Giving Feedback to Someone Who Doesn't React Well

A new Harvard Business Review article offers tips for giving feedback to "people who cry, yell, or get defensive." No one likes to be on the receiving end of that behavior, but most managers will be at some point.

The author certainly doesn't suggest shying away from the feedback, which may be some managers' tendency. Instead, she asks managers to remind themselves to focus on the value of the feedback to the employee. Presumably the feedback will be useful to the employee's career. Being prepared also helps, as can staying calm in the moment and stopping the meeting to continue another time if things get too tense.

For emotional people, you might hold meetings at the end of the day and offer tissues. But hold your ground. If someone is yelling, you have every right to address it. The author suggests the following:

• "I need to have a conversation with you. I need you to lower your voice."
• "I need you to take a deep breath or we will have to reschedule this. This is not constructive."

More good advice in the article is for managers to, separately, address the employee's reaction, for example, "I notice every time we sit down to discuss feedback, you get [upset, angry, defensive]. I have your best interests at heart. What can I do to help you receive feedback with more openness? And here's what I need in these interactions." 

Emotions in the workplace aren't necessarily bad, and they are inevitable. Dealing with them in a humane, professional way may help build trust in an otherwise shaky relationship.

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• Have you tried to give feedback to someone who gets emotional? What strategies worked for you?
• Have you been emotional when on the receiving end of feedback? What would help you maintain your composure?
• The image is from an article about positive anger in the workplace. What's your view of the researcher's perspective?

AT&T Defends Time Warner Deal

AT&T is planning to acquire Time Warner, and it's already facing skepticism. Critics say the deal will increase prices and reduce consumer choice. But AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson argues that they are trying to reduce prices, increase quality content, and increase innovation, for example, by creating new ad models. He promises to be a "head-to-head, nationwide competitor with the cable ecosystem."

In a press release, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes' quote starts with enthusiasm about shareholders: "This is a great day for Time Warner and its shareholders." He goes on to discuss innovation:

"This is a natural fit between two companies with great legacies of innovation that have shaped the modern media and communications landscape, and my senior management team and I are looking forward to working closely with Randall and our new colleagues as we begin to capture the tremendous opportunities this creates to make our content even more powerful, engaging and valuable for global audiences."

Whether the deal would stifle competition concerns both Republicans and Democrats. Donald Trump said, "As an example of the power structure I'm fighting, AT&T is buying Time Warner and thus CNN, a deal we will not approve in my administration because it's too much concentration of power in the hands of too few." And Bernie Sanders tweeted, "The administration should kill the Time Warner/AT&T merger. This deal would mean higher prices and fewer choices for the American people."

Discussion Starters:

• How well did the AT&T CEO address concerns about the acquisition? What principles of persuasion did he use in the interview?
• Read Time Warner's press release. How consistently are the two companies speaking about the deal?
• What's your view? Do you think the acquisition would be bad for consumers as some people fear?

Wells Fargo Failing Damage Control

Wells Fargo has been embroiled in a scandal for weeks and is finally communicating directly with customers. In an email, the company didn't quite apologize, but it did acknowledge mistakes. An FAQ on the company's website says little more.

                         

An update on what we're doing to make things right   Dear [name omitted],   Over the last several weeks, you may have heard about the settlements we've made involving some of our customers receiving products or services that they did not want or request. We are deeply committed to serving you and your financial needs, and in those instances, we did not live up to our commitment. This is inconsistent with our values and with the culture we work hard to maintain. It's not who we are as a company. It's important for you to know that making things right and restoring the faith you have in us is the very top priority for our entire Wells Fargo leadership team. There is nothing more important than for you to experience the very best from us. Here's what we're already doing:   Putting your interests first: We have eliminated product sales goals for our Retail Banking team members who serve customers in our bank branches and call centers.   Proactively communicating with you: We send a confirmation after you open a new consumer or small business checking, savings, or credit card account so that you know what is happening and can tell us if anything we've confirmed is different than what you expected.   Full transparency: You can always see your eligible accounts any time when enrolled in Wells Fargo Online®.   Fixing what went wrong: We have provided full refunds to customers we have already identified and we're broadening our scope of work to find customers we may have missed. If we have any doubt about whether one of your accounts was authorized, and any fees were incurred on that account, we will contact you and refund fees.   If you have any concerns about your accounts or any aspect of your relationship with Wells Fargo, please come into a branch and speak with our team in person, or call us on our dedicated hotline 24/7 at 1-877-924-8697. We will continue to update wellsfargo.com/commitment to keep you informed. The trust you place in us means everything and we will work hard every day to earn your trust back.

