Following the release of a report by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform, more is known than ever about Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder and the role he played in perpetuating a toxic work culture within the franchise. The 97-page report has outlined for the public how Snyder “permitted and participated” in the Commanders’ toxic culture, including the obstruction and obfuscation of a congressional inquiry through evasion, witness intimidation, and remaining obtuse when questioned by the committee.
In addition to highlighting Snyder’s level of participation in disrupting the congressional inquiry regarding the toxic work culture, the report also indicated that the NFL, describing them as also sharing in the blame when it came to the subversion of the congressional inquiry. The chairperson of the committee, Rep. Carolyn Maloney told ESPN, “We saw efforts that we have never seen before, at least I haven’t. The NFL knew about it, and they took know responsibility.” Maloney’s went on to characterize the NFL’s actions as performative, describing a “coordinated effort to hide what they acknowledged.” Maloney is referring of course to the NFL’s effort bury an investigation into the toxic work culture of the Commanders, led by attorney Beth Wilkinson.
According to the committee’s congressional report, Wilkinson’s investigation found multiple allegations of harassment and abuse against other teams, and that the NFL prioritized the interests of league owners over those of their own employees, with multiple reports of failure to protect employees who could not report misconduct without fear of retaliation. The report stated, “Rather than seek accountability, the NFL aligned its legal interests with Mr. Snyder’s, failed to curtail his abusive tactics, and buried the investigation’s findings.”
Despite these findings of a toxic work culture against the organization and Dan Snyder, the NFL has declared their commitment to courses of action that directly contradict the findings of the report, with NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy releasing a statement that said the NFL is “committed to ensuring that all employees of the NFL and the 32 clubs work in a professional and supportive environment that is free from discrimination, harassment, and other forms of illegal or unprofessional conduct.”
Following the release of the congressional report, head coach Ron Rivera told DC News Now that he has continued to encourage his players to “focus on what’s in front of them, not the distractions,” as they move forward.
To say that Elon Musk has had a turbulent fourth quarter in 2022 would be an understatement as he continues to face new challenges and find innovative ways to remain divisive in his capacity as Twitter’s new chief executive officer. Since purchasing the company for a record $44 billion in 2022, the landscape of the platform has been nothing short of chaotic as Musk declared war on Apple for gouging their advertising campaigns and allegedly continues to champion free speech as the new CEO. The public’s reaction to these events have ranged from the vindicated to the horrified, but in all the pageantry of the possible flame-out, there are human beings who are being forgotten in the chaos—what remains of Twitter’s staff.
Back in October, Musk’s deal to purchase the platform finally went through after months of back and forth in a “will he, won’t he” corporate dance. Once he became the CEO of Twitter, however, he immediately fired half of the staff, as well as CEO Parag Agrawal and CFO Ned Segal, and announced that that he would be championing free speech on the platform in a way that he alleged had not previously been done before.
It wasn’t long before Twitter engineers began coming forward about some of the changes Musk was making. One engineer, Eric Frohnhoefer, got into a public argument with Musk on Twitter, which culminated in Musk apparently firing him through a tweet—and it did not stop there. Musk went on to fire as many as 20 other engineers who had spoken out against his actions either publicly or on the platform’s internal Slack channels. To the remaining staff, Musk sent a company-wide email with vague implications that operations were about to get more difficult, and demands employees commit to working “long hours at high intensity,” or face termination.
Since purchasing the platform, Elon Musk continues to rot the corporate culture of Twitter from within. It’s horrific enough to have public feuds with employees and increasing demands on a reduced staff, but some of the latest reports regarding work conditions at Twitter are nothing short of disturbing. The BBC reported just yesterday they had received photos of Twitter office space that had been converted into actual bedrooms. The photo shared by the BBC showed a double bed and a dresser along with a pair of slippers. There was also a photo of couches at Twitter HQ being used as beds.
Scott Wiener, a California state senator commented to the BBC, “It’s clear that he doesn’t really care about people. He doesn’t care about the people who work for him.” The photos have prompted an investigation by the San Fransisco Department of Building Inspection into whether or not violations are being made. An official from the department told CBS News, “We need to make sure the building is being used as intended.”
For the past few years, the world has shown a mixture of disgust and concern for the increasingly erratic behavior of musician, Kanye West. Despite a career punctuated by hit albums and singles, millions of dollars in concert tickets sold, and a level of popularity that was attractive to major brands, West is proving that there is a breaking point in which his behavior drives away his fans, and drives down revenue associated with his name. Not only has his personal rhetoric severely damaged his reputation across multiple industries, but now Kanye West is also garnering a track record of toxicity within corporate settings.
