An Open Letter to Executives
Dear Executive:
I hope this note finds you well. I’ve been thinking a lot about you lately as I’ve perused a half-dozen different social media platforms regularly looking for the latest trending business news, particularly insights from business thought leaders.
Forgive me for just now reaching out to you, but I was distracted by Greg Glassman, founder and now-former CEO of Crossfit, tweeting after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis that the nation was being plagued by “FLOYD-19.”
No sooner had I lifted my jaw off the ground after that tweet, did I see that Lisa Alexander, a San Francisco-based skin-care executive and her husband, Robert Larkin, an investment banker, had scolded and called the police on an Asian man for scrawling “Black Lives Matter” on his own property.
I thought I’d get to you immediately after AlexanderGate, but I was sidetracked by reports that the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office would be criminally charging Amy Cooper, AKA “Central Park Karen,” who was fired last month from her investment banking job for filing a false police report against bird watcher Christian Cooper (no relation).
Seriously, I managed to refocus for a moment, but then I saw that Dave Andelman had resigned as CEO of The Phantom Gourmet after being called out for making fun of social justice protesters in a very ugly way. And now, cybersecurity CEO Michael Lofthouse has resigned after being caught on camera berating an Asian family for, well, the high crime of being Asian at a restaurant.
Anyway, before that stuff got in the way, I wanted to tell you that in this age where more people than TV shows get canceled, you need a brand. Yes, your company needs a brand. But if you genuinely care about your business, employees, partners and customers who rely on you, you’ll make sure your brand reflects well on your company’s.
And before I forget, if you step in quicksand and you’re lucky, your company’s positive, uplifting brand might protect you. But should you say or do something thoughtless or proactively horrible, your company could still toss you like yesterday’s newspaper.
That should all go without saying, but, well, Greg, Lisa, Robert, Amy, Dave, Michael…
I wanted to let you know what makes social media “social” is that unless you have something to hide and set your accounts to private, anything and everything you post is subject to scrutiny by the entire world. Conversely, everything you do or say publicly is just one smartphone camera away from exposure. In fact, unless you have an enforceable non-disclosure agreement drafted by a pirate --three can keep a secret if two are dead-- then even your private comments and actions can be “socialized.”
In case you haven’t considered these obvious things, I’ll leave you with six tips to get started on protecting your company by establishing your personal brand as a credible, trustworthy leader:
Just be a decent human being and don’t say, write or do mean, bigoted or offensive things. If you wouldn’t say it to your grandma, don’t put it on social media.
Post to social media and a personal website about your company’s quality work, ahead-of-the-curve industry thinking, and corporate citizenship.
Post consistently about world-improving topics, not just when hard topics are trendy.
Don’t let emotions ruin you. Pause before posting to consider if you really should.
Be smart, don’t court controversy, don’t joke about things that common sense says aren’t funny (see Godwin’s Law), and don’t offer unwarranted opinions.
You should be an active, visible community leader, not just a business leader.
As retail partners shed her company like a snakeskin, Lisa Alexander wrote in her apology note, “I should have minded my own business.” Someday, some clever artist will create a figurative cemetery of executives’ careers. That quote will be on every single tombstone.
So that’s it, dear executive. This is what I’ve been meaning to write to you. Be good, be kind, be real, be vocal, be a leader. And, now that I think about it, you won’t have to worry about ever being labeled a Greg, Lisa, Robert, Amy, Dave, Michael...or Karen.
Warm Regards,
James