The message may be too little, too late. Oddly, the email was sent within a day of CEO John Stumpf's resignation, but we see no mention of leadership changes. This may be a missed opportunity. In addition, these types of messages typically take a more personal approach: we would expect to see a signature at the bottom-an indication of someone taking responsibility for making things better, as the company promises. In addition, Wells Fargo has taken out full-page newspaper ads with the same four points as in the customer email.

In the meantime, the news is getting worse. More employees are coming forward saying they had complained about company practices but were ignored. Employees report extreme pressure to sell, and more news is surfacing about which customers were targeted, for example, immigrants with little English and older people.

A New Republic article, "Corporations Ignore Whistleblowers at Their Peril," includes the subtitle, "Wells Fargo could have saved itself some trouble by listening to employees." Employees report worse than being ignored: they suffered retaliation.

Discussion Starters:

• Assess the email to customers. How could the message be improved?
• What hope do you see for Wells Fargo? If you were the new CEO, what would you do now?

"Top Skills" According to LinkedIn Analysis

LinkedIn analyzed recruiting activity on the site in 2016 and identified the top 10 skills employers want. A more accurate heading may be skills for which employers search. Not surprisingly, all are technology related.

I'm glad to see Data Presentation make the list; it's a core skill in our Management Communication classes at Cornell. LinkedIn's commentary expresses companies' growing interest well:

Show me, don't tell me: For the first time ever, data presentation, which is visualizing data, makes the list with the #8 spot. With statistical analysis and data mining holding strong again this year at #2, employers need employees who can organize data so it's easy for people to understand.

In addition to the overall number, LinkedIn identifies skills by country, and we seem interesting differences. A few non-technical skills emerge when we drill down:

• HR Benefits and Compensation (Australia, Brazil, UK)
• Corporate Law and Governance (Australia, France, Singapore, UAE)
• Business Development and Relationship Management (Brazil)
• Public Policy and International Relations (China, India, South Africa, UAE)
• Social Media Marketing (China)
• Business Intelligence (China)
• SEO/SEM Marketing (France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Singapore, UAE, UK)
• Compliance and Employment Law (France)
• Marketing Campaign Management (France, Ireland, Singapore)
• Retail Store Operations (Germany)
• Channel Marketing (Germany)
• PR and Communications (India)
• Economics (India)
• Recruiting (Ireland, Netherlands)
• Foreign Language Translation (Singapore)
• Renewable and Sustainable Energy (UAE)
• Mining and Commodities (UAE)

Of course, many of these involve technology, but they are not as tech heavy as, say, algorithm design. 

LinkedIn's analysis also indicates, "Demand for marketing skills is slowing because the supply of people with marketing skills has caught up with employers' demand for people with marketing skills." 

Discussion Starters:

• What, if anything, surprises you about these lists? Consider the source: LinkedIn. Could some of the data be skewed?
• Looking at the list of non-technical skills, what conclusions do you draw about business and about supply and demand in those countries?

