Consumers expect companies to have a purpose, and many leaders struggle to set the right tone.
Current and former executives from Meta, Mattel, Deloitte and Pinterest said on a panel that companies should speak out on sensitive social issues. of wealth The Most Powerful Women Summit was held on Monday in Laguna Niguel, California.
Given the potential backlash, leaders’ hesitation is understandable. But taken the right way, taking a stand can make your business stronger. Executives offered advice on when to speak up and gave examples from their own experiences running top companies.
Mattel Dedicates Women’s Empowerment to Barbie
Lisa McKnight, Mattel’s executive vice president and chief brand officer, said leadership should first decide and focus on where the company stands.
“We want to advocate for certain things; we don’t want to incite,” McKnight explains of her company’s approach when talking about cultural issues and current events.
McKnight pointed to the Barbie brand, which stood for female empowerment ahead of its blockbuster opening this summer.
“Any conversation we have has to serve that purpose,” she said.
“We have to carefully consider the impacts and unintended consequences, but at the same time,” McKnight continued, “we have to harden our position.” This is especially true for those doing business in the United States, she noted. True and complex, it may be a testament to the country’s growing polarization.
An audience member asked McKnight about a scene in the movie BarbieShe said it was cute and true and showed that Mattel’s management is all male.
“This is a big discussion,” McKnight replied. “We knew Mattel had to be a big bad company; we had to be the patriarchy. So we thought it was fair because it’s definitely still there… We knew it was exaggerated. When Will Ferrell came on board, we felt Better.”
Pinterest responds to racial unrest during pandemic
LeMia Jenkins Thompson, Pinterest’s former chief public affairs and sustainability officer, started her job during the pandemic and escalating racial unrest.
Employees at the company urged Pinterest to say and do something, but there were no matrices or decision trees. Simply put, there is no rulebook for when or how to comment on something that shakes the nation and the world.
Jenkins Thompson works closely with her team to align company values.
“What are the core values of the company, what do we speak about and what do we not speak about?” she said, explaining their process.
In Pinterest’s case, this means considering whether an event or cultural issue directly affects its business, whether it occurred in a country or state where the company operates, and whether it relates to one of the company’s values. Now that Pinterest has the tree, she said, it’s been very helpful in the decision-making process, especially for the company’s top brass.
Mehta and Mark Zuckerberg embrace public dialogue
At Meta, Campbell Brown, who serves as the company’s vice president of global media partnerships, said its founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg regularly hosts public talks on topics or events of interest. Q&A session.
“At least if you disagree, we give people a space to have a conversation,” Brown said. “And, with all the ups and downs we’ve had over the past few years, it’s important to have this forum.”
Deloitte holds forum to inform employees
Suzanne Kounkel, Deloitte’s global and U.S. chief marketing officer, echoed Brown’s statement, adding that her executive team has a forum “to discuss and make sure our people know how these decisions are made.”
Kounkel explains that it’s important for employees to know how these decisions are made. While not everyone will agree with the final decision, they will have a better understanding of how it came about. She highlighted research that shows customers want to reward organizations that share their values and are willing to take a stand.
“I do think that to be true to yourself, to be true to the issues that you can change, and to be willing to do whatever it takes… I mean, if it doesn’t hurt a little bit, or it’s not inconvenient, you’re probably not taking a stand,” Konkel said. Say.
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