Conduct Unbecoming…
by Miki Saxon[Oops! My apologies. this weekend was the first warm days where I live and I spent them in my garden:) (What a mess!) In so doing, I lost track and didn’t write Sunday’s Quotable Quotes and although I had this post ready I forgot to schedule it for this morning. –Miki]
I’m sure you’ve seen the story regarding the resignation of Best Buy CEO Brian J. Dunn.
Yet one more incidence of fooling around with the help = inappropriate personal conduct = resignation/termination.
Lawyer Michael W. Peregrine writes that times are changing.
It’s the traditional compact in corporate America: what C.E.O.’s do on their own time is their business, as long as they are not breaking any laws. And it’s a compact that is rapidly going by the wayside, as boards concerned with the corporate reputation are increasingly making clear.
However, it does make one wonder when actions that have almost always resulted in termination at lower levels make headlines when they happen in the executive suite.
With few exceptions, most companies have rules against managers dating subordinates; affairs between peers are considered dicey and intra-office adultery is a definite no-no.
When companies are demanding entre to the personal/private areas of candidates’ social media prior to hiring why is it so surprising that corporate boards are focusing on personal/private executive behavior?
In a world where street reps are forever and the bedrock of good corporate culture is trust and authenticity there is no room for do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do executives.