Estée Lauder Terminates Top Executive After Racist Post

Last week Estée Lauder terminated executive John Demsey after Demsey posted an Instagram post that included a racial slur and reference to the coronavirus. Demsey was placed on unpaid leave for an unspecified time period directly following the Instagram post, which was posted on February 21. This post came after a past post from Demsey, which has now been removed, that also included racist content. Estée Lauder has aimed its efforts in the past two years to focus on deepening diversity and inclusion within the company’s labor force.

Demsey apologized on February 25 publicly on Instagram. Demsey apologized for “the horrible mistake of carelessly reposting a racist meme without reading it beforehand.”Demsey didn’t respond when asked to comment from a media outlet. Executive Chairman William P. Lauder and Chief Executive Officer Fabrizio Freda released a statement a week after the post to all Estée Lauder employees as well as published it on the company’s website. The statement condemned Demsey’s post and the message it sent/values it reflected. The statement expressed the company’s sorrow for the harm the post caused, as well as explained how this post was not reflective of Estée Lauder nor the company’s values, mission, and goals.

Estée Lauder was hoping to apologize on behalf of one of their employees as employees can be viewed as a reflection of their company, as well as rebuild the company’s reputation. Estée Lauder is hoping to inform the public of the company’s core values and goals and reassure the public that Demsey’s post and his own personal thoughts and values do not align with Estée Lauder’s.

Estée Lauder is a multinational and higher-end skincare, makeup, fragrance, and hair care products company. Estée Lauder’s target audience is large; it includes individuals of various different races, ages, and genders. Estée Lauder was not only addressing their consumers and target audience, but also the general public as the content in Demsey's post likely offended a large number of individuals.

A principle that was present within this case was the idea that the more severe the incident, the higher the speaker needs to be; it shows the company is taking the incident seriously. This principle was present in the Dominos case in which the CEO responded to a crisis situation in order to reflect the serious manner in which Dominos was responding to the incident. In Estée Lauder’s situation, it was especially important the company responded with an appropriate and impactful figure since it was an executive who shared the offensive meme. While Estée Lauder and Dominos took the right steps by having the executive chairman and CEO release a statement to the public, any response from Estée Lauder was partly discredited by Demsey’s personal apology, in which he stated he didn’t read the text of the meme. One of the most important aspects of approaching a crisis situation is apologizing for any harm caused to any individuals and taking responsibility for your own actions. This is where the Dominos case differentiates from the Estée Lauder case: the individuals involved in the Dominos crisis, despite their low position in the company, took full responsibility for their actions and even provided clarity to the incident by confirming no mishandled food was distributed to customers. The doubt surrounding Demsey’s transparency in his apology, combined with the fact that he’s a repeat offender for posting insensitive and offensive content on social media, makes it hard for individuals to believe Demsey was genuinely regretful for sharing this type of content and the harm it caused. Ultimately, the attitude and actions of a former top Estée Lauder executive may cause individuals to question the culture of Estée Lauder and the company’s values, and cause consumers to boycott the company’s products in response. In comparison, the Dominos crisis was seen by many as an isolated incident and was soon forgotten by the public and customers.

Another key principle I took from this case was the importance of being proactive, not reactive in crisis situations. The message Demsey’s personal response sent to individuals, many of which may or may not have seen his post, likely upset or infuriated individuals more. It seems highly unlikely Demsey would share a meme without reading it, so for the first response to this situation to be seen by many as inaccurate or a lie likely fueled the distaste for Demsey, and Estée Lauder, even more. While an apology from Demsey was appropriate and expected, Estée Lauder should’ve had more control over the situation and taken more of an initiative to regulate Demsey’s social media platforms knowing the past harm they have caused. It’s important for companies to understand the responsibility they have in regulating a crisis situation, which includes ensuring it doesn't get any worse, which in Estée Lauder’s case it did by the company’s lack of surveillance and proactivity.

I was very shocked and intrigued by this case. I couldn’t believe that an individual, more specifically an executive, within a company that advocates for diversity the way that Estée Lauder has in recent years was capable of publicly sharing a racist meme, not only because of the reflection it gives of himself but also the social awareness he lacks. In addition, I believe mentioning COVID-19 in a joking manner can be very offensive and viewed as insensitive by a lot of individuals, many of whom may have lost someone to the virus. Initially, this incident made me lose interest in and loyalty to Estée Lauder as a cosmetics brand, but part of my faith in the company was restored after the steps the company took in response to Demsey’s actions, which ultimately ended in unpaid leave and then termination. I think Demsey is a poor representation of Estée Lauder, but this situation should also be used as a lesson for the company and a wake up call that they may need to reconsider the policies and protocols they have in place regarding diversity inclusion and racial discrimination.