NFL's Image Problem

The NFL's image is further damaged by a New York Times article today titled, "N.F.L. Shows It Doesn't Really Care About Domestic Violence." The piece starts by highlighting declining viewership, for which the league blames the current election. Certainly, people are sensitized to sexual assault incidents, but the NFL isn't helping itself:

"Yet again, in the case of Giants kicker Josh Brown, the league has shown that it could not care less about women and really, really doesn't want to call out its players for doing bad things to them."

Tough words. But the Times explains that Brown "was charged with assaulting his wife" "more than two dozen times." After investigating the case for 10 months, the NFL decided to suspend Brown for only one game.

The Times also said the league blamed the victim: "Brown's wife had failed to cooperate, the league said, and that's why its investigators couldn't get to the bottom of what he had done."

People are voicing their dismay on Twitter, with the second tweet here retweeted almost 2,000 times.

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• What's your view of the Times' headline: overstated, unfair, spot-on, or something else?
• To what extent do you think these assault issues are causing declining viewership?
• What should the NFL do to restore its image?

Communications About the Outage

The latest cyberattack left Netflix, Spotify, Amazon, Etsy, and other sites spinning and apparently deciding how much and what to communicate to users. Issues at Dyn, a host company, affected the others, and Dyn was communicating regularly during the outage.

Amazon, for example, seemed to communicate nothing at all in its press releases, on its blog or on its Twitter feed: all highlight company activities and products for Halloween.

Discussion Starters:

• Why would Amazon not communicate about the outage? Do you think this was a good decision? Consider the technology impact and responsibilities.
• Assess Dyn's communication. This isn't the traditional apology. How well does it work? Consider the audience and communication objectives in your response.

Facebook Debates Trump's Posts as Hate Speech

Are some of Donald Trump's posts considered hate speech? That's what Facebook employees debated in December according to a Wall Street Journal article, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg decided against censorship. Some employees felt strongly-even threatening to quit-over Trump's posts proposing banning Muslims from entering the country.

A spokesperson for Facebook said, "That context [of a post] can include the value of political discourse. Many people are voicing opinions about this particular content, and it has become an important part of the conversation around who the next U.S. president will be." Another management team member wrote, "In the weeks ahead, we're going to begin allowing more items that people find newsworthy, significant, or important to the public interest-even if they might otherwise violate our standards."

Facebook is in the spotlight partly because Americans increasingly use the site as a news source, and the company has been viewed as left-leaning. Clearly, Facebook is in a tough spot. 

Discussion Starters:

• What is considered hate speech?
• Did Mark Zuckerberg make the right decision? Research Facebook's policy for context.
• Should Facebook adjust its policy? Or is this a decision relevant only to the current election?

Wal-Mart CEO Is Front and Center

Two articles this week highlight strides Wal-Mart is making in increasing wages and improving store service. A Wall Street Journal article was titled, "CEO Doug McMillon's Ad Was Designed to Burnish Retailer's Image: The retailer put its leader at the center of a push to shed perceptions that it offers little more than low prices and low-paying jobs," and a New York Times article was titled, "How Did Walmart Get Cleaner Stores and Higher Sales? It Paid Its People More." Both articles focus on the retail giant's efforts to improve its image.

The WSJ article describes McMillon's appearance in a commercial as an "unusual move," and the NYT article references a video he produced in 2015 promising to increase employee wages and training, below. McMillon also appears in a YouTube video, "Riding in Cars with Executives" with a Wal-Mart associate. Although having an executive so tightly connected to a brand can be risky, McMillon is younger than the average Fortune 500 CEO and is likable. In the car video, he talks about popular culture and seems, well, just like the rest of us.

Discussion Starters:

• I say that having a CEO tightly associated with a brand is risky. Why do you think that is? What examples of other companies have presented a CEO similarly and probably regretted it?
• Assess McMillon's video, above. Who are his primary and secondary audiences? What are his communication objectives? How convincing are the messages? How effective is his delivery style?

