Petulant CEOs & The Big Miss

For one of the first times - in non-unionized, knowledge-based work that is - corporations are being forced to "deal" with the working conditions that their workers actually want rather than enforcing what the company (executives) believe is best. And it appears that CEO's aren't happy about it.

There are a number of shameful examples, but in the interest of brevity, let's just focus on Jamie Dimon. You know Jamie Dimon. The CEO of JPMorgan Chase. He's everywhere these days.

"JPMorgan Chase's CEO Jamie Dimon has the highest CEO pay ratio among banks, with his $84.4 million pay package coming in 917x higher than the company's median employee salary of $92,112."

"JPMorgan Chase's recent quarterly profits surged by 52%"

What's the background? He just asked senior bankers to come back to the office 5 days a week. And like everywhere else, workers pushed back on internal message boards saying the 700 word directive from Dimon was "tone deaf" and "not about collaboration."

What's his public stance on his people (from the JPMorgan Chase website)?

"People are our most important asset. The long–term growth and success of JPMorgan Chase depends on our ability to attract and retain our employees. Maintaining a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive is not only the smart thing to do — it’s the right thing to do."

But when unscripted on a conference call he was a little more unrestrained:

“We completely understand that some people don’t want to do it – they can not do it elsewhere.”

I clearly have no idea what it's like to run an organization with 297,000 employees. Or the scrutiny he's constantly under. Or having to keep your shit together on calls with annoying reporters. And I'm surely missing some critical information...

But, if you wanted to show your employees that you care about them "thriving" then wouldn't you want to consider making changes to address their concerns? You don't need to look far to find that more than 4 out of 5 people who have worked in hybrid models over the past 2 years want to retain them.

How about undertaking experiments with new operating practices and communicating that you don't have all the answers? How about modelling your willingness to listen, adapt and innovate like you ask of employees?

Maybe by listening and making changes you'll actually increase your corporate earnings and your outrageous pay packet!?

Maybe you try to tackle the issue of burnout currently affecting 42% of workers?

Why? Because, as you said, "it's the right thing to do."