In the wake of the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, companies are racing to enhance security measures for C-Suite leaders and making executive staff less visible on their websites. Dale Buckner, the CEO of Global Guardian, says, “Bottom of Form In the first several hours following the shooting, 47 companies contacted us requesting additional executive security.”
While I do not condone violence of any kind, these actions strike me as a band-aid approach to a much larger issue: Corporate Greed. C-Suite leaders would not need enhanced security measures if they did ‘what’s right’ vs. what’s most profitable, at the expense of their customers.
Some examples, include:
- Putting airplanes in flight while turning a blind eye to quality and safety standards.
- Charging $18,000 a month for a cancer drug.
- Opening millions of fake bank accounts without customer consent to meet aggressive sales targets.
- Ignoring warnings about the harmful impact of social media, focusing instead on maximizing revenue.
- Denying legitimate health insurance claims.
- Aggressive litigation against the little guys (farmers) and the promotion of controversial products that cause environmental damage.
- Increasing auto and home insurance premiums by double-digits in one year.
- Paying workers a low salary while executives make millions.
- Declaring there is no clear evidence that fast food and sugary drinks cause obesity, while giving away toys at restaurants to lure in children.
The phrase Don’t Poke the Bear means to not do something that might provoke someone into becoming angry or causing problems. If Corporate America focused more on not poking the bear, it would be able to focus less on enhancing security measures.
Do I understand that corporations exist to turn a profit for their shareholders? Yes, but I also believe that shareholder profitability does not have to come at the expense of the people that organizations claim to care about.
UnitedHealth Group profits hit $22 billion in 2023. If they had profited $11 billion and paid out $11 billion more in legitimate claims, how many customers would still be alive today? Ultimately, the true measure of a corporation’s success should be its ability to balance profitability with a genuine commitment to the well-being of the bears it serves.