In 2019, we reported on McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook and how his consensual affair with a subordinate caused the CEO to lose his job. He violated policy, he admitted it like a proper British gentleman, and ultimately, he walked away – ridiculously compensated – for his indiscretion. At the time, I “just knew” at least two things weren’t going to last for long.
On the plus side, I felt that if the gentleman in the custom suits, had fully admitted his one-time mistake, he might emerge from the tepid scandal ($40 million severance intact) and found an equally lucrative position with another firm.
To the negative, as a speaker who both virtually and in-person, speaks on sexual harassment and corporate ethics, something did not sit right with me. I have “known several Steve Easterbrook’s,” and I know their modus operandi, their method of operation. I speak to numerous audiences in an attempt to stem such unethical actions from taking place before they begin. As the then CEO of McDonald’s politely stepped down, I had a strong feeling we would hear from this again.
I Hate to Say So
Though scandals of this nature have onlookers who relish in the prurient, I know all too well it is not about sex but about power. I strongly felt that if Easterbrook got away with it once, chances are he pushed his behavior to the limit as do most sexual predators. My feelings have proven to be correct. I imagine McDonald’s management and investigative people agreed with me. They instinctively felt something was wrong.
In a breaking news story, McDonald’s has emerged with a blockbuster. Eight months after Easterbrook stepped down, and obviously, bitter at forking over $40 million, McDonald’s has announced it found that Easterbrook had sexual relationships with at least three additional employees sometime in 2018.
The investigation found that Easterbrook “concealed evidence and lied about his wrongdoing.”
To make matters worse (if that were possible), one of his alleged affairs was granted hundreds of thousands of dollars in stock. He apparently turned a consensual relationship into prostitution. I mean, why mince words here?
Any Shred of Doubt?
If there remained any shred of doubt about Easterbrook, it was destroyed after investigators found photographs as well as videos of naked women sent by Easterbrook as personal email attachments. These images included McDonald’s employees.
In his deception, of course, he lied to investigators by alleging that he had the one consensual relationship — and that was it. It is clear he lied.
The new CEO, Chris Kempczinski, said Easterbrook clearly “deviated from our values in different and far more extensive ways than we were aware when he left…this new information makes it clear that he lied and destroyed evidence regarding inappropriate personal behavior and should not have retained the contractual compensation he did upon his exit.”
Easterbrook worked for McDonald’s for close to twenty years. He gained in status and power. While he was credited with adding numerous innovations and significantly raising the stock price, his power base was built on sexual abuse, manipulation and deceit.
The company, boasting about 210,000 employees, has thrived because of the quality of their product and their employees, but did they operate in spite of Easterbrook’s ethics rather than because of it?
Within the organization the 54-year-old, former CEO, was undoubtedly a rock-star. He attracted women who were drawn to his power and his $16 million-dollar salary and benefits. He had the opportunity to entertain and “groom” those drawn to him. His need was not money or even “sex” but the need to constantly fuel his ego.
Why would he throw it all away? How could he rationalize his actions?
As with many rock-stars, he lived in an insular world. He reached the pinnacle of the $20 billion company and was essentially untouchable. That was his downfall. He was above ethics and thought there would be no consequences to his actions.
There are always consequences – sooner or later. Bottom line is that CEOs such as Steve Easterbrook need ethics training to remind them, if nothing else, that they can, and will fall, in a matter of hours after climbing for twenty years.
LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS!
