Discussion B: Pirate, Whales, and Shipping

Welcome to the second discussion. In this course you will be introduced to a topic in the discussion. The first week of the module you will write about your initial thoughts after reviewing the resources. The initial post should be at least 300 words.

During the following week you will reply to at least two of your classmates.

The replies should be at least 100 words. See the discussion rubric for more details on grading.

Discussions should always be completed prior to “class.” If you are in an online class or an on ground course this is prior to the lesson portion of the week. Are you ready to begin?

Watch Ted Talk: Inside the Secret Shipping Industry
https://www.ted.com/talks/rose_george_inside_the_secret_shipping_industry?language=en
Review the website about Piracy
http://www.worldshipping.org/industry-issues/security/piracy
Review the Maersk website
https://www.maerskline.com/en-us/
Read Massive Robots Keep Docks Shipshape (optional reading)
http://www.wsj.com/articles/massive-robots-keep-docks-shipshape-1459104327
Initial Post
If you were an operations manager, should you be concerned with piracy? Explain.
What precautions could be taken to secure your cargo?

SAMPLE SOLUTION

Piracy is a serious threat to world trade. As an operations manager, I would be very much concerned about piracy. Piracy threatens the most vital sea lanes and this hinders the business and security of seafarers in general. Being chosen as the best business model of the year by the Harvard Business School implies that its impacts are far-reaching (George, 2013, October). The global damage caused by piracy is well over $6.6 billion through commercial fraud, loss of cargo, or delay. As an operations manager, all these impacts can bring serious consequences on the operations of my company, resulting in among other things losses, loss of customers, and loss of lives.
To secure my cargo, I would take several steps. First, the vessels that will be used to transport cargo must have a risk management plan against threats at sea including piracy. The plan should facilitate voyages to detect, deter, delay, and report pirate attacks…