How Hubris Wrecks Reputation - lessons from Peloton, Brewdog and Prince Andrew
Hubris, has been been on my mind of late - especially around reputation. Defined as excessive pride or self-confidence, it is something of which all business and brand leaders should beware…
Prince Andrew provides a chilling reminder about the fragility of reputation, the ruthlessness of opinion and the dangers of hubris.
Business leaders are always warned that they must ‘walk the walk’. They often have corporate communications experts to call on, and most will say the same. It is vital to espouse the brand’s good values.
As leader, you are under the spotlight, with the eyes not only of the media and customers on you, but also investors, and of course your employees. You cannot ever be the one that shakes the confidence in your leadership or the brand itself - because the consequences can be devastating.
I've written before about how dangerous it can be to damage the support and confidence of your own employees, who are on of the most powerful stakeholders. The pandemic has taught us very clearly that it is that businesses are nothing without their workforce.
In my earlier article I talked of how Brewdog's founders tarnished their shiny, edgy, team-focused rep by not heeding staff as much as they should have. You can read how the 'Punks with Purpose' staff group showcased treatment from Brewdog leaders that they did not like at all, as the company grew.
Brewdog's co-founders are now frantically fighting another wave of damage, after a recent BBC Scotland documentary suggesting a disturbing corporate culture that may include inappropriate behaviour towards female staff and abuse of power in the workplace.
Staff matter. But you cannot afford to piss off your customers or investors either. Along with 2800 redundancies, Peloton's John Foley was 'asked to step down' after an abysmal period that included reputational damage, plummeting sales, a tanking share price and some very questionable decisions.
This bullish and bouncy brand had foolishly tried to gloss over problems. It recalled its Tread and Tread+ treadmills after Peloton admitted apparently causing a child's death, but it wasn’t enough.
Compounding a reputation issue with dumb decisions
Peloton needed to rebuild customer and investor confidence, but instead struck an unwise product placement deal with the 'Sex and the City' franchise. Big's death in “And Just Like That” after having a heart attack on the cycle (and the consequent 11% price drop within a day) probably caused similar feelings in a few Peloton executive chests.
Peloton claimed plot ignorance, and even invested in a tongue in cheek commercial starring Chris Noth, the Mr Big actor. Because the universe is supremely unkind, it then had to suspend the Peloton advert, after Mr Noth appeared at the centre of some sexual allegations.
It didn’t do the right things, and it didn’t do enough. Dumb decisions and fate set the seal on the company’s fate. The CEO has gone, and investors are now pushing the new boss to sell, with Apple a likely bidder for the brand.
'We had no prior knowledge of the storyline involving Peloton and this was not a product placement but rather a casting opportunity for one of our instructors,' - Peloton
Don't let hubris hit you where it hurts - in your business reputation
The moral of the story: don’t gloss over reputational risks.
You can’t ignore them. They exist and will always exist, with new risks emerging as your business evolves. You need to own them - and that includes leaders owning the HUGE role they play in determining or destroying brand reputation.
You only have to look at the ripple effect of leaders caught up in the #metoo scandal to see that it also destroys stellar executive careers just as easily as it does brands.
Businesses should be WAY ahead of foreseeable crises. With a rock solid and flexible plan to deal with whatever comes, the bravery to imagine the worst, and a plan for the unexpected.
Yet many CEOs and leaders continue to feel they alone are unshakeable, unbreakable. They continue to be sublimely unworried.
This is crazy.
Reputation damage takes down small and large firms alike. It doesn't take much to torpedo trajectory, or turn talented teams away from the business and leader they should be behind 100%. It’s not always the business’ fault (sometimes it is) but it is always their responsibility to respond properly.
If you feel even slightly uncertain about what YOU would do in a crisis communication situation, then get in touch. Let us help you plan and protect your precious reputation.
Once your reputation is gone, it's slow and difficult to heal or resurrect it. Absolutely no person or business is immune.