales of their ice cream as they were gaining good fame among
the people and in the market area. They were able to provide a good amount of profit to their
shareholders and that is how the company became a multinational, million-dollar company. Ben
and Jerry’s have 3 major missions statement, out of its social and economic mission are two of
them and they accomplished these missions in such a way that no particular one mission gets
hampered. The following points will demonstrate how these two mission went hand on hand and
which happened in the case of Ben and Jerry:

 A mission statement allows the management and staff to stay focused.

 A mission statement helps workers to recognize the fundamental principles of the
organization they work for.
 The mission statement represents the identity of an organization and increases its prestige
in society or in the country. 

Hence, by knowing the social mission of the company, all the employees will be motivated to
perform their tasks. On the one hand, the efficiency of the company will upgrade, and on the
other hand, employees will get good pay in return for more sales. All of the above the Company
got good fame.

3. “Analyze the benefits and challenges for Ben & Jerry and Unilever as a result of the
acquisition”.
Answer: The acquisition is the process where one company takes over another. Generally, a big
company takes over a small company. In the case of Ben and Jerry’s, the company was acquired
by the British Dutch Unilever in 2000 which was a huge company. Ben and Jerry’s was not just
the high-quality premium ice- cream manufacturer, it was more than a company, it was a
prestigious brand which was famous for its Corporate Social Responsibilities, its good deed
towards the society, environment, and the small businesses.
Even after the acquisition, Ben and Jerry were allowed to complete the mission statement in
their own way. Unilever agreed with Ben and Jerry's original mission as well by donating $5
million to the foundation for charities and another $5million fund to help the small businesses
plus job guarantee for an existing employee with the distribution of $5 million to employees in
six months as per the deal. Ben also contributed as the product developer to keep the name of
Ben and Jerry’s as it was before, also he was involved evaluating Unilever’s engagement

Aoshieane Gopali
 Ben and Jerry’s Case Analysis

activities like protecting the environment. This was the benefit for both the parties i.e. Ben and
jerry, and Unilever. Even after the acquisition, Ben was working to accomplish their mission
statement and there was an obvious benefit for Unilever as Ben was working there with their all
effort to grow the company. The acquisition increases synergy, competitive advantage, and more
innovation.
The challenges for Ben & Jerry’s after the acquisition with Unilever included: how to control the
morale of workers after acquiring with Unilever, how to preserve the distinctive brand image of
the company under parent company management and the main thing was the natural ingredients.
They were worried if the original natural ingredients of ice-cream are changed then the brand
image may get affected. Similarly, the challenge for the Unilever after they acquired was kind of
same as of Ben and Jerry’s. They needed to maintain the same quality and image in the world.

Aoshieane Gopali