Volkswagen’s commitment to innovation and brand equity drove its rivals to develop technologies that would allow them to cheat the system while maintaining positive brand equity. It was established by the management that financial growth was more important than the triple bottom-line. It was focused on maintaining brand equity as well as significant financial margins through its activities (Michael and al. (2018). The employees began to ignore the importance of environmental sustainability. It is clear that the unsustainable implementation of environmental policies can have a detrimental effect on the firm’s growth. Volkswagen was the world’s most environmentally-friendly carmaker prior to the diesel-gate scandal. Incorporated in a culture of dishonesty, the management claimed that they were promoting sustainability and using the defeat device to hide emission levels to improve their image. The corporation was subsequently discredit by customers due to its brand damage from the findings of the environmental protection agency.
An extensive public relations campaign is necessary to help the institution regain its reputation. To gain public support, the corporation must hire specialists and public relations agents. The commitment of the corporation to the triple bottom-line will be demonstrated by its investment in PR, including funding environmental non-profits. To demonstrate that the institution isn’t just focused on profit but also cares about social issues, it should start a variety of CSR projects in environmental areas (Thames 2018, 2018). CSRE can help restore brand loyalty and enhance its brand value.
This incident will increase federal agencies’ scrutiny of businesses making environmental claims. Volkswagen will likely use its creative talents to skirt environmental regulations as revealed by the scandal. The federal government is likely to take stricter measures to ensure that Volkswagen does not use loopholes and cover up its non-sustainable activities. They will be subject to stricter monitoring in order to discourage them from engaging with unethical conduct (Schuetz 2016).