Politics is Poison

Three weeks ago your humble blogger commented how he, and millions of others, avoid talking about politics because such discussions often turn vitriolic. And to what end do we engage? Few people change their minds because of a half-hour conversation.

Most companies likewise avoid taking political positions, and their reasons are not emotional: they do not want to risk alienating a sizeable percentage of customers, and they do not want to be diverted from the main goal of building shareholder wealth.

Two of the most politically outspoken CEO's: Mark Cuban
and Elon Musk (Newsweek/Berezovsky and Catuffe)

Researchers have now discovered another risk of corporate political partisanship: Having a Politically Partisan CEO Can Lead to More Company Misconduct, Study Finds [bold added]

Companies with stridently political CEOs are more likely to engage in corporate misconduct, according to new research. And that’s true regardless of whether the leader leans conservative or liberal.

“It boils down to an elevated sense of self-worth and a degree of entitlement,” says Thomas Fewer, an assistant professor of strategic management at Rutgers University and the paper’s lead author.

He says people with strong political convictions tend to have an “us versus them” mentality that discounts the opinions of others, as well as an unwarranted sense of moral superiority. “They grant themselves a moral license,” through which they rationalize bad behavior, he says.

Speech may be free, but talk isn't cheap.