From crashing the award acceptance speeches of other musicians to changing his legal name to “Ye,” Kanye West is no stranger to being in the spotlight for his strange behavior. After garnering controversy by aligning himself with divisive figures such as former President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, and exacerbating an acrimonious and very public divorce from ex-wife Kim Kardashian, the very mention of Kanye West’s name prompts eyerolls from many everyday fans and consumers. While the seemingly endless pageantry of grandstanding and posturing make it easy to dismiss his behavior as childish or inane, the reality is that Kanye West’s increasingly unacceptable behavior is having real impact in the professional world.
Given the totality of his documented behavior, it’s not an understatement to say Kanye West is a walking toxicity conduit. While we think of Kanye as an entertainer first, it’s difficult to remember that behind his entertainment empire are thousands of employees and business professionals who are required to deal with him on a weekly basis. Many of his public statements can be characterized as misogynistic, homophobic, racist, and even antisemitic. Kanye West has already publicly said problematic things about institutional hate and oppression—famously stating back in 2018 that 400 years of slavery in the United States was a choice for black people—but it wasn’t until recently that his words actually caused corporate partners to scatter to the winds.
Kanye first began partnering with Adidas in 2015 to release a line of footwear known as Yeezys. While Adidas was not the first footwear company to work with West, they certainly had the longest tenure. However, a series of tweets and public statements have recently caused Adidas to dissolve their business relationship with rapper. Back in October, West startled the public with an alarmingly antisemitic tweet that read “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE…” West went on to say that it was impossible for him to be antisemitic and that the Jewish people oppressed anyone who did not agree with them. Adidas was not alone in severing ties with West, joined by the likes of Balenciaga, Peloton, and prominent talent agency, CAA.
If his horrific statements about Jewish people weren’t toxic enough to a workplace culture, Adidas announced last week that they would be launching an investigation into possible misconduct West displayed in the workplace. An open letter was sent by former employees of Yeezy Adidas’ executive board members and CEO claiming that “leaders of Adidas were aware of West’s problematic behavior’ but ‘turned their moral compass off,” when it came to that aforementioned behavior, implying that this is part of a larger pattern that has never been addressed. In addition to claims of West verbally abusing women on staff, it was also alleged that he would show pornographic videos to staff members during meetings that featured his ex-wife, Kim Kardashian—including pornographic videos featuring himself. The open letter also alleged that there were “disturbingly” sexualized work conditions that targeted women on Yeezy’s staff, along with bullying tactics that ensured West would get what he wanted.
In workplace environments where celebrities are not part of the fold, behavior like that of Kanye West would not be tolerated. His alleged behavior is not in any sort of gray area, meaning that if they did in fact occur and were reported to the staff, then Adidas was responsible for letting a toxic element rot their corporate culture for the sake of a big-name partnership. While it’s true that celebrity partnerships can bring a great deal of exposure and popularity for a company or product, the internal damage that can be done by toxic members of staff can cast a long shadow, both internally and externally. With toxic staff members comes increased turnover, disengagement from employees, and negative public relations should that toxicity ever come to light. Despite the millions to be made from partnerships with celebrities and other representatives of note, the damage that a toxic representative or partner can cost a corporation can take years to mend in the public eye.
If your corporation is having difficulties with a toxic employees, contact Lauth Investigations International today for a free quote on our corporate culture audit program at 317-951-1100, or visit us online at www.lauthinveststg.wpengine.com.
Do thoughts of how to handle fraud and corporate crime prevention keep you up at night? Perhaps they should, because annual losses from these kinds of crimes in the U.S. are estimated to lie somewhere between $426 billion and $1.7 trillion annually. That’s a vast hole for businesses and organizations like yours to plug. How can your knowledge of fraud protect your business?
Things could be worse. Indeed, white collar crime prosecutions have dropped by more than half in the last decade. While it’s fair to say that a substantial number of these kinds of crimes go unreported, there is some reason for hope. Strategies to prevent and detect criminality in the workplace have come forwards in leaps and bounds—that is, for organizations that make the effort to engage in them.
If you’re ready to put the right protections in place and finally get a good night’s sleep, then we’re here to assist. Our dedicated team of experts in corporate crime and fraud protect organizations like yours every day from hidden internal threats. So read on for top tips from the Lauth Investigations International corporate team on how to roll out a fraud and corporate crime prevention strategy that will make all the difference.
Simple Steps for Fraud and Corporate Crime Prevention
So, how would a seasoned investigator of crimes like fraud protect their organization from unseen bad actors? These are all proactive strategies that you can enact today:
Run a Solid Background Check on All Staff
We all like to think that we can read people well, but even those of us who have been trained to read body language prefer to back up or refute our hunches with documented evidence. It’s estimated that around 78% of job seekers lie during the hiring process, and while not all of those people are going to run a scam as soon as they get a foot in the door, some will probably try, so better not to give them the opportunity in the first place. A comprehensive background check drawing on the same databases used by law enforcement agencies should do the trick.