"Robo-Interviews" Become More Prevalent

More companies are interviewing applicants via webcam, and the process is not interactive like Skype and FaceTime interviews. About 90% of these interviews have no interviewer present. Applicants respond to questions on the spot, sometimes with a warm-up question and a few seconds to compose a response, but not always. A Bloomberg article quoted one candidate about his experience:

"I'm not a YouTube star, obviously," he said. "It's such a weird experience talking to a camera. It honestly was pretty horrible." Jamie Black, who suffered through the video interview experience for a job at a school, said it felt "more like a game show than an interview." 

HireVue, which provides interview software, reports 2.5 million such interviews in 2016. The company's clients include JPMorgan, Deloitte, and "most of the major airlines."

The process has some advantages. Of course, it saves companies travel and other expenses of live interviews. But some companies also say that are able to meet more people through the technology. The Bloomberg article ends with a quote from HireVue's founder, Mark Newman:

"Candidates will generally say, 'I would have preferred an in-person interview to this,' but that's not the right comparison," HireVue's Newman said. "The alternative is no interview at all."

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• What's your experience with interview videos?
• What benefits and downsides do you see for applicants?
• How do you think this technology affects people of color? If companies want a more diverse workforce, will the software help or hurt?

Delta Accused of Bias Against Black Female Doctor

A sick passenger needed attention on a Delta flight from Detroit to Houston, and a doctor stepped up to help. But, according to Dr. Tamika Cross, her help wasn't appreciated. A flight attendant questioned her credentials, saying, "Oh no, sweetie. Put your hand down. We are looking for actual physicians or nurses or some type of medical personnel. We don't have time to talk to you."

Cross, an African-American, said she continued trying to help and rang her attendant bell when flight staff asked, again, if someone on the plane was a medical doctor. But the attendant questioned her: "Oh, wow, you're an actual physician?' I reply yes. She said, 'Let me see your credentials. What type of doctor are you? Where do you work? Why were you in Detroit?'

Meanwhile, a White man stood up, and the flight attendant seemed to accept his help without question, according to Cross:

"She says to me, 'Thanks for your help but he can help us, and he has his credentials.' Mind you, he hasn't shown anything to her. Just showed up and fit the 'description of a doctor.' I stay seated."

At some point, the flight attendant may have realized her mistake; Cross wrote on her Facebook post, "She came and apologized to me several times and offering me skymiles. I kindly refused."

Delta issued an apology on its website that included a different explanation of what transpired. The company says the investigation is ongoing, but we see an explanation and their practice:

"Three medical professionals identified themselves on the flight in question. Only one was able to produce documentation of medical training and that is the doctor who was asked to assist the customer onboard. In addition, paramedics met the flight to assist the customer further.

"Flight attendants are trained to collect information from medical volunteers offering to assist with an onboard medical emergency. When an individual's medical identification isn't available, they're instructed to ask questions such as where medical training was received or whether an individual has a business card or other documentation and ultimately to use their best judgment."

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• Google and other companies train employees about "unconscious bias." What does this mean, and could similar training help Delta employees?
• How do you assess Delta's statement? What are the communication objectives at this point, and did the company achieve them?
• Does Delta's explanation change your thinking about Cross's account of what happened? Why or why not?

Ronald McDonald Sits Out Creepy Clown News

McDonald's classic clown, Ronald McDonald, is taking a vacation amidst news of so-called "creepy clowns," which have been scaring and possibly harming children. A company representative said, "McDonald's and franchisees in the local markets are mindful of the current climate around clown sightings in communities and as such are being thoughtful in respect to Ronald McDonald's participation in community events for the time being."

The issue began with reports of clowns luring children into unsafe places in South Carolina. Since then, pranks across the country have scared kids and taken much of the fun out of clowning. 

Image source. 

Discussion Starters: 

• A look at several clown association sites reveals no statement about the issue. Should they have a statement? If so, what? If not, why not?
• Why do you think the associations don't yet have statements? Your response could be related to the previous question-or not.
• Did McDonald's make the right decision in benching Ronald for a while? What's your view of the short statement? 

