lying in business case study

Corporate deception: where do we draw the line on lying at work?

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Rick Delbridge received funding from the Economic & Social Research Council in support of this research.

Sarah Jenkins received funding from the Economic & Social Research Council in support of this research. She is also a member of the Labour Party but does not feel that this influenced this research in any way.

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Lying is part of everyday life and has been since humans first interacted. Consequently, deception has been a focus for ethical and philosophical debates for many centuries.

There have been those who have perceived all deliberate deception as ethically wrong, such as Immanuel Kant , while others have sought to recognise the subtleties and complexities of human interactions and the ways in which “good” might come from deception. For example, Thomas Aquinas thought all lies were wrong , but that there was a hierarchy whereby some lies were “helpful” and so were pardonable.

When it comes to business, the general expectation is that managers should and will tell the truth in their dealings with employees and customers, but these are murky waters. Business leaders may be “economical” with the truth to protect competitive advantage or to limit damage to their organisation.

Recently, research into corporate scandals – such as those enveloping Enron and Volkswagen – and individual acts of whistleblowing have shed greater light on the shadiness of the business world. Though always at risk of exposure , large-scale fibs happen.

But what of the relatively mundane and everyday deception that takes place in the business world? Despite the ubiquity of lies in day-to-day life, relatively little explicit attention has been paid to deception in studies of organisations. Perhaps because it is so commonplace, lying often passes without comment. Indeed, the original intention of our research had nothing to do with lying at work: deception was something that we discovered as part of an in-depth study of a call centre, where our initial objective was to better understand work experiences and the nature of employee engagement.

We had heard a presentation from the co-owner describing how happy and motivated the workforce was. This did not resonate with past evidence on the nature of work in most call centres and we wanted to examine this assertion for ourselves – but it turned out to be true. Furthermore, through in-depth interviews with a majority of the employees and managers working in the company, it became clear that the shared experience of deception that the workers actively and collectively engaged in on an ongoing basis was at the heart of their commitment and enjoyment.

The company in question is a virtual personal assistant and reception services provider and its strategy is founded on providing a high quality, discreet professional service for its customers. The organisation exemplifies what has been described as “strategic deception”: a central feature is that receptionists conceal that theirs is a sub-contracted operation.

Individual receptionists receive calls on behalf of multiple clients located throughout the country and working in any industry sector. Part of the skill of the receptionists is to flit between “emotional performances”: one minute they could be answering a call on behalf of an events firm and the next for an undertaker.

Technology instantly allows the receptionists to see on a screen who is calling and for whom as they pick up the call. The competitive advantage enjoyed by this market-leading firm relied on the personalities and skills of their employees in meeting client needs, while obscuring the truth that they are neither employed by, nor located in the office of, the company that has been called.

The receptionists developed multiple ways in which they would hide this deceit: pretending to hold conversations with people who were not there, suggesting that the person was in “the other office”, or claiming to be a new recruit who did not have detailed knowledge of the organisation. On one occasion that passed into the company’s folklore, a receptionist pretended to be blind so as not to have to give directions to a work location that they had never been to but were assumed to be situated in.

The autonomy and collective sharing of ideas on how to lie successfully –- and in doing so maintain a discreet, high-quality service –- was reported by the receptionists as both empowering and enjoyable. Many reported that they had grown in self-confidence as a result of their work and laughed as they recounted to us how they “lied for a living”.

The organisation is doing nothing illegal by lying. In fact, one might conclude that these acts of deception are no more than white lies, or fall under Thomas Aquinas’ “helpful lies” category. Perhaps one might consider this everyday behaviour as little different to doctors lying to protect patients , or flight attendants lying to calm passengers. But there are at least two important differences here from those examples: the organisation had deception as a strategic aspect of their business plan, and the deception was intrinsic to the ongoing role of each employee.

Help or hindrance?

Here lies a bigger question: what about circumstances when such organisationally promoted and legitimated deception is not as minor and may result in significant harm to others? Our research shows how the normalisation of lying takes place and, through this process, how strategic deception at the organisational level becomes accepted and endorsed by employees. But at what stage should this lying be halted?

Though there certainly may be benefits for employees lying in the workplace, our study raises deeper questions about the ethical implications of organisations that require their employees to deceive. At the outsourced reception company, managers invoked the “positive virtues” of professionalism and customer care to legitimate lying to callers.

So what, if any, are the limits to such invocations? The ubiquity and strength of customer service and market discourses in our increasingly consumerist societies makes us wonder just how far employees might go in their acts of strategic deception.

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Lies and the Lying Entrepreneurs Who Tell Them

As we prepared a recent blog post about the fintech start-up Robin Hood , we noticed that a worrisome number of articles have been published in recent years about lying by entrepreneurs.

Many of them recount stories of entrepreneurs’ telling brazen lies to save their companies.

• Gary Hirshberg (Stonyfield Farm) told the SBA that he had a bank willing to provide a loan and just needed the SBA to agree to guarantee it. There was no such loan, but the SBA agreed and a loan came later, saving Stonyfield Farm.
• Shane Smith (Vice Media) sent a few copies of his company’s publication to a store in Miami and a store in L.A. and then told its potential advertisers that its readership was distributed all across America.
• Martha Lane Fox (Lastminute.com) simply invented customer testimonials to spark interest in her company.
• Phillipe Kahn (Borland International) and Anthony Byrne (Product2Market) created “Potemkin villages” by temporarily spiffing up their offices and bringing in people who pretended to be employees so that their companies would seem to potential partners and investors to be more substantial and impressive than they truly were.

While many of these articles and the entrepreneurs quoted in them condoned or even approved lying by entrepreneurs, we urge caution.

Is lying wrong? A deontological analysis would conclude that it is. “Don’t lie” is a universal moral law. Kant would not approve. Similarly, a virtue ethics approach would conclude that a virtuous person does not lie. Aristotle would not approve.

Those who condone or approve lying adopt utilitarian approaches that might or might not gain the approval of Mill and Bentham.

The key argument seems to be roughly: “I have a promising company. I’m employing people. By telling this lie to an investor who will put money into the firm, I am saving jobs and will eventually contribute to the economy.” This argument presents a best-case consequentialist scenario. The lie may succeed in saving the company and thereby creating benefits, though it is unclear whether those benefits will outweigh the costs. Had the truth been told, the investor might well have chosen to invest in a different, more promising company, saving more jobs and creating greater growth. And such lies undermine trust in the economy, and trust is the very foundation of economic prosperity.

There’s no way to know with certainty which path would have created the greatest good for the greatest number (which, by itself, is a good argument for applying a deontological approach), but it is clear that both the  overconfidence bias and the  self-serving bias will often lead entrepreneurs to unrealistic appraisals of their companies’ chances to succeed or even to survive.