Restrict and Control Access to Assets
We all like to imagine that the people we work alongside every day would never do us dirty. The harsh truth is that employees are far more likely to steal if they have ample opportunity and research suggests a staggering 60% will do so if they think they can get away with it.
Simple ways to remove these dark temptations include tightly controlling access to both financial and inventory assets, conducting regular cheks, and requiring dual approval for all asset transfers. The minimal numbers of fingers in the pie and everyone with an eye over their shoulder goes a long way to preventing fraud, employee theft, and embezzlement.
Get Serious on Cyber Security
Physical inventory and financial assets aren’t the only things that can drift off when left unattended. Payment information, customer data, intellectual property, and internal communications can all fall into the wrong hands when cyber security remains in the dark ages. In the digital age, we all have a corporate crime prevention obligation in the virtual world as well as the physical one.
Eliminate Site-Specific Threats
An on-site assessment of your security hardware and protocols is a vital step in eliminating any unnecessary vulnerabilities. Without the assistance of a keen pair of eyes, many organizations get sloppy about minimizing the risks of violence in the workplace or employees running riot in areas of the premises that they shouldn’t be able to access. A violence and threat assessment will examine this area of corporate crime prevention from the angles of both internal and externally-posed risk.
Get Your Corporate Culture In Hand
Those in the know about fraud protect themselves preemptively. It’s a simple truth that disgruntled or distressed employees are far more likely to turn on the hand that feeds them. A corporate culture that has hit the skids will always serve as a breeding ground for forms of employee misconduct such as malingering, time theft, bullying, harassment, and white collar crime.
In contrast, strengthening your corporate culture is not only key to corporate crime prevention but also the best way to drive productivity, retention, and profits. In this endeavor, the best place to start is with a Corporate Culture Audit. From there, you can map a clear path towards the kind of crime-free and collaborative workplace that’ll see you sleeping like a baby. Ready to learn more? Connect with the Lauth Corporate Investigations team today.
As an entrepreneur, you’ve probably spent years building your business. Brick by brick, you not only constructed its physical presence but also its team and a brand that your audience know and trust. That’s an incredible achievement indeed, but what if a single bad actor could come and undo all of your work?
When someone sets out to sabotage a business, a seemingly rock-solid standing can soon begin to feel like a house of cards. When a well-aimed shot lands reputational damage, public perception can turn on a dime, the media can come for blood, and profits can quickly plummet.
So how can this be prevented? To answer that question, today, we’re going to explore the importance of corporate intelligence services and large or small business reputation management in reinforcing your business against the threats posed by a saboteur.
Where Might a Sabotaging Attack Against My Business Come From?
There are three possible sources to have on your radar for any potential effort to ruin your business reputation.
A competing business: A competitor may set out to undermine your business to its own advantage.
A disgruntled employee: An employee may decide to damage your business from the inside.
An angered customer: A disappointed customer may set out to ruin your business reputation based on their own perception.
Reputational Threats from Competing Businesses
Think that all is fair in the world of enterprise? Think again. The harsh reality revealed by research is that 18% of businesses admit that they would consider sabotaging an online competitor—and that’s only the ones who were willing to admit to such an urge. In truth, there is more to gathering corporate intelligence than being able to outmaneuver your competitors’ marketing strategies.
In addition, corporate intelligence consultants are often enlisted by clients to ensure that competing businesses aren’t actively working to bring them down. An ugly campaign of bad reviews, data leaks, hostile forum and social media posts, public accusations, and exposés can unravel even the most neatly woven of organizations so this threat should never be overlooked.
Reputational Threats from Employees
Alongside monitoring corporate competitor intelligence, there is merit to keeping an eye on your own house too. It only takes one employee of questionable morals who gets passed over for a promotion for things to begin to go awry. Happily, effective ways to minimize this threat are to conduct detailed background checks on every member of your team and keep corporate culture strong and thriving.
If you think that morale may be lagging in any of your departments or are seeing conduct red flags with regularity, a Corporate Culture Audit may be the intervention that stops these smaller symptoms from escalating towards something that causes permanent reputational damage.
Business Reputation Damage Control
Outlined above are plenty of preventative measures that you can use to safeguard your business against those who would tarnish its reputation. But what happens if the floodgates have already opened? In these instances, an expert in corporate intelligence and investigations can be your ultimate ally, helping you evidence the truth, defend your honor strategically, fend off any legal threats, and bring bad actors to justice. In parallel, working with a large or small business reputation management specialist can allow you to gradually wind back the online trail of destruction and restore public faith in your offering. If you need help with this kind of damage control, the corporate team at Lauth Investigations International is ready to provide critical support. Connect with us today for a no-obligation consultation.
