Skip to content

2 December, 2023

Subscribe Advertise About Us
  • My Account
  • Register
  • Log In
  • Log Out

Board Agenda

  • Governance
  • Strategy
  • Risk
  • Ethics
  • News
    • Categories

      • View All
      • Board Moves
    • FCA rules

      News round-up: this week in governance

      New FCA rules on ESG claims; psychologically safe board communications; IT and governance; how workers...

    • Proxy adviser warns LSE Proxy adviser warns LSE over governance

      Abolishing the public register of shareholder revolts ‘won’t stop capital providers exercising their democratic rights’,...

    • sustainability governance Sustainability governance is on the rise

      But despite greater corporate attention being paid to ESG, directors’ engagement with it is losing...

  • Insight
    • Categories

      • View all
      • Governance
      • Strategy
      • Risk
      • Ethics
      • Board Expertise
      • finance
      • Technology
    • purpose statement

      On purpose: crafting an authentic statement

      Purpose statements define how organisations align purpose and people. Here’s how to make a statement...

    • first-time CFO

      How to succeed as a first-time CFO

      The remit and responsibilities of the chief financial officer have changed, which can seem daunting...

    • ethical culture

      How to embed an ethical culture

      Business success depends on purpose—and therefore ethics—being the top item on any organisation’s board agenda.

  • Comment
      • View all
    • uk corporate governance

      Why UK corporate governance needs tightening up

      The LSE’s response to the government’s panicky U-turn on governance regulation is not helpful to...

    • faith in the UK Audit reform is essential to restore faith in the UK

      When it comes to understanding what attracts investors to a capital market, the London Stock...

    • U-turn on audit reform An uncomfortable U-turn on audit reform

      The government’s bonfire of the regulations expected for audit reform creates a source of uncertainty...

  • Interviews
      • View All Interviews
      • Podcasts
      • Webinars
    • reporting elements Boards urged to retain ‘beneficial’ reporting elements

      Although the government cancelled the requirement, resilience disclosures ‘cannot be wasted effort’, says senior auditco...

    • energy transition Collaboration is key to UK energy transition

      Communication, innovation and engagement are needed for the move to net zero, an expert panel...

    • helle bank jorgensen Helle Bank Jørgensen on governance, ESG and how board directors can become stewards of the future

      In spite of ESG toxicity in the US, she remains optimistic that companies are working...

  • Careers
      • View all
      • Selection
      • Board Moves
    • gender diversity study Academics criticise BlackRock gender diversity research

      Its methodology came under fire, with some critics also pointing out it was wrong to...

    • diversity of thought How to boost diversity of thought

      Companies benefit from diverse workforces, but also from having the input of different opinions and...

    • minority NED Number of minority NEDs drops

      Although there is some progress in diversity in other board roles, research suggests that boards...

  • Resource Centre
      • White Paper Downloads
      • Book Reviews
      • Corporate & Advisory Services
    • Risk Map: Top Risks 2024

      Control Risks' Top Risks for 2024 cut across the geopolitical, security, operational, regulatory, and cyber/digital...

    • A Director’s Guide to Conducting Internal Investigations 2023

      An internal investigation must be handled meticulously to avoid legal exposure, regulatory or criminal prosecution...

    • Spencer Stuart UK Board Index Highlights 2023 cover

      Spencer Stuart UK Board Index Highlights 2023

      The 2023 UK Spencer Stuart Board Index is a review of board composition and governance...

  • Events
  • Search by topic
    • Governance
    • Strategy
    • Risk
    • Ethics
    • Regulation
    • ESG
    • Investor Relations
    • Selection
    • Board Expertise
    • finance
    • Technology

Ted Baker: ‘Hugging’ and making employees heard

by Kevin Reed on December 10, 2018

The Ted Baker controversy over “hugging” has raised questions about ethics, whistleblowing and how boards tap into company knowledge.

Ted Baker

Photo: Shutterstock

Last Friday fashion retailer Ted Baker revealed it had removed a “hug zone”. Formerly situated near the desk of founder Ray Kelvin, the sign on the floor was taken away.

Its presence would be almost laughable, even considered a hipster folly, but the removal represents the seriousness with which its board is taking allegations of the founder’s inappropriate behaviour towards staff.

Law firm Herbert Smith Freehills is to conduct an investigation into the allegations, which will report back to a number of Ted Baker non-executives led by Sharon Baylay.

The situation raises familiar issues of how strong and influential leaders can set a culture that can exist for a long time before being questioned, and the responsibilities other board members have in understanding and accepting, or questioning, such a culture.

Forced hugging

At Ted Baker, nearly 2,500 staff signed a petition requesting so-called “forced hugging” to end.

“It is like most other ethical issues—you know it when you see it,” says professor Mollie Painter, head of the Responsible and Sustainable Business Lab at Nottingham Business School. “And judging by this large petition, many saw it.”

“Sexual harassment is well defined as any kind of behaviour that leads to a hostile working environment, and employees’ discomfort with a ‘hugging-culture’ is something that managers should have picked up on.”

