CEO Today Magazine April 2018 Edition

17 www.ceotodaymagazine.com CONTROVERSY AND THE DEATH OF THE EXECUTIVE years in federal prison, likely to the celebration of many. Other examples include Tony Hayward, former CEO of BP, who notably explained: “I think the environmental impact of this disaster is likely to have been very, very modest,” after the worst oil spill in US history took place. Referred to as the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010, the spill was caused by an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, killing 11 in the blast. In the figures detailed by the Independent, 4.9 million barrels of crude oil was released into the ocean. Even worse, BP estimated that 1,000 barrels would be released per day due to the explosion, with the actual figure being as high as 53,000 per day. Hayward then went on to take place in a distasteful yacht race and was replaced by Bob Dudley within a matter of months. Travis Kalanick is another well-known example. As Co- founder of Uber, he resigned from his position as CEO in June 2017 amid reports of sexual harassment that he had full knowledge of under his tenure that he made no attempt to resolve, and a video which surfaced and went viral that featured Kalanick berating one of the drivers of his company in a heated argument. Investors ultimately pressured Kalanick in a gambit for new leadership after his liability was established, leading to his replacement by current CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Kalanick went on to be sued by Benchmark under allegations of fraud, breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty. The lawsuit was dropped in January 2018 under the condition that Uber completed its transaction with Softbank, leading him to sell a stake worth $48 billion to the Japanese holding company. John McAfee was entangled in a number of infamous circumstances between 2012 and 2015: in April 2012, his home in Belize was raided and he was arrested under suspicion of manufacturing unlicensed drugs and for possessing an unlicensed weapon. While he wasn’t charged for either case, later that year, he was suspected in the murder of his neighbour, Gregory Viant Faull. McAfee evaded police and fled Belize, faked two heart attacks in order to buy time for his attorney, and was called “extremely paranoid” by Dean Barrow, Belize’s Prime Minister. While no charges were filed for this case either, he was later arrested in 2015 for driving under the influence while in possession of a firearm, stepped down as CEO of technology holding company MGT Capital Investments, and left the company altogether in January 2018. These kinds of influences speak volumes about the value of likability and reputation in business and is not a factor to be overlooked. An established, profitable and otherwise successful business can be dragged to the depths of disgrace thanks to the deteriorated reputation of an ill-fated CEO. Some issues can be forgiven, but the bigger the controversy, the harder the fall from grace.