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Comment by rapsey | Hacker News Reader

This completely unrealistic. CEOs will always defend the company. That is their job.

Their job is to maximize shareholder value. Which could certainly be accomplished in some cases by forthrightly admitting to wrongdoing. The problem is that almost invariably this action immediately precedes said CEO deciding to spend more time with his/her family.

Forthrightly admitting to wrongdoing might impact the lawsuits.

Their job is to maximize shareholder value.

This is false. A CEO's job is to run the company. The Board's job is to protect a shareholder's investment, which does not mean maximizing it.

The lie that a CEO's job is to maximize shareholder's value didn't become a popular meme until CEOs were suddenly awarded large stock compensation grants during the Reagan era, and is entirely about CEOs maximizing their personal holdings to the detriment of every other shareholder.

This is wrong. CEOs have wide latitude to decide how to maximize value, and how to measure value, but that is still their job.

CEOs raiding short term coffers is a different issue.

OK sure, but over what time frame should shareholder value be maximized? A quarter, a year, several years? The strategies might look quite different.

Definitely. However, managing public relations and the image of the company, maintaining customer relationships is also CEO’s job.

A Japanese CEO crying and bowing in silence is defending the company and the brand.

This is defending the short term stock value and nothing else.

Why? The crying is obviously fake. It's just a cultural gimmick like USA's "I apologize if anyone felt hurt by what they thought we did." Crocodile tears and calisthenics don't bring back the dead or prevent future deaths.

Fake or not, it’s the symbol of total and unconditional responsibility towards their customers, not their shareholders.

Unfortunately the rest of us do not live in a culture where this is a valid course of action and like I said, criticizing a CEO for not doing it is unrealistic.

Our media is much more attack based, stock value much more tied to positive media coverage and legal proceedings against the company much more likely.

How do you know it is fake?

And he failed at it, since he lost the confidence of the room after he spoke.

There are many strategies you can choose from to defend your company. Not just "we're cool guys".

CEOs job is to protect reputation of the company. There are times when honestly owning your mistakes is better for reputation than pathetic attempts to save face.

Defend in what sense?

In defending what made the company great, or just the share price?

It was not written that he was defending the company, but depending their position. Not the same.

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