Wells Fargo CEO Steps Down

It was probably just a matter of time. Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf announced his retirement in the wake of a bank scandal that brought the CEO in front of the federal government  and brought the company millions of dollars in fines. Stumpf will walk away with about $134 million as his retirement package (although no additional severance pay). According to The Wall Street Journal, the board didn't try to convince Stumpf to continue on.

In a news release, the company included quotations from Stumpf and from the new executives. Stumpf quote read, "I am grateful for the opportunity to have led Wells Fargo. I am also very optimistic about its future, because of our talented and caring team members and the goodwill the stagecoach continues to enjoy with tens of millions of customers. While I have been deeply committed and focused on managing the Company through this period, I have decided it is best for the Company that I step aside. I know no better individual to lead this company forward than Tim Sloan."

A Slate writer called the news "a stunning fall for a banking leader who had helped guide Wells Fargo through the financial crisis and lead the company through its acquisition of Charlotte-based Wachovia." A New York Times writer called Stumpf's resignation "abrupt." 

Discussion Starters: 

• Do you agree with the reporters' language? Is this a "stunning fall" and an "abrupt departure"?
• Is Stumpf's retirement the right decision for the company at this time? Why or why not? What did the board of directors likely consider in encouraging-or at least accepting-his retirement?

Samsung Trying to Control the Damage

Samsung is dealing with a tough situation: batteries in the Galaxy Note7 have been causing fires. Warnings to turn off Samsung phones are heard on many flights, including mine to Denver this weekend. As the BBC reports, "that sends out a negative message about your products beyond even your own customers."

The company handled the initial reports well but lost favor when its replacements overheated or burned. The BBC article explains the growing issue for Samsung:

"The trouble is that even one phone which catches fire makes for startling pictures and a whole heap of consumer anxiety. Samsung may soon have to decide whether to cut its losses and abandon the Note 7 before it does more damage to its brand."

The New York Times also reported on Samsung's poor crisis communication:

"But for people to see those words, they had to click a link at the top of Samsung's home page with the not-so-urgent label 'Updated Consumer Guidance for the Galaxy Note 7.' As of Tuesday afternoon, the instructions had not been posted to Samsung's Facebook page or the company's Twitter account.

"For some who work in crisis management, it was a baffling and overly passive way for the South Korean electronics giant to deal with a prominent problem that has worsened in the last month."

On its website, Samsung posted this message: 

Samsung Will Ask All Global Partners to Stop Sales and Exchanges of Galaxy Note7 While Further Investigation Takes Place

on October 11, 2016

 

We are working with relevant regulatory bodies to investigate the recently reported cases involving the Galaxy Note7. Because consumers' safety remains our top priority, Samsung will ask all carrier and retail partners globally to stop sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note7 while the investigation is taking place.

We remain committed to working diligently with appropriate regulatory authorities to take all necessary steps to resolve the situation. Consumers with either an original Galaxy Note7 or replacement Galaxy Note7 device should power down and stop using the device and take advantage of the remedies available.

Discussion Starters:

• Look at Samsung's recent news statements about this situation. How well has the company handled communication on its website?
• How, if at all, do you see this issue potentially reflecting poorly on the mobile industry? What should other phone manufacturers do?

Nestle Recalls Ice Cream Cones

Nestle is recalling Drumstick ice cream cones because of Listeria concerns. The company posted a recall notice on its website:

After the introductory paragraph and explanation of product types recalled, the press release provides a Q&A. Questions include where Listeria was found (on equipment, not on the product itself), symptoms of Listeria, how the problem will be prevented in the future, etc.

The list includes two bold questions:

• "Why did it take so long for you to find this?"
• "This sounds like another Blue Bell situation with listeria in ice cream. Is your situation the same as theirs was?"

