In an effort to boost employee morale, Bjørn Gulden, CEO, Adidas, shared his number with 60,000 employees during an inaugural town hall. This move was aimed at boosting morale following the well-publicised crisis involving Kanye West, who, after making anti-semitic remarks, ended his partnership with the German sportswear giant in 2022.
The fallout led to job losses and a substantial inventory of unsold Yeezy shoes, prompting a statement from Adidas condemning antisemitism and hate speech.
Despite this public stance, internal challenges persisted, with employees expressing dissatisfaction about a perceived lack of transparency at the company, as noted by Gulden, a former professional soccer player who took the helm in January 2023, in a discussion with The Wall Street Journal. Therefore, in an effort to address these issues and simultaneously enhance staff motivation and sales, the CEO adopted an unconventional approach – providing his phone number to all Adidas employees.
During his conversation with the Journal, Gulden stated that people did call him ‘crazy’ for coming up with such an idea but he also highlighted how important it was to promote a culture of transparency at the leadership level that time.
In the subsequent weeks, the CEO received an influx of messages, reaching as high as 200 messages per week, with employees offering suggestions for improvements within the company. Nearly a year since this unprecedented move, Adidas is poised to return to profitability, according to the CEO’s statements to the Journal.
This positive trajectory is noteworthy, especially in comparison to challenges faced by competitors, with Adidas experiencing a 17.5 per cent increase in shares over the past year.
The CEO’s strategy of making himself easily accessible to employees for communication and feedback echoes a similar sentiment from other business leaders. Acknowledging the challenges after a tumultuous year marked by controversy surrounding antisemitic remarks, declining sales, and internal discontent, Gulden recognised the need for a turnaround. He identified a culture within the company that hindered progress and swiftly initiated changes at Adidas.
