Question

Bill Daniels was an extraordinarily successful businessman whose professional career centered on integrity, honesty, respect, and a fair outcome for all involved. His ethical standards were practiced daily throughout his life from his first business in Casper, Wyoming, to his cable business success in Denver, Colorado, to the Bill Daniels Foundation he created, one of the largest foundations in the Rocky Mountain region. Bill Daniels was known as a man whose word was his bond.

Part I

Bill Daniels was born in Greely, Colorado, in 1920 and grew up during the Depression. After attending the New Mexico Military Institute and serving as a combat pilot during two world wars, Daniels began his first business in the early 1950s. He opened a small insurance agency in Casper, Wyoming, the Bill Daniels Company Insurance. When one of Daniels’s clients filed a final claim for $11,000 due to a loss the client had sustained, Daniels discovered the insurance company he had represented and written the policy on had declared bankruptcy. The policy that Daniels had written was worth nothing. Daniels felt personally liable since he had sold the insurance policy to the client and the client had purchased the policy based upon Daniels’s representation and word. Bill Daniels felt terrible. Eleven thousand dollars was a huge loss. Daniels knew he had done nothing wrong professionally; yet the client had made the purchase based upon Daniels’s advice and it was the client who now had no insurance coverage.

Part II

Bill Daniels was an avid sports fan who loved to win. He was involved with the American Basketball Association (ABA), serving as president, and in 1970 he purchased the Los Angeles Stars. The Los Angeles Stars, however, were losing money due to low attendance at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. In order to boost support, the new owner, Bill Daniels, moved the defending ABA Western Division playoff champions to Salt Lake City, Utah, where a very supportive new fan base received the team enthusiastically. Over the next five years, the now Utah Stars played to a new ABA fan attendance record. Salt Lake City was proud and supportive of its new and winning professional basketball team. However, even though the Utah Stars were doing well on the court, the finances of the Utah Stars were not doing nearly as well. During the sixteenth game of the 1975 season, with no money to pay the players, the Utah Stars were finished and the franchise was canceled. This decision affected not only the players but also the fans, creditors, and season vendors. The fans were out their season tickets, the creditors were out the dollars they had loaned to the Stars, and the vendors were out their season contracts. With the ending of the Utah Stars, professional basketball was no longer present in Salt Lake City, impacting the community both socially and economically. The revered team was gone. The courts dismissed Daniels’s financial obligation as the team’s owner. However, Daniels felt he was letting the players, fans, and everyone connected with the Utah Stars down, including the Salt Lake City community. He felt terrible as his winning team failed financially.

Part III

Question for discussion in debriefing both sections of the case:

• #1. Doing the right thing can often be more difficult and expensive than taking short-cuts. Describe how building integrity and a reputation for ethical behavior can be worth the time and money in creating a competitive advantage for a business?

Answer 1

In fact, doing the right thing is much more doing expensive and difficult than taking short-circuit. There may be several obstacles in the path of good. However, one can't deny the benefits of doing the ethically correct action, or taking ethically right decision. The reason being, it gives a sense of satisfaction and self-actualization of having contributed positively towards the society. Secondly, it helps build a pure conscience such that they build a strong reputation and other individuals begin to respect you for your acts. This reputation is much more precious than time and money and helps one gain competitive advantage as customers believe you and have trust in your products and services.