3. PagerDuty
HR fail: Quoting a civil rights leader
What happened?
PagerDuty CEO Jennifer Tejada last January emailed all “Dutonians” to inform them that the SaaS outfit was eliminating around 7% of roles globally.
This was necessary to “weather today’s economic uncertainty and succeed over the long term”, she said.
Coming at the height of the tech jobs bloodbath, there was nothing that unusual about her missive… that was before she opted to quote Martin Luther King Jr in the 23rd paragraph.
Why the backlash?
Tejada’s questionable decision to evoke a civil rights leader stuck in the crore of some, with digital media strategist Elizabeth Spiers reportedly branding the email a “new low bar for a layoff announcement”. Others criticised its breezy tone and sprawling nature (the layoffs weren’t mentioned until well down the email).
Tejada apologised three days later, acknowledging that the quote she included was “inappropriate and insensitive”.
“I should have been more upfront about the layoffs in the email, more thoughtful about my tone, and more concise. I am sorry,” she wrote.
Controversial quote
“I am reminded in moments like this, of something Martin Luther King said, that ‘the ultimate measure of a [leader] is not where [they] stand in the moments of comfort and convenience, but where [they] stand in times of challenge and controversy’.”
Blowback rating: 8/10
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