Furthermore, this same argument could be used to argue that robbing a bank or embezzling from a large company could be justified because the entrepreneur intends to use the proceeds of these crimes to save a promising start-up.

Capital should not flow to the most brazen and/or convincing liar. Unfortunately, even sophisticated and experienced investors can fall for a lie well told. As Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller demonstrated in his book Narrative Economics , convincingly told stories often have greater impacts on people’s economic decisions than all the Excel spreadsheets and certified financial statements in the world. Elizabeth Holmes (Theranos) and Adam Neumann (WeWork) provide unfortunate examples. Ultimately, their lies saved no jobs and contributed little to the economy other than distorting the efficient flow of capital.

The rationalizations contained in these various articles show on their face how lame the excuses for lying often are. One entrepreneur indicated that it’s okay to tell investors that there is lots of interest in funding your idea when there is not, but it would be going too far to say that you already had a term sheet. (Hill) Huh?

Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield Farm didn’t feel he was lying because “look–you beg, borrow, steal, stretch. You do what’s necessary.” (Feifer) Even robbing a bank?

Hirshberg also argued that “everybody does it.” This is a dangerous point of view, because it gives rise to the conformity bias  where nothing seems wrong if everyone is doing it. Lance Armstrong told Oprah Winfrey that because he thought everyone in the Tour de France was doping, doping didn’t seem wrong at the time. Unfortunately, what happens is those who wish to lie tend to conclude that lying is more widespread than it actually is, creating their own justification.

Feifer quotes professor Tomas Chamarro-Premuzic as giving this guidance to entrepreneurs:

Treat lying as a tool to be used in very particular moments. It cannot result in harm to individuals. It must lead to an opportunity you can genuinely succeed in. And very critically, it cannot become a foundation you build on with other lies.

We at Ethics Unwrapped view this as unrealistic advice. Combined, the overconfidence bias and the self-serving bias will often lead entrepreneurs to unrealistically conclude that of course they can genuinely succeed! Of course, they can build a profitable business and pay investors back. That is certainly what Elizabeth Holmes and Adam Neumann thought. They were wrong! And, equally worrisome, the phenomenon of incrementalism makes it exceptionally likely that those initial lies will become the source for a fountain of additional lies. Again, ask Elizabeth and Adam.

We are pleased that the view of professors Jensen, Byers, Dunham, and Fjeld in their recent Harvard Business Review article aligns well with ours:

It may be tempting to think that departures from the truth are just part of doing business—that we operate in a no-holds-barred capitalist arena in which all contestants are responsible for their own welfare and know the rules of the game. Unfortunately, such cynicism feeds on itself; when we encounter dishonesty or scandal, we become disillusioned and are more likely to engage in such behavior ourselves.

In other words, honesty is the best policy.

Robbie Allen, “15 Lies Every Entrepreneur Tells,” Medium , Feb. 6, 2020, at https://robbieallen.medium.com/15-lies-every-entrepreneur-tells-daaec2c9cf86 .

Dan Cooper, “All Entrepreneurs are Liars, and It’s Stifling Your Company: Five Ways that Entrepreneurs Are Lying to Themselves and to You,” ColoradoBIZ , Oct. 1, 2019, at https://www.cobizmag.com/all-entrepreneurs-are-liars-and-its-stifling-your-company/ .

Charles Duhigg, “Cool Story, Bro,” New Yorker , June 7, 2021.

Jason Feifer, “Should Entrepreneurs Lie? It’s a Tricky Question,” Entrepreneur , Oct. 31, 2018, at https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/321494 .

Irene Finel-Honigman, A Cultural History of Finance (2010).

Andrew Hill, “Do Not Expect the Whole Truth—Entrepreneurs Bluff all the Time,” Financial Times , June 17, 2018, at https://www.ft.com/content/c7f53cfc-7072-11e8-852d-d8b934ff5ffa .

Daniel Isenberg, “Should Entrepreneurs Lie?,” Harvard Business Review , April 8, 2010, at https://hbr.org/2010/04/is-it-ok-for-entrepreneurs-lie .

Kyle Jensen, Tom Byers, Laura Dunham & Jon Fjeld, ”Entrepreneurs and the Truth,” Harvard Business Review , July-Aug. 2021, at https://hbr.org/2021/07/entrepreneurs-and-the-truth .

Tom Kulzer, “The Lies Entrepreneurs Tell Themselves and Others,” Entrepreneur , Feb. 21, 2014, at https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/231675 .

Gene Marks, “5 Lies That Come Out of Entrepreneurs’ Mouths,” Entrepreneur , Mar. 21, 2014, at https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/5-lies-come-out-entrepreneurs-mouths-wbna54742670 .

Robert Shiller, Narrative Economics (2019).

Conformity Bias: https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/video/conformity-bias

Incrementalism: https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/video/incrementalism

Overconfidence Bias: https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/video/overconfidence-bias

Self-serving Bias: https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/video/self-serving-bias

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Lying in Business: Insights from Hannah Arendt’s 'Lying in Politics'

CentER Discussion Paper Series No. 2010-75

24 Pages Posted: 30 Jul 2010

Piet Eenkhoorn

Johan Graafland

Tilburg University - Center for Economic Research

Date Written: July 1, 2010

The famous political philosopher Hannah Arendt develops several arguments why truthfulness cannot be counted among the political virtues. This article shows that similar arguments apply to lying in business. Based on Hannah Arendt’s theory, we distinguish five reasons why lying is a structural temptation in business: business is about action to change the world and therefore businessmen need the capacity to deny current reality; commerce requires successful image-making and liars have the advantage to come up with plausible stories; business communication is more often about opinions than about facts, giving leeway to ignore uncomfortable signals; business increasingly makes use of plans and models, but these techniques foster inflexibility in acknowledging the real facts; businessmen fall easily prey to self-deception, because one needs to act as if the vision already materializes. The theory is illustrated by a case study of Landis that grew from a relative insignificant into a large organization within a short period of time, but ended with outright lies and bankruptcy.

Keywords: Lying, deceit in business, Hannah Arendt, image-making, self-deception, accounting fraud, politics and business, Landis

JEL Classification: D89, M14, M41

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

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Managerial Work and Lying: A Conceptual Framework and an Explorative Case Study

• Published: July 1999
• Volume 20 , pages 181–195, ( 1999 )

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• Tuomo Takala 1 &
• Jaana Urpilainen 1  

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In the last few years there has been a lot of fuzzy talk, scientific discourses and comments of business life about the values, ethics and social responsibility of companies. Companies are expected to have also some other tasks besides that of gaining profit. A part of the tasks which management has, except for thinking of the benefits of their own organization, are things which work for the well-being of the whole society. Issues like this are, among others, working for employment, taking care of the environment, and promoting consumer security.