“…employees’ discomfort with a ‘hugging-culture’ is something that managers should have picked up on.”

–Mollie Painter, Nottingham Business School

Others suggest there must be a lack of systems and processes in place to allow employees to discuss matters of concern, alongside ignoring concerns raised.

“My main thought is that they are clearly not asking employees about inappropriate behaviours in a way that is eliciting what they need to know,” says Randall S. Peterson, professor of organisational behaviour and academic director of the Leadership Institute, London Business School.

While it’s important for the board to have a mechanism in place to identify ethical issues, Painter believes it’s more effective to use a wider group of staff to help deal with ethics, “to be the eyes and the ears across the organisation”.

But being the first to confront an issue, to be the whistleblower, is still extremely difficult—even with policies in place, says professor Randall.

“Unfortunately, they too often don’t work, because even when the organisation refrains from reprisals, that does not stop a lot of informal reprisals that limit careers and opportunities.”

Informal mechanisms

Recently, informal mechanisms of flagging up inappropriate behaviour have proved more effective than formal processes. This has been shown by the #MeToo social media campaign, taking aim at sexual harassment and entitlement, suggests professor Painter.

“The use of technology to bring these micro-actions to scale is also encouraging. #MeToo has been incredibly influential in emboldening employees’ voices even against the most powerful of leaders, and this will hopefully snowball even further,” says Painter.

“Once it is public,” says Randall, “lots of others then pile in and share—so we start to ask how others, the board, could not have known. Actually plenty of people did know, but no one wanted to be the person to confront because there are social costs for doing so.”

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail

Related Posts

  • UBS nominates Colm Kelleher and Lukas Gähwiler as chair and vice-chair
    November 23, 2021
    UBS sign

    Kelleher is a former president of Morgan Stanley, while Gähwiler currently serves as chair of the board of UBS Switzerland AG.

  • Twitter names new chief executive and chair
    December 6, 2021
    Twitter icon on a smartphone

    Chief technology officer Parag Agrawal takes over as chief executive officer, while Bret Taylor is appointed as chair of the board.

  • The Home Depot names Ted Decker as chief executive
    February 4, 2022
    Home Depot logo

    Decker takes over from current CEO and chair Craig Menear, who will continue to serve as chair of the board.

  • Carnival appoints Josh Weinstein as president and chief executive
    April 27, 2022
    New Carnival CEO Josh Weinstein

    Weinstein is the cruise company’s chief operations officer, and will take over from Arnold Donald in August.

For thoughtful journalism, expert insights on corporate governance and an extensive library of reports, guides and tools to help boards and directors navigate the complexities of their roles, subscribe to Board Agenda

ethics, Ray Kelvin, sexual misconduct, Ted Baker, whistleblowing

Search


Sign up to our Newsletter

Receive independent news, thoughtful journalism & expert insights about leadership, corporate governance & key boardroom issues straight to your inbox every week.

SIGN UP

Follow Us





Most Popular

  • Why UK corporate governance needs tightening up
  • Sustainability governance is on the rise
  • Proxy adviser warns LSE over governance
  • How to succeed as a first-time CFO
  • How to embed an ethical culture

Featured Partner Profile

Diligent

Diligent

Diligent Corporation, which was founded in 2001, is headquartered in New York, NY with a European HQ in London. Diligent’s modern governance platform empowers leaders and teams at every level of the organisation to digitally transform and create ...

Featured Partner Resources

Leadership ESG

Leadership in ESG Integration: a study into UK board oversight, implementation and disclosure

This research report is based on detailed response...
The Engagement Appeal: The Path to Inclusive Investor Engagement

The Engagement Appeal: The Path to Inclusive Investor Engagement

This is the inaugural white paper from The Engagem...
Mazars c-suite 2023

Mazars C-suite barometer 2023

The Mazars C-suite barometer is based on responses...

Stakeholder Engagement: A Roadmap for UK Plc Boards

This guide aims to provide directors and their col...

Digital Boards: How Technology Adoption is Driving Culture Change and Resiliency

Digital tools proved their worth to boards during ...
Leadership in AI report

Leadership in AI

This report from Board Agenda and Mazars, in assoc...

A Director's Guide to Conducting Internal Investigations 2023

An internal investigation must be handled meticulo...
 

ADVERTISE – FREE CORPORATE LISTING

FREE - Add your company profile to our Corporate & Advisory Directory.
ADD

ADVERTISE – PROMOTE YOUR REPORTS & WHITEPAPERS

FREE - Add your company profile to our Corporate & Advisory Directory.
Add Resource

Register Free

Register to receive free article views, selected resource downloads, and all the latest news alerts straight to your inbox. Register


  • Editors & Contributors
  • Editorial Advisory Board
  • Corporate & Advisory Services
  • Media Marketing Solutions
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • Board Director Network
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Sitemap
|

Copyright © 2023 Questor Media Group Ltd.

  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap