Times have been tougher in in the workplace in 2022 and 2023 as companies and the labor force face high inflation, banks failures and job cuts. An office furniture company still reeling from the effects of COVID-19 is making headlines for comments made by its CEO over bonuses.
What Happened: Office furniture company Herman Miller acquired office and home furniture company Knoll in 2021. The company traded as MillerKnoll MLKN counts Andi Owen, who previously was the president and CEO of Herman Miller, as the president and CEO of the combined company.
Owen is making headlines for comments from an employee meeting held last month over Zoom.
One of the questions asked of Owen was concerning bonuses, which may not be paid out due to the company's financial struggles.
“[A] question about how can we stay motivated if we don’t get bonuses,” Owen said in a video clip from the meeting.
“The most important thing we can do right now is focus on the things we can control. None of us could’ve predicted COVID, none of us could’ve predicted supply chain, none of us could’ve predicted bank failures.”
Owen told employees they can provide the best customer service and stay in front of customers and also treat each other well, being kind and respectful to one another.
“Focus on the future, because it will be bright. It is going to get better.”
Owen's tone during the call was calm before the CEO raised her voice and began to sound defensive:
“Don’t ask about what are we gonna do if we don’t get a bonus, get the damn $26 million. Spend your time and your effort thinking about the $26 million we need and not thinking about what you’re gonna do if you don’t get a bonus.”
Owen asked if she can get a commitment from the employees on the call after her statements.
“I had an old boss who said to me one time, ‘you can visit pity city but you can’t live there.’ So people, leave pity city. Let’s get it done.”
Owen thanked the participants on the Zoom call and told them to have a great day, and appeared to raise her hands and make a dropping-the-mic motion.
The video has over 5 million views and a tweet of the video has been seen over 18 million times.
Related Link: Why MillerKnoll Shares Rose After Q2 Earnings
Why It’s Important: The video quickly went viral and people on social media were discussing if the comments were appropriate or tone deaf from the CEO as employees struggle with job cuts, lack of bonuses and higher inflation.
Owen received a salary of $1.1 million in fiscal 2022 and also received $3.9 million in stock awards and other compensation, according to SEC filings, as reported by CBS News.
Owen previously took home $6.4 million in salary and compensation in 2021. The average sales executive at MillerKnoll makes $150,000 annually, according to Glassdoor.
MillerKnoll told Vice the comments by Owen were taken “out of context.”
“Andi fiercely believes in this team and all we can accomplish together, and will not be dissuaded by a 90-second clip taken out of context and posted on social media,” MillerKnoll spokesperson Kris Marubio said.
Vice reports that the fiscal year for MillerKnoll has not ended and bonus decisions could still be made for employees and the company's CEO.
MillerKnoll reported third-quarter revenue of $984.7 million, which missed a Street estimate of $997.4 million, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The company’s guidance of fourth-quarter revenue ranging from $930 million to $970 million also fell shy of a $1.03-billion Street estimate.
The company has struggled with sales and orders as more companies adapt to remote work and hybrid work environments, with less of a need to spend on office furniture.
MLKN Price Action: MillerKnoll shares are down 2.68% to $18 Tuesday versus a range of $15.54 to $34.22 over the last 52 weeks. Shares of the company are down over 40% in the last year.
Photo via Pixabay.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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