While making decisions of their own action in the company, the management often has to face ethical solutions. The benefit of the company may be different from that of other business stakeholders. In this case, the manager has to decide for which part he should act, for the company or for the stakeholders. The ethical problems in deciding may appear also inside the company. In our study, we are very interested in the decision-making processes which are connected with the honesty of the manager and his/her being honest with the stakeholders both inside and outside the company.

In our research, we have tried to create a framework which helps us to find out in what kind of situations a manager faces the problem whether he/she should tell the truth to the stakeholders or not. We have also studied the means which the managers use in their potential dishonesty. Further, we have tried to find out how the managers see themselves in situations where they cannot tell the truth or have to cover it.

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Takala, T., Urpilainen, J. Managerial Work and Lying: A Conceptual Framework and an Explorative Case Study. Journal of Business Ethics 20 , 181–195 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006089527770

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Consumer lies in the service encounter

Hannah snyder.

More than nine out of ten consumers admit that they have been lying during a service encounter. Why do we lie and what are the implications for consumers and businesses?

KNOWLEDGE @ BI: Consumer behaviour

Imagine a customer that has broken his new phone, a patient that is asked about how much alcohol she drinks or a customer at the hairdresser that does not particularly like their new haircut. Will these consumers speak the truth or will they lie?

If the consumer chooses to lie it can have major implications both for the businesses but also for the consumer.

Lying is a common aspect of all social relationships and is a significant part of our everyday life. The marketplace is not any different; it is well established in research that consumers do not always tell the truth. But what does this mean for businesses?

• Read also: Designing multisensory food experiences

Studying consumer lying

While both the business community and researchers have established that consumer lying is a problem with major consequences both for customers and for firms the debate about lying and other deviant consumers’ behaviors have often preceded data on the topic.

Therefore, we do not know the answers to basic questions such as how often, why, when and what customers lie about.

• Read also: Lady Gaga boosts sales when shop is full of customers

This was the focus on a recent research project that is a collaboration between BI, Lars Witell at Linköping University, Anders Gustafsson at Karlstad University and Janet McColl-Kennedy at The University of Queensland. Using a three-study, multimethod design, with a sample of 2060 consumers, this research investigates self -reported consumer lies in various contexts and situation.

On a more general level, we found that about 60 % of all customers admitted that they had lied during a service encounter when being asked directly. However, when presented with different examples or scenarios of customer lies, an astonishing 92 % admitted that they had engaged in such behavior at least one time.

This shows that consumer lying behavior is a recurrent theme in service encounters and that frontline employees need to deal with consumer lies on a daily basis

What do consumers lie about?

It seems that customers lie in all type of situations. Common context for consumer lying where retail stores, restaurants, medical services and other professional services such as financial or It-services.

Content of the lies included harmless “white lies” such as stating that you were satisfied with your meal when you in fact were not, changing the reason you where late to your driving lesson, exaggerating to the salesperson how often you run when buying new running shoes, omitting some relevant information on your regular health checkup to fabricating the reason why you are returning a product or lying about your age to get a cheaper ticket to a concert.

Often these lies where told to benefit yourself with the motive of gaining some reward, presenting your self in a more flattering way or avoid awkward situations or interactions with service employees.

However, consumers also lied to spare the feelings of the service employee or to make them feel better. The study also revealed that lying can have both emotional (such as getting angry or happy), behavioral (such as changing service provider) and financial effects for the customers (such as gaining some monetary value).

The impact of consumer lies on businesses

All in all, these results reveal some major implications for businesses.

First, white lies told by the customer often hide the fact that that the consumer does not like the meal at a restaurant or the service of a frontline employee.

In a short-term perspective, this is beneficial since the consumer does not complain or have to have their meal replaced. In fact, consumers might even give a higher amount or tip if they have lied during the service encounter. For the customer, they benefit from avoiding an awkward situation or unwanted conflict. However, in a long-term perspective this might hide a real problem that might impact satisfaction and results in lost customers.

In addition, customers often lie to benefit themselves, economically or emotionally when for example returning a product or meeting with a doctor. These lies might have substantial financial impact on businesses as they might favor dishonest claims but they can also result in providing the wrong service or product.

Last, consumers often lie to avoid interaction with the service provider. This is often to avoid to give service providers the opportunity to talk them into for example a subscription that they do not want.

While this might result in lost sales for the service provider, it is also important to note that these customers are among the most satisfied and loyal. Therefore, giving the customer the chance to avoid interaction might not be such a bad idea after all.

Reference: This article is published in BI Marketing Magazine 2018 . BI Marketing Magazine is a Science Communication Magazine published by the Department of Marketing at BI Norwegian Business School.

Published 2. July 2018

Designing multisensory food experiences

Every meal opens up a magnificent sensual world of colours, shapes, smells, textures, and sounds.

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Eight Ways in Which Lying Is Seen as Moral

• By Kasandra Brabaw
• September 14, 2022
• CBR - Behavioral Science
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A friend asks if you liked the soup she made. A colleague asks what you think of his suit. In moments such as these, telling the truth could harm someone’s feelings or self-esteem. Does that make lying seem like the right choice?

Research by Chicago Booth’s Emma Levine , focusing on this question, suggests that for many people, merely sparing someone’s feelings isn’t enough to justify lying. It is only when the truth causes “unnecessary harm” that most people find lying to be ethical.

“Unnecessary harm is a function of how much value the truth has in the long run, whether you can learn and grow from it, and how much emotional pain and suffering it will cost you,” Levine says. If telling the truth will cause someone emotional pain and suffering without leading to growth or long-term value, many think lying is justifiable.

For example, if your colleague in the ill-fitting suit is about to give an important presentation and cannot change first , many people think that answering truthfully would cause unnecessary harm. In situations such as this one, people believe lying is ethical, the research finds. What’s more, people also want to be lied to in these situations. “We think of deception as bad, but yet, we want people to deceive us all the time,” says Levine.

She conducted a series of experiments involving hundreds of participants to understand at a fundamental level how people make moral judgments about honesty and dishonesty. In one study, she gave participants a scenario in which a manager received a list of employees to lay off within the next month due to a company reorganization. When told that one of the employees on the list dropped in on a Friday afternoon for an update about the reorganization, just under 23 percent of participants said it would be acceptable for the manager to lie. But when told that the employee who dropped in was getting married the next day, the proportion endorsing deception more than doubled to 52 percent. In this case, they saw telling the truth—and disrupting the potential bliss of a wedding and honeymoon—as causing unnecessary harm, and therefore saw lying as ethical.