In response to the first question, the company wrote, "Unfortunately, an error occurred in logging receipt of the test result. We discovered the error during a subsequent review of records. As soon as we identified the error, we notified FDA and initiated the recall."

To the second question, the response is, "No. Each recall has its own unique facts. Except for the coincidence that our recall involved both ice cream and listeria, our situation is much different from Blue Bell's in a number of significant ways, including: (1) we have no listeria findings in the ice cream itself (just the equipment); (2) we have only one product line affected; (3) we have only one facility affected; and (4) we self-identified this event and took precautionary steps to recall product."

Discussion Starters:

• The two questions identified here are risky. Explain the risks and why the company may have chosen to include the questions.
• How do you assess the question about Blue Bell? How does the response help, instead of hurt, Nestle's image?

Iowa State President Used University Plan for Personal Trips

Iowa State President Steven Leath apologized to the university student government for using the school's airplane for personal reasons. Although university administrators said it wasn't true, an Associated Press investigation found that he used the plan to travel to his mountain home in North Carolina, take fundraising trips with a celebrity bowhunter, and send family to NCAA games. The plane was damaged during a landing, and Leath paid $15,000 to cover the expenses. Some reports say Leath traveled with his wife and others for personal reasons on the school's larger plane as well.

Leath told the student government, "I'll be different. We will be very mindful of what we do going forward. I've learned my lesson." The student newspaper also reported an interview with Leath: "I regret all of this," he said. "I don't like to bring any negative image to the university. The fact that there has been all kinds of articles written about this makes me sad."

The news got out when Leath's trips were inadvertently posted on the school's website. They have since been taken down. 

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• Leath maintains that he didn't violate school policy. Read the school newspaper report and discuss your opinion.
• Leath did reimburse the university for some of the travel. What else, if anything, should Leath do?
• What should the university trustees do?

News Conferences About Hurricane Matthew

After wreaking havoc in Haiti and Cuba, Hurricane Matthew is making its mark on Florida, and politicians are encouraging people to leave the area. One day apart, Florida Governor Rick Scott and Florida Senator Marco Rubio were in front of the press.

Governor Scott emphasizes the potential loss of life and discourages people from focusing too much on the storm path. He wants people to evacuate: "We are preparing for the worst, hoping for the best, and not taking any chances." 

Senator Marco Rubio echos a similar theme: "Don't focus so much on the cone as you should on the fact that here, over the new few hours, the winds are going to pick up, the rain is going to come in, and you need to be prepared for what that means."

Discussion Starters:

• Why don't people leave when they're told to evacuate during a storm?
• How well are Scott and Rubio making their points? What else could convince people to leave a vulnerable area?

How Naked Is Naked Juice?

Is Naked juice really "healthy" and worth the money? A lawsuit filed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest says Pepsi is misleading consumers with some of its claims.

On the packaging, Pepsi promotes the juice as having "no added sugar" and repeats words like kale, when the truth tells a different story. A 15-ounce bottle of Naked contains eight teaspoons of sugar; compare that to a 16-ounce soda, which has about 12 teaspoons. The company's Kale Blazer certainly emphasizes kale on its label, but the primary ingredients are apple and orange juice, cheap products that don't justify the price consumers pay, according to the lawsuit. 

In addition to these misleading statements, the CSPI is faulting Pepsi for not labeling the drinks, "not a low-calorie food," which is required by the FDA when consumers could think otherwise.

Pepsi has responded to the lawsuit:

"Any sugar present in Naked Juice products comes from the fruits and/or vegetables contained within and the sugar content is clearly reflected on label for all consumers to see. Every bottle of Naked Juice clearly identifies the fruit and vegetables that are within."

This isn't Naked's first challenge. In 2013, Pepsi paid $9 million for calling the product "all natural." 

Discussion Starters:

• Do you agree more with the lawsuit or with Pepsi's response?
• What's the difference between sugar from fruit and added sugar? How much does this distinction matter?
• If the lawsuit is successful, how should Pepsi change the labels on its Naked products?

