Smart Business Magazine, June 2017

46 Smart Business Akron Canton June 2017 Visit Michael Feuers website www TipsFromTheTop info to learn more about his columns watch videos and purchase his books The Benevolent Dictator and Tips From The Top MICHAEL FEUER TIPS FROM THE TOP How to manage the need for fair full disclosure Knowing what you shouldnt say is as important as what you do say MICHAEL FEUER Co founded OfficeMax and in 16 years as CEO grew the retailer to sales of 5 billion in 1000 stores worldwide Today as founder CEO of Max Ventures his firm invests in and consults for retail businesses Serving on a number of boards Michael is a frequent national speaker and author of the business books The Benevolent Dictator and his newest book Tips from the Top His long running nationally syndicated Smart Business magazine column has received more than 10 awards for excellence mfeuer@ max ventures com Publicly held companies have been on notice since the Securities and Exchange Commissions October 2000 mandate known as Regulation Fair Disclosure that says companies have basically no choice but to comply with the law of the land prohibiting selective disclosure or giving anyone an unfair investment advantage For nonpublicly owned companies and organizations the need to provide full transparency is a bit murkier Unless a private company answers to no one and has no customers knowing when and how to communicate the good bad or ugly is paramount not only to success but in this age of social media and the internet a prerequisite for survival A company that tries to put its head in the sand in the face of adversity is likely to find itself forever buried in the sand However and this is a big however providing too much information too early can be just as bad as remaining mute Using common sense still is the best guideline for determining when information must be disseminated outside of a tightknit need to know inner circle A good rule of thumb is if you believe a public statement is essential for those who need to know something to make an informed decision then its simple Get the story out If its a matter that could jeopardize health and safety then communication speed is paramount even if the concern proves less significant than initially feared On the flip side if providing information will only cause confusion and lead others down the wrong path it is usually better to wait and either flush out the issues or remain silent because disclosure serves no purpose and worse may even do more harm than good As an example of the latter a company thinks its on the path to developing a new technique that will make the business dramatically more efficient and effective but will result in significant layoffs If at this point there is only a possibility that the technique will be become a reality prematurely divulging this in a public statement may come back to bite the company Employees will likely panic and customers will take it as a promise If further studies revel this mega innovation is a dud the organization has done itself a great disservice Once Pandoras box is opened even if the company says there will be no layoffs workers will always be waiting for the next shoe to drop Customers that were expecting a breakthrough will feel disappointed by what is now interpreted as a broken promise This reinforces what President Abraham Lincoln once said Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt Common sense is still the first gut check to use when deciding to make or not make full disclosure Many things are best left unsaid Today theres an unprecedented demand and need for full and fair disclosure aka transparency Be it the media investors politicians consumers or the government everybody wants information to make informed decisions which is generally a good thing