The research identifies eight “community standards of deception,” or situations in which the majority of respondents agreed it was ethical to lie. Many deemed it acceptable to lie to people who were emotionally fragile, near death, or would be confused by the truth. They also found it more ethical to lie when doing so would help others save face in public or concentrate on something important. Lies that were subjective or trivial were also considered in bounds, and those about a situation the recipient was ultimately unable to control.

The truth hurts, but it could be helpful

In a series of vignettes, study participants were more likely to approve of lying the lower the perceived value of telling the truth and the higher its perceived harm.

Participants in the experiments said they would value ethical deception both as the liars and as the people being lied to. In one study, Levine divided participants into three groups: communicators, third-party judges, and targets. No matter how participants were asked to view themselves—as the liar, the lied-to, or separate from the lie—a majority endorsed deception when the truth might cause considerable immediate harm and would have low long-term value. If telling the truth will hurt someone emotionally or physically and won’t encourage learning or growth, why be honest?

“I would want someone to lie to me when the alternative of telling the truth would make me feel worse off and I would have no control over what happens,” wrote one participant. “For example, if my beloved dog died after being hit by a negligent driver, I’d much rather my parents or friends have told me the dog died peacefully in its sleep than to tell me the facts.”

Others explained that they would want people to lie about something that couldn’t be changed, and one person gave the example of asking friends whether they “looked OK” for a night out. If the question was posed from home, “I hope they would tell me the truth, so I could change whatever looked bad (as best I could),” wrote the participant. But if the same person asked the same question when already out, and received an honest but negative response, “my night would be ruined and I would have to stay at the bar knowing I looked bad.”

Levine says that a lot of research in this area, including hers, documents cases where “communicators think it’s OK to lie and the targets don’t agree.” But when a lie clearly involves unnecessary harm, targets and communicators largely agree it’s preferable to the truth, she finds.

Works Cited

Emma Levine, “Community Standards of Deception: Deception Is Perceived to Be Ethical When It Prevents Unnecessary Harm,” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, February 2022.

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• Knowing when to say “when!”
• Stop! This is a warning…
• Strange bedfellows
• Gambling with being first
• Making the right ethical choice can mean winning by losing
• Playing into a hoaxster’s hands
• “They said it first”
• Is it news, ad or informercial?
• Letter to the editor
• Games publishers play
• An offer you can refuse
• An oily gift horse
• Public service . . . or “news-mercials”
• As life passes by
• Bringing death close
• A careless step, a rash of calls
• Distortion of reality?
• Of life and death
• Naked came the rider
• “A photo that had to be used”
• A picture of controversy
• Freedom of political expression
• Brother, can you spare some time?
• Columnist’s crusade OK with Seattle
• Kiss and tell
• The making of a govenor
• Past but not over
• Of publishers and politics
• To tell the truth
• Truth & Consequences
• “Truth boxes”
• When journalists become flacks
• A book for all journalists who believe
• The Billboard Bandit
• Food for thought
• Grand jury probe
• Judgement on journalists
• Lessons from an ancient spirit
• Lying for the story . . .
• Newspaper nabs Atlanta’s Dahmer
• One way to a good end
• Over the fence
• “Psst! Pass it on!”
• Rules aren’t neat on Crack Street
• “Someone had to be her advocate”
• Trial by Fire
• Trial by proximity
• Using deceit to get the truth
• When advocacy is okay
• Witness to an execution
• Are we our brother’s keeper? . . . You bet we are!
• Betraying a trust
• Broken promise
• “But I thought you were . . . ”
• “Can I take it back?”
• Competitive disadvantage
• Getting it on tape
• The great quote question
• How to handle suicide threats
• Let’s make a deal!
• A phone-y issue?
• The source wanted out
• The story that died in a lie
• Thou shalt not break thy promise
• Thou shalt not concoct thy quote
• Thou shalt not trick thy source
• Too good to be true
• Vulnerable sources and journalistic responsibility
• The way things used to be . . .
• When a story just isn’t worth it
• When a story source threatens suicide
• When public should remain private
• The ethics of “outing”
• “For personal reasons”
• Intruding on grief
• Intruding on private pain
• Privacy case settled against TV station
• Seeing both sides
• Two views on “outing”
• Unwanted spotlight
• Whose right is it anyway?
• Other views on the Christine Busalacchi case
• The death of a soldier
• Firing at Round Rock
• A kinder, gentler news media
• Operation: Buy yourself a parade
• Rallying ’round the flag
• “Salute to military” ads canceled
• Tell the truth, stay alive
• The windbags of war
• Absent with no malice
• Anonymity for rape victims . . .
• An exception to the rule
• The boy with a broken heart
• Civilly suitable
• Creating a victim
• “Everyone already knew”
• An exceptional case
• Innocent victims
• Minor infraction
• Names make news
• Naming a victim
• Naming “johns”
• Profile of controversy
• What the media all missed
• Punishing plagiarizers
• Sounding an alarm on AIDS
• Suffer the children
• Anchor’s away
• The day the earth stood still
• Doing your own ethics audit
• Good guys, bad guys and TV news
• Is it just me, or . . . ?
• The Post’s exam answer story
• TV station “teases” suicide
• Yanking Doonesbury
• The year in review
• Colorado media’s option play
• Deadly lesson
• Deciding which critically ill person gets coverage
• When journalists play God . . .
• A delicate balance
• The Fallen Servant
• Handle with care
• It’s the principle, really
• Killing news
• Maybe what seems so right is wrong
• On the line
• Protest and apology after Daily Beacon story
• Red flag for badgering
• Sharing the community’s grief
• The “super-crip” stereotype
• “And then he said *&%*!!!”
• When big is not better
• When the KKK comes calling
• Not the straight story
• Agreeing to disagree
• All in the family
• Family feud
• Author! Author!
• The Bee that roared
• Brewing controversy
• Building barriers
• Other views from librarians
• The ethics of information selling
• Close to home
• Family ties
• How now, sacred cow?
• The ties that bind
• “Like any other story”
• When your newspaper is the news
• Not friendly fire
• Overdraft on credibility?
• The problem is the writing
• Written rules can be hazardous
• Project censored, sins of omission and the hardest “W” of all – “why”
• Risking the newsroom’s image
• The Media School

Ethics Case Studies

• Browse Ethics Case Studies
• Getting the story

Bending the truth to expose injustice

Is it ever acceptable for journalists to use deception to gather facts? What if the resulting story uncovers a major social wrong?

By Henry McNulty

Henry McNulty is reader representative for The Hartford Courant.

Author bio information is from the time of article submission and may not be current.

FineLine: The Newsletter On Journalism Ethics, vol. 1, no. 4 (August 1989), pp. 6,7.

This case was produced for FineLine, a publication of Billy Goat Strut Publishing, 600 East Main Street, Louisville, Kentucky 40202. Reprinted with the permission of Billy Goat Strut Publishing. This case may be reproduced for classroom and research purposes. Publication of this case in electronic or printed form requires written permission from the publisher and Indiana University. An exception is granted for use in readers designed for specific academic courses.

Newspapers should expose racial discrimination. No doubt about it. But what if reporters must lie to get the story?

That “does-the-end-justify-the-means” dilemma confronted me this spring when my newspaper, The Hartford Courant, reported on racial bias among some area real estate firms. Reporters, appearing to be almost identical in every financial and personal detail except race, posed as potential home buyers to gather the evidence. In some cases, real estate agents gave the “testers” who were black tougher financial scrutiny. Other times, blacks were “steered” to towns that already have significant minority populations.

The investigation was meticulously prepared, carefully written and clearly presented. Immediately after it appeared, Connecticut’s governor ordered a statewide investigation of real estate discrimination. The perfect story, right?

Not to me, and I said so in my column. The reporters had used altered names and false information to hide their identities. In short, we lied. A news story, however important, can’t be based on deception.

It was not an easy conclusion to reach. There’s a long history of reporters’ disguising themselves to root out corruption. And this investigation struck a strong blow for justice and equality.

But I can’t think of a case in which such deception would be justified – even when the goals are noble, as these certainly were, and even when the results are positive for the community.

The Courant’s policy states, “we do not misrepresent ourselves” in pursuing a story. But that’s quickly followed by the statement that “from time to time, legitimate stories in the public interest might involve a conflict with (this policy).”

The escape clause essentially means we have a policy that permits deception. It flatly prohibits only casual or willy-nilly misrepresentation – but it lets us lie to get a story whenever we think we should. The real estate probe wasn’t even an exception to the rules, since an exception is already built in.

To our credit, the testing procedure and the newspaper’s policy were explained in a sidebar headed “How, why the test was done.” At least we didn’t hide the deception.

Saying “journalists shouldn’t lie” opens up a host of questions: What about restaurant reviewers who pretend to be ordinary customers when in fact they intend to report on their dining experience? Aren’t they misrepresenting themselves, too?

Perhaps. But there are many facets to the question of deceiving sources, and I feel each case must be examined closely. I make a distinction, for example, between actively giving a false name and passively letting someone assume a reporter is just an average consumer.

Could we have done the real estate story without telling lies? Maybe, but it would have been an arduous task. Executive Editor Michael E. Waller, who approved the project, thinks it would have been more difficult than that.

“To have an outside group . . . do the testing would still have posed problems,” he said. “They would have had to misrepresent themselves — and I see little ethical difference between us misrepresenting ourselves and asking someone else to do it for us.

“Asking real home buyers. . .to be the testers posed, in my mind, insurmountable problems. The first would be finding the people to fit the test criteria and getting them to do it simultaneously and in a timely manner. The second would be keeping any reasonable control of accuracy, and assurance that they faithfully would follow all the testing guidelines.”

He’s probably right. So I say, with deep regret, that we couldn’t – and so, we shouldn’t – have done this investigation, despite its social importance.

After my column appeared, a handful of readers called me to support my position – including a caller who identified himself as an investigative reporter at a competing newspaper.

At the Courant, a couple of reporters agreed with me; most didn’t, saying that our deception was benign in comparison to the illegal activity we disclosed.

The open disagreement comes with an ombudsman’s territory. But I’m sorry to say my column generated some less-than-open criticism as well. An obviously altered news release purporting to be from the National Association of Realtors soon appeared on the newsroom bulletin board. It said I had accepted “many gratuities” from the real estate association and quoted me as telling them, “When you decide to sell your soul, always be sure to get top market price.”

I guess such sniping comes with the territory too. But it doesn’t change my mind. Credibility is our most important asset. And if we deceive people in order to do our job, we’ve compromised that credibility before a word is written.

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Lying In Business

• Harvard Case Studies

Harvard Business Case Studies Solutions – Assignment Help

In most courses studied at Harvard Business schools, students are provided with a case study. Major HBR cases concerns on a whole industry, a whole organization or some part of organization; profitable or non-profitable organizations. Student’s role is to analyze the case and diagnose the situation, identify the problem and then give appropriate recommendations and steps to be taken.

To make a detailed case analysis, student should follow these steps:

STEP 1: Reading Up Harvard Case Study Method Guide:

Case study method guide is provided to students which determine the aspects of problem needed to be considered while analyzing a case study. It is very important to have a thorough reading and understanding of guidelines provided. However, poor guide reading will lead to misunderstanding of case and failure of analyses. It is recommended to read guidelines before and after reading the case to understand what is asked and how the questions are to be answered. Therefore, in-depth understanding f case guidelines is very important.

Harvard Case Study Solutions

porter’s five forces model

STEP 2: Reading The Lying In Business Harvard Case Study:

To have a complete understanding of the case, one should focus on case reading. It is said that case should be read two times. Initially, fast reading without taking notes and underlines should be done. Initial reading is to get a rough idea of what information is provided for the analyses. Then, a very careful reading should be done at second time reading of the case. This time, highlighting the important point and mark the necessary information provided in the case. In addition, the quantitative data in case, and its relations with other quantitative or qualitative variables should be given more importance. Also, manipulating different data and combining with other information available will give a new insight. However, all of the information provided is not reliable and relevant.

When having a fast reading, following points should be noted:

• Nature of organization
• Nature if industry in which organization operates.
• External environment that is effecting organization
• Problems being faced by management
• Identification of communication strategies.
• Any relevant strategy that can be added.
• Control and out-of-control situations.

When reading the case for second time, following points should be considered:

• Decisions needed to be made and the responsible Person to make decision.
• Objectives of the organization and key players in this case.
• The compatibility of objectives. if not, their reconciliations and necessary redefinition.
• Sources and constraints of organization from meeting its objectives.

After reading the case and guidelines thoroughly, reader should go forward and start the analyses of the case.

STEP 3: Doing The Case Analysis Of Lying In Business:

To make an appropriate case analyses, firstly, reader should mark the important problems that are happening in the organization. There may be multiple problems that can be faced by any organization. Secondly, after identifying problems in the company, identify the most concerned and important problem that needed to be focused.

Firstly, the introduction is written. After having a clear idea of what is defined in the case, we deliver it to the reader. It is better to start the introduction from any historical or social context. The challenging diagnosis for Lying In Business and the management of information is needed to be provided. However, introduction should not be longer than 6-7 lines in a paragraph. As the most important objective is to convey the most important message for to the reader.

After introduction, problem statement is defined. In the problem statement, the company’s most important problem and constraints to solve these problems should be define clearly. However, the problem should be concisely define in no more than a paragraph. After defining the problems and constraints, analysis of the case study is begin.

