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CEOs Eat With Staffs for Unfiltered Insights
11 Oct
Summary
- CEOs sharing lunch gain unfiltered information from staff.
- Casual meals foster honesty about company policies and concerns.
- Leaders like Tim Cook and Duolingo's CTO practice this method.
CEOs are increasingly forgoing private dining to share meals with their employees, a practice aimed at fostering open communication and gaining unfiltered insights. Ancestry's CEO, Howard Hochhauser, adopted this habit from former Bear Stearns CEO Ace Greenberg, who famously ate among his staff. Hochhauser believes these informal lunches are crucial for accessing information that might otherwise be "wrapped in a bubble."
This approach allows leaders to gauge employee sentiment on policies, even during difficult announcements. Hochhauser found that employees felt comfortable expressing concerns about new in-office expectations during these lunches, appreciating the direct communication. The practice helps build consensus and offers a direct window into employee perspectives.
Other executives, including ABN Amro's CEO Marguerite Bérard and Duolingo's CTO Severin Hacker, also utilize shared meals to connect with their workforce. Tim Cook, when leading Apple, frequently joined employees in the company cafeteria. These leaders find that casual conversations over lunch provide more genuine feedback than formal surveys.
