Don’t date your staff, especially if you are the boss. Hewlett Packard ex-boss Mark Hurd found this out the hard way after his affiar went sour with a marketing contractor. Companies often have internal staff policies that prohibit or discourage employees from dating especially where there is a power imbalance. The reasons are multiple but one of them is evident in Mark Hurd’s story. After he ended the affair she then cried “sexual harassment!” the company investigated and found he was not guilty of sexual harassment but instead discovered he had inappropriately spent company money on her and then then tried to cover it up. I have no sympathy for Mark. He knew the rules, broke them and then tried to cover it up. It is unfortunate that he threw his career away over money and sex when he was paid more than $26 million in salary, stocks and bonuses in 2009-how much is enough Mark?
Don’t Date Your Staff-ask Hewlett Packard Boss
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