We all live in bubbles. What we hear inside them shapes our perception of ourselves and the world. What’s said and happens outside is just noise, and we feel free to disregard it.
But that doesn’t work for officers and Board members of companies and non-profits.
They have duties to investors, employees, customers, as well as to donors and to beneficiaries of their largesse.
At stake are the organization’s legacy and future. Executives and Board members must act as soon as they sense something is amiss.
A dearth of honest voices breeds entitlement and the belief that transparency and responsiveness aren’t necessary. People do what they want with impunity, feel they “deserve” more than they get, and believe they can bend or break rules. It happens every day, in many ways.
- Online lender Social Finance handled it right. Amid a sexual-harassment scandal, its CEO said he’d step down by the end of the year — three months away. No reason to wait, insisted the Board. You’re out immediately.
- Equifax, after fumbling its early response to help consumers, quickly forced out its chief of security and chief information officer.
- By contrast, Uber and Fox News dithered, and this damaged their reputations.
In the end, it all comes back to our bubbles.
The danger they pose isn’t only that they create a breeding ground for scandals.
They also undermine an organization’s ability to move forward and create positive change.
They block real diversity on the Board and in management — not only of different races and financial backgrounds, but also of different skill sets and perspectives.
If we populate our bubble only with those who tell us what they think we want to hear, our world becomes an echo chamber. Therein lies the danger.
The broader the base of ideas and the more honestly they’re expressed, the stronger an organization is.
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You can reach Roger Gillott and Eden Gillott directly at 310-396-8696.
Gillott Communications is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that specializes in high-stakes Crisis & Reputation Management with more than 50 years of expertise in strategic communications, corporate public relations, and working with the media.
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