STEP 4: SWOT Analysis of the Lying In Business HBR Case Solution:

SWOT analysis helps the business to identify its strengths and weaknesses, as well as understanding of opportunity that can be availed and the threat that the company is facing. SWOT for Lying In Business is a powerful tool of analysis as it provide a thought to uncover and exploit the opportunities that can be used to increase and enhance company’s operations. In addition, it also identifies the weaknesses of the organization that will help to be eliminated and manage the threats that would catch the attention of the management.

This strategy helps the company to make any strategy that would differentiate the company from competitors, so that the organization can compete successfully in the industry. The strengths and weaknesses are obtained from internal organization. Whereas, the opportunities and threats are generally related from external environment of organization. Moreover, it is also called Internal-External Analysis.

In the strengths, management should identify the following points exists in the organization:

• Advantages of the organization
• Activities of the company better than competitors.
• Unique resources and low cost resources company have.
• Activities and resources market sees as the company’s strength.
• Unique selling proposition of the company.

WEAKNESSES:

• Improvement that could be done.
• Activities that can be avoided for Lying In Business.
• Activities that can be determined as your weakness in the market.
• Factors that can reduce the sales.
• Competitor’s activities that can be seen as your weakness.

OPPORTUNITIES:

• Good opportunities that can be spotted.
• Interesting trends of industry.
• Change in technology and market strategies
• Government policy changes that is related to the company’s field
• Changes in social patterns and lifestyles.
• Local events.

Following points can be identified as a threat to company:

• Company’s facing obstacles.
• Activities of competitors.
• Product and services quality standards
• Threat from changing technologies
• Financial/cash flow problems
• Weakness that threaten the business.

Following points should be considered when applying SWOT to the analysis:

• Precise and verifiable phrases should be sued.
• Prioritize the points under each head, so that management can identify which step has to be taken first.
• Apply the analyses at proposed level. Clear yourself first that on what basis you have to apply SWOT matrix.
• Make sure that points identified should carry itself with strategy formulation process.
• Use particular terms (like USP, Core Competencies Analyses etc.) to get a comprehensive picture of analyses.

STEP 5: PESTEL/ PEST Analysis of Lying In Business Case Solution:

• Pest analysis

Pest analyses is a widely used tool to analyze the Political, Economic, Socio-cultural, Technological, Environmental and legal situations which can provide great and new opportunities to the company as well as these factors can also threat the company, to be dangerous in future.

Pest analysis is very important and informative.  It is used for the purpose of identifying business opportunities and advance threat warning. Moreover, it also helps to the extent to which change is useful for the company and also guide the direction for the change. In addition, it also helps to avoid activities and actions that will be harmful for the company in future, including projects and strategies.

To analyze the business objective and its opportunities and threats, following steps should be followed:

• Brainstorm and assumption the changes that should be made to organization. Answer the necessary questions that are related to specific needs of organization
• Analyze the opportunities that would be happen due to the change.
• Analyze the threats and issues that would be caused due to change.
• Perform cost benefit analyses and take the appropriate action.

PEST FACTORS:

• Next political elections and changes that will happen in the country due to these elections
• Strong and powerful political person, his point of view on business policies and their effect on the organization.
• Strength of property rights and law rules. And its ratio with corruption and organized crimes. Changes in these situation and its effects.
• Change in Legislation and taxation effects on the company
• Trend of regulations and deregulations. Effects of change in business regulations
• Timescale of legislative change.
• Other political factors likely to change for Lying In Business.

ECONOMICAL:

• Position and current economy trend i.e. growing, stagnant or declining.
• Exchange rates fluctuations and its relation with company.
• Change in Level of customer’s disposable income and its effect.
• Fluctuation in unemployment rate and its effect on hiring of skilled employees
• Access to credit and loans. And its effects on company
• Effect of globalization on economic environment
• Considerations on other economic factors

SOCIO-CULTURAL:

• Change in population growth rate and age factors, and its impacts on organization.
• Effect on organization due to Change in attitudes and generational shifts.
• Standards of health, education and social mobility levels. Its changes and effects on company.
• Employment patterns, job market trend and attitude towards work according to different age groups.

case study solutions

• Social attitudes and social trends, change in socio culture an dits effects.
• Religious believers and life styles and its effects on organization
• Other socio culture factors and its impacts.

TECHNOLOGICAL:

• Any new technology that company is using
• Any new technology in market that could affect the work, organization or industry
• Access of competitors to the new technologies and its impact on their product development/better services.
• Research areas of government and education institutes in which the company can make any efforts
• Changes in infra-structure and its effects on work flow
• Existing technology that can facilitate the company
• Other technological factors and their impacts on company and industry

These headings and analyses would help the company to consider these factors and make a “big picture” of company’s characteristics. This will help the manager to take the decision and drawing conclusion about the forces that would create a big impact on company and its resources.

STEP 6: Porter’s Five Forces/ Strategic Analysis Of The Lying In Business Case Study:

To analyze the structure of a company and its corporate strategy, Porter’s five forces model is used. In this model, five forces have been identified which play an important part in shaping the market and industry. These forces are used to measure competition intensity and profitability of an industry and market.

porter’s five forces model

These forces refers to micro environment and the company ability to serve its customers and make a profit. These five forces includes three forces from horizontal competition and two forces from vertical competition. The five forces are discussed below:

• THREAT OF NEW ENTRANTS:
• as the industry have high profits, many new entrants will try to enter into the market. However, the new entrants will eventually cause decrease in overall industry profits. Therefore, it is necessary to block the new entrants in the industry. following factors is describing the level of threat to new entrants:
• Barriers to entry that includes copy rights and patents.
• High capital requirement
• Government restricted policies
• Switching cost
• Access to suppliers and distributions
• Customer loyalty to established brands.
• THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES:
• this describes the threat to company. If the goods and services are not up to the standard, consumers can use substitutes and alternatives that do not need any extra effort and do not make a major difference. For example, using Aquafina in substitution of tap water, Pepsi in alternative of Coca Cola. The potential factors that made customer shift to substitutes are as follows:
• Price performance of substitute
• Switching costs of buyer
• Products substitute available in the market
• Reduction of quality
• Close substitution are available
• DEGREE OF INDUSTRY RIVALRY:
• the lesser money and resources are required to enter into any industry, the higher there will be new competitors and be an effective competitor. It will also weaken the company’s position. Following are the potential factors that will influence the company’s competition:
• Competitive advantage
• Continuous innovation
• Sustainable position in competitive advantage
• Level of advertising
• Competitive strategy
• BARGAINING POWER OF BUYERS:
• it deals with the ability of customers to take down the prices. It mainly consists the importance of a customer and the level of cost if a customer will switch from one product to another. The buyer power is high if there are too many alternatives available. And the buyer power is low if there are lesser options of alternatives and switching. Following factors will influence the buying power of customers:
• Bargaining leverage
• Switching cost of a buyer
• Buyer price sensitivity
• Competitive advantage of company’s product
• BARGAINING POWER OF SUPPLIERS:
• this refers to the supplier’s ability of increasing and decreasing prices. If there are few alternatives o supplier available, this will threat the company and it would have to purchase its raw material in supplier’s terms. However, if there are many suppliers alternative, suppliers have low bargaining power and company do not have to face high switching cost. The potential factors that effects bargaining power of suppliers are the following:
• Input differentiation
• Impact of cost on differentiation
• Strength of distribution centers
• Input substitute’s availability.

