1. What is your assessment of the ways in which Chipotle responded to the food poisoning incidents in some of its restaurants?
2. Do you agree with Steve Ells’s decision to relinquish his position as CEO? Do you approve of the choice of Brian Nicol to become Chipotle’s new CEO? Are you surprised by the choice of Brian Nicol?
3. Does Chipotle Mexican Grill have any core competencies and, if so, what are they? What does a SWOT analysis reveal about the attractiveness of Chipotle Mexican Grill’s situation and future prospects, as of mid-2018?
4. What are the primary and secondary components of Chipotle’s value chain?
5. What were the chief components of Chipotle’s strategy prior to the food poisoning episodes? What further strategy adjustments are needed now that Chipotle has (seemingly) gotten through the worst of the fallout of the food poisoning incidents?
6. What chief difference(s) do you see between Chipotle’s strategy and the strategy being employed at Moe’s Southwest Grill?