Legal Briefs Get (a Little) Shorter

Legal writing isn't business writing. Judges have argued for briefer briefs, but not everyone agrees. Currently, these documents, which detail arguments in a legal case, max out at 14,000 words or about 57 pages of double-spaced text. Lawyers contend that they need more space but have agreed to reduce the number of words by 1,000, which is 1,500 fewer words than the original proposal.

Before lawyers had a word limit for briefs, they had a page limit. But the 50-page limit frustrated judges because lawyers would simply reduce the font size and page margins, making reading difficult.

According to a Wall Street Journal report last year, judges (no surprise) prefer reading shorter briefs: 

"It's hard to persuade lawyers on this point, says Bryan Garner, editor of Black's Law Dictionary. "They don't like to own up to their own diffuseness and verbosity," he said. "The way judges rebel at aimless verbose writing is they simply stop reading. The scarcest resource in any judge chamber is a judge's attention." 

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas confirmed the sentiment: "When you see one that's 50, and you see this guy has crammed every square centimeter or millimeter he could find on the page, that's when you say, my goodness!"

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• What are the value and downsides of having word limits for legal briefs?
• Do you buy lawyers' arguments that they need more words to present their case? Why or why not?
• What types of business documents (other than writing for classes) have page or word limits?

Amazon Cancels Incentivized Reviews

In a blog post, Amazon announced the end of incentivized reviews.

Although the incentives were limited to customers who disclosed that they received a free or discounted product, the reviews were sponsored by companies, and Amazon will change that. Putting the reviews in perspective, Amazon wrote, "These so-called ‘incentivized reviews' make up only a tiny fraction of the tens of millions of reviews on Amazon, and when done carefully, they can be helpful to customers by providing a foundation of reviews for new or less well-known products."

The move is part of Amazon's goal of increasing trust in reviews. In the past, incentivized reviews meant better reviews: 4.74 stars out of 5 compared to 4.36.

Amazon will continue its Vine program, which encourages reviews but doesn't have the same reward system:

"Amazon – not the vendor or seller – identifies and invites trusted and helpful reviewers on Amazon to post opinions about new and pre-release products; we do not incentivise positive star ratings, attempt to influence the content of reviews, or even require a review to be written; and we limit the total number of Vine reviews that we display for each product."

Discussion Starters:

• Analyze Chee Chew's blog post. Who are the primary and secondary audiences? What are the communications objectives, and how well does Chew achieve them? 
• How would you describe the distinctions between the incentivized reviews and the Vine program? Are you convinced that Vine reviews will be objective?

More Trouble for Wells Fargo

In what The Wall Street Journal called "another round of blistering criticism," Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf faced the House Financial Services Committee on Thursday. If Elizabeth Warren didn't challenge Stumpf enough last week during the Senate Banking Committee Hearing, Chairman Jeb Hensarling stated early on, in his opening statement, "Fraud is fraud. Theft is theft."

He also said, "All culpable individuals must be held accountable." Earlier in the week, Stumpf was criticized for firing low-level employees but retaining managers. For the first time, Stumpf said that "10% or more" of the 5,300 employees fired were branch managers, but that didn't seem to soothe the committee members. Others expressed enthusiasm for the $41 million clawback (money recovered from Stumpf's compensation), said he should be fired, and encouraged the break-up of Wells Fargo.

Jeff Sonnenfeld, A Yale University School of Management professor, called Stumpf "completely unprepared" and called the scene "political theater."

To make matters worse for Wells Fargo, the bank will pay $24 million in settlements for "allegedly improper repossessions of cars belonging to members of the U.S. military."

Discussion Starters:

• How well did Hensarling introduce the hearings? Did you find him too harsh, right on target, or something else?
• Sonnenfeld also says Stumpf wasn't prepared for questions. Do you agree with his assessment?
• What were Stumpf's strongest and weakest points?