STEP 7: VRIO Analysis of Lying In Business:

Vrio analysis for Lying In Business case study identified the four main attributes which helps the organization to gain a competitive advantages. The author of this theory suggests that firm must be valuable, rare, imperfectly imitable and perfectly non sustainable. Therefore there must be some resources and capabilities in an organization that can facilitate the competitive advantage to company. The four components of VRIO analysis are described below: VALUABLE: the company must have some resources or strategies that can exploit opportunities and defend the company from major threats. If the company holds some value then answer is yes. Resources are also valuable if they provide customer satisfaction and increase customer value. This value may create by increasing differentiation in existing product or decrease its price. Is these conditions are not met, company may lead to competitive disadvantage. Therefore, it is necessary to continually review the Lying In Business company’s activities and resources values. RARE: the resources of the Lying In Business company that are not used by any other company are known as rare. Rare and valuable resources grant much competitive advantages to the firm. However, when more than one few companies uses the same resources and provide competitive parity are also known as rare resources. Even, the competitive parity is not desired position, but the company should not lose its valuable resources, even they are common. COSTLY TO IMITATE: the resources are costly to imitate, if other organizations cannot imitate it. However, imitation is done in two ways. One is duplicating that is direct imitation and the other one is substituting that is indirect imitation. Any firm who has valuable and rare resources, and these resources are costly to imitate, have achieved their competitive advantage. However, resources should also be perfectly non sustainable. The reasons that resource imitation is costly are historical conditions, casual ambiguity and social complexity. ORGANIZED TO CAPTURE VALUE: resources, itself, cannot provide advantages to organization until it is organized and exploit to do so. A firm (like Lying In Business)  must organize its management systems, processes, policies and strategies to fully utilize the resource’s potential to be valuable, rare and costly to imitate.

STEP 8: Generating Alternatives For Lying In Business Case Solution:

After completing the analyses of the company, its opportunities and threats, it is important to generate a solution of the problem and the alternatives a company can apply in order to solve its problems. To generate the alternative of problem, following things must to be kept in mind:

• Realistic solution should be identified that can be operated in the company, with all its constraints and opportunities.
• as the problem and its solution cannot occur at the same time, it should be described as mutually exclusive
• it is not possible for a company to not to take any action, therefore, the alternative of doing nothing is not viable.
• Student should provide more than one decent solution. Providing two undesirable alternatives to make the other one attractive is not acceptable.

Once the alternatives have been generated, student should evaluate the options and select the appropriate and viable solution for the company.

STEP 9: Selection Of Alternatives For Lying In Business Case Solution:

It is very important to select the alternatives and then evaluate the best one as the company have limited choices and constraints. Therefore to select the best alternative, there are many factors that is needed to be kept in mind. The criteria’s on which business decisions are to be selected areas under:

• Improve profitability
• Increase sales, market shares, return on investments
• Customer satisfaction
• Brand image
• Corporate mission, vision and strategy
• Resources and capabilities

Alternatives should be measures that which alternative will perform better than other one and the valid reasons. In addition, alternatives should be related to the problem statements and issues described in the case study.

STEP 10: Evaluation Of Alternatives For Lying In Business Case Solution:

If the selected alternative is fulfilling the above criteria, the decision should be taken straightforwardly. Best alternative should be selected must be the best when evaluating it on the decision criteria. Another method used to evaluate the alternatives are the list of pros and cons of each alternative and one who has more pros than cons and can be workable under organizational constraints.

STEP 11: Recommendations For Lying In Business Case Study (Solution):

There should be only one recommendation to enhance the company’s operations and its growth or solving its problems. The decision that is being taken should be justified and viable for solving the problems.

Lying Unmasked

Dishonesty is a common yet complex human behavior..

Posted August 5, 2024 | Reviewed by Monica Vilhauer

• There are generally no foolproof lie detection methods.
• Dishonesty has many disadvantages, and metaphors can help us to visualize the potential impediments.
• Approaching the truth is often difficult, counter-intuitive, and ultimately provides more freedom.

Lying and dishonesty are much more common human behaviors than most people realize. Episodes of untruthfulness actually tend to start in early childhood and are considered by many to be part of several developmental stages. Fortunately, the majority of people are found to tell relatively few and more minor lies; however, lying can be a slippery slope and can be a significant problem for some individuals. Most of us like the idea of living a virtuous, honest life but also like the advantages of sometimes evading the truth ("Sorry, I didn't see your text" or "I had an emergency"). The irony is that we expect others to be fully honest with us yet don't necessarily hold the same standards for ourselves.

Types of lies in our world can range from omissions to commissions, malignant to manipulative, half-truths to whoppers. Lying can occur with strangers, acquaintances, close friends, family, therapists, physicians, and most anyone with whom someone might be in a relationship. Secrets and cheating can also be classified as a type of lying. We live in a current society ripe with lots of misinformation, disinformation, deep fakes, and technologically manipulated visual information; this backdrop of our current world makes the whole foundation of honesty feel much shakier.

The field of dishonesty research is actually complicated and intriguing, and there are some basic truths. Several metaphors are presented as a means of discussing some of the foundational facts.

No Growing Noses

Unlike the story of Pinocchio, whose nose grew every time he told a lie, most humans don't have a really clear-cut indication of dishonesty. Some individuals have a "tell" which indicates potential lying, such as biting their lip or avoiding eye contact, but research indicates that there is no consistent "Pinocchio effect" type of indication that is fool-proof. Lie detector tests can work, but not 100% of the time. Police and investigators utilize some basic rules of looking for deception , but these also can falter. Some dishonesty studies have indicated that there are some ways to get people to be more honest, such as having them sign an honor code or providing more direct connection with the impact of a lie, but there are no methods found to be consistently effective. And most of us are attempting to just be in good, honest relationships with people rather than wondering or continuously evaluating whether or not truthfulness is in jeopardy.

