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AT&T CEO says he made a mistake in how he went about fixing company culture — but the viral memo wasn’t it

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CEO John Stankey said he made some missteps in addressing company culture at AT&T — and shed some new light on his internal memo that went viral.

The lengthy memo, which was first reported by Business Insider in August, described how the company was moving to a “more market-based culture,” setting off discourse about the state of workplace loyalty.

Stankey gave some insight into the goal behind the memo during a conversation at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council Summit on Tuesday.

When asked to name a mistake he’s made, Stankey said he was too slow to tackle the “culture evolution” that was needed. He said he put it among several areas of focus for the company and that instead he should’ve put it at the forefront and forced specific actions to make it happen.

Alan Murray, president of the WSJ Leadership Institute, suggested that was why Stanley sent that memo this year, rather than sooner.

“The memo shouldn’t be over-rotated on. It’s one of a series of steps in trying to put a framework out there and remove excuses for leaders to lead,” Stankey said, adding the memo gave context on the framework he was building for the business.

“That memo outlined my point of view on it, and it gives leaders that want to lead all the air cover in the world they need to go and execute around that framework,” he said.

AT&T has undergone a number of changes as a company in the past year, including a return-to-office mandate of five days a week.

In the memo to employees, Stankey effectively said they should get on board with changes to the company culture, or get out.

“We run a dynamic, customer-facing business, tackling large-scale, challenging initiatives,” Stankey said in the memo. “If the requirements dictated by this dynamic do not align to your personal desires, you have every right to find a career opportunity that is suitable to your aspirations and needs.”

At the event on Tuesday, Stankey also outlined how AT&T is pushing employees to adopt AI. He said the company has tutorials and other educational tools for employees to upskill with AI, and that he’s paying attention to who is using them.

“I want to see who’s building their skill set, where they’re building, and this is just the next set of skills that people are going to have to have,” he said.




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This company gives away free trips and luxury cars to its top employees every year

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Companies are getting creative with rewarding standout workers, but few are giving out $170,000 luxury cars or cruises to the Bahamas.

ThreatLocker, an Orlando-based cybersecurity firm with about 700 employees, gives luxury cars to its two most collaborative workers at its annual holiday party, the company told Business Insider.

The firm, which also has offices in Dublin, Dubai, and Australia, receives hundreds of votes each month for the two most helpful employees — one in the US, and one abroad. It flies in its international workers in for the holiday party.

Additionally, every manager votes for the best performer on their team that month. At the end of the year, the total votes for the top performer and the most helpful employee are combined to determine the two car recipients, the company said.

The firm usually awards an electric model, but has also handed out a $125,000 Porsche Panamera. The company hasn’t announced its car for this year yet, but told Business Insider one of the models is worth $173,000.

The tradition began in 2021 as a prize for the top performer, but CEO Danny Jenkins said it created a “dog-eat-dog” work environment. In the cybersecurity industry, teamwork is crucial to the company’s success, he said. Jenkins said the firm operates 24 hours a day with an average pick-up time of 23 seconds for any customer support issue, and colleagues need to work together to achieve that.

“Everything we do is with this matter of urgency,” Jenkins said. “So if you don’t have this teamwork where people are willing to get on a call at 2 a.m. in the morning and help each other and collaborate, then it doesn’t work.”

Jenkins said he works about 100 hours a week, and he keeps his phone on 24/7 in case issues arise.

Retaining the top

AI development has led to a boom in the cybersecurity industry, resulting in heightened demand for qualified talent. Jenkins said the company has never done layoffs and is currently hiring 40 to 50 people a month.

“I’d like to be in a situation where I don’t feel like we’re drowning because we’re constantly struggling to hire and onboard people fast enough,” said Jenkins.

That makes it all the more worthwhile to retain top talent and those who contribute to a strong culture.

He said that before the car winners are announced, between 14 and 16 runner-ups are honored in front of the company, and then offered a spot on a fully paid long-weekend getaway.

Jenkins said the trip has included a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas, as well as trips to Boston or New York. The group typically includes employees from various departments, and they all receive a spending budget of $2,500 on their trip, he said.

ThreatLocker also offers other perks to standout employees. Jenkins said that most employees work 40-hour workweeks, but sometimes teams may have to put in 18 or 19 hours straight to address an issue. Jenkins said when workers push through tight deadlines or go above and beyond, the company may reward them with court-side seats at games in the Orlando Kia Center, where the company has a permanent box.

Jenkins said the trip and car giveaway have bolstered employee success and that no car recipient has ever left the company.




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Luxury tycoon Bernard Arnault just put one of his sons in charge of an LVMH holding company

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Luxury goods mogul Bernard Arnault is the world’s richest person.



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Bernard Arnault’s fourth child has been named head of one of the family’s holding companies that control luxury giant LVMH.

Frédéric Arnault, a 29-year-old, was also appointed to the LVMH board alongside his brother Alexandre in April. Those additions mean four out of Arnault’s five children now sit on the LVMH board.

Arnault is currently the world’s richest person with a net worth of about $215 billion, according to estimates by Bloomberg. In 2023, he became only the third person to surpass the $200 billion mark, following tech moguls Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk.

Arnault cofounded LVMH in the 1980s and is its CEO and chair. The French luxury conglomerate owns a range of brands covering fashion, perfume, jewelry, watches, and alcohol, including Louis Vuitton, Dior, Marc Jacobs, Givenchy, Moët & Chandon, Fenty Beauty, and Tiffany & Co.

In February 2023, Arnault’s daughter, Delphine Arnault, became CEO of Dior. But it’s not just Delphine who has risen up LVMH’s ranks. All four of Bernard’s sons work at LVMH and its brands, too.

Bernard, 75, has not said who he wants to take over from him, but it’s a topic that gets discussed every time he gives one of his offspring a new role. In 2022 LVMH raised the age limit of its CEO from 75 to 80, extending Bernard’s possible tenure.

“The best person inside the family or outside the family should be one day my successor,” Bernard told The New York Times in September. “But it’s not something that I hope is a duel for the near future.”

Bernard has primed his children for leadership roles at the company since birth, though they say he never forced them to join LVMH. His offspring were sent to the best schools and as children would get quizzed on their math skills nearly every night, The Times reported.

“I didn’t want them to start going to big parties,” Bernard said of his children. “I made them work.”

The Arnault family has been compared to HBO series “Succession,” which sees the children of media mogul Logan Roy vying to take over as CEO.

“I know it’s disappointing for a lot of people,” Antoine Arnault, Bernard’s oldest son, told The Times, “but we actually get on well.”

Delphine and Antoine already sit on LVMH’s board, leaving only Jean — the youngest of the siblings — off the board.


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