A Recipe With Many Ingredients

Human behavior and motivation is generally made up of a complex combination of factors, and dishonesty is no different. Just as making a cake or a lasagna involves multiple ingredients, understanding why someone may be lying also involves awareness of various factors. People lie for a variety of reasons, including common motives such as impression management , shame , avoidance, minimizing symptoms, autonomy, competitiveness and self-bolstering. The way in which someone was raised and what kind of role models someone had also impacts the degree to which honesty is considered acceptable or palatable. Knowing more about the underlying reasons for a fib does not excuse or undo the lie, but increased curiosity about why someone else (or even oneself) might be lying can allow increased compassion and potential resolution. It’s easy to be angry or frustrated when a lie is revealed, but staying stuck on such emotions alone often shuts down rather than opens up the possibility of shift.

A Massage With a Heavy Jacket

Lies, especially when told repetitively and consistently, end up putting distance between oneself and others. Sometimes this is the intention of the person lying, but often the distance or damage ends up being much more extensive than ever imagined. Getting a massage would be much less effective or positive if someone were wearing a heavy jacket, and relationships end up being much less satisfying when there isn't a basis of steady trust. Taking off the jacket can be difficult and can feel like overwhelming vulnerability, but this approach with self and with others generally leads to much deeper and more meaningful relationships. It can be difficult to say “I’m sorry I told you that had happened when it hadn’t” or “I need to share some facts about myself that are hard to talk about,” but this generally tends to bring people closer rather than tear them apart.

Deeper into the Forest

When one lie is told, there are often other lies that follow in order to cover over the initial lie. This may feel like a fix but ends up being more of a short term cover up and can lead to more dishonesty in the long run. If someone were lost in the forest but could see the clearing from where they had come off in the distance, they would hopefully turn towards the clearing and begin to backtrack, retrace their steps or at least maintain the clearing within their vision in order to find their way back. Continuing to tell lie upon lie is like moving away from the clearing and getting deeper into the dark, confusing, avoidant forest. The path gets more tangled and treacherous as truth is avoided. The only way to truly be free of the difficulty is to move away from the layering of lies and instead towards the light of legitimate honesty. Sometimes full openness doesn’t occur until there is a significant event or a dramatic reveal, but most everyone agrees that the sooner the better.

Finger Traps

The ultimate healing from a big or small lie — or even from a longer-term habit of lying — involves facing the difficulty directly. Like the children's toy known as the Finger Trap (where moving fingers outwards tightens the trap but, counterintuitively, moving them inward enlarges the openings to free the fingers), someone moving towards the truth or the revelation of the previous fib is what will ultimately provide someone more freedom. Rather than someone continuing to lie about something about which they are being questioned or feeling immense guilt , the better response would be for someone to face the fib more openly and correct it as soon as possible ("I actually need to explain that a bit better" or "I need to share details about what actually happened") . The temptation to keep building upon the lies occurs because it appears seemingly simpler and easier, but the grip that the emotions have tend to tighten rather than release in the long term. Many of us resist and hold back from doing hard and uncomfortable things, but approaching the hard and uncomfortable is where the growth and progress can often best occur.

Sandra Wartski, Psy.D., is a licensed psychologist in North Carolina. Dr. Wartski has been working with a group practice, Silber Psychological Services, over the last three decades conducting individual, family and group therapy, as well as psychoeducational evaluations.

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How Google's huge defeat in antitrust case could change how you search the internet

In the most significant legal ruling against a major technology giant in more than two decades, a federal judge says Google illegally monopolized online search and advertising by paying companies like Apple and Samsung billions of dollars a year to install Google as the default search engine on smartphones and web browsers.

By monopolizing search queries on smartphones and browsers, Google abused its dominance in the search market, throttling competition and harming consumers, U.S. District Judge  Amit P. Mehta  said in his 286-page decision. Google owes much of its more than $300 billion in annual revenue to search ads.

“ Google is a monopolist , and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” Mehta wrote.

The massive win for the Department of Justice could fundamentally reshape how Google does business . It also could change how we use the internet and search for information. 

The DOJ filed antitrust charges during the final weeks of the Trump administration, making good on Donald Trump’s pledge to challenge the runaway power of Big Tech. That mission continued during the Biden administration, which has been aggressive in pursuing antitrust cases.

“This victory against Google is an historic win for the American people,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “No company – no matter how large or influential – is above the law.”

The case is the most significant victory for the DOJ in a monopoly case in decades, said Notre Dame Law School professor Roger Alford, who served in the DOJ’s antitrust division. “Not since Microsoft lost in the 1990s have we seen a case of this magnitude.”

Google said it would appeal the decision. “This decision recognizes that Google offers the best search engine, but concludes that we shouldn’t be allowed to make it easily available,” Kent Walker, president of global affairs, said in a statement.

Shares in Google's parent company Alphabet slipped following the judge's ruling. They closed down nearly 5% Monday, part of a broader tech stock selloff .

If upheld, the decision will be a “major boost” for other antitrust cases pending against Google as well as other major tech players like Amazon, Apple and Meta, said Loyola University Chicago School of Law professor Spencer Weber Waller.

Monday’s ruling did not include remedies. Remedies will be decided separately, likely after an appeal. One remedy could see Google losing its ability to strike device deals that have helped make its search engine so ubiquitous.

Devising the right remedy is critical to restoring competition to the marketplace, Waller said.

“There are no fines or monetary penalties in these types of cases, but the court will have to decide whether Google should be broken up in some way. More likely, it will order Google to eliminate the exclusive contracts and licensing restrictions that have reinforced its monopoly position for years,” he said.

Google has argued that its distribution deals are common in the business world. It pays for its search engine to be on phones the way a food manufacturer pays to promote its products at eye level in a grocery store aisle. 

The way Google sees it, if you don’t like Google, you can switch the default search engine on your device. But people don’t switch, Google says, because they prefer Google. 

If Google was not the default search engine on so many devices, would consumers still use it for 90% of web searches?

During the 10-week trial, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella testified that Google’s unchallenged dominance created a “Google web.”

“You get up in the morning, you brush your teeth and you search on Google,” Nadella said at one point in his testimony. “Everybody talks about the open web, but there is really the Google web.”

Nadella has expressed concern that Microsoft’s disadvantage would increase as artificial intelligence becomes a major component of search.

In a research note Monday, Baird Equity Research senior analyst Colin Sebastian pointed to a range of tactics Google's arch-competitor Microsoft has used to grow the market share of its Bing search engine over the years, from paying users to use its search engine to embedding it in Office.

“People clearly prefer Google to Bing,” Sebastian said.

Chamber of Progress CEO Adam Kovacevich said Monday's ruling hands Microsoft an unearned boost.

“The biggest winner from today's ruling isn't consumers or little tech, it’s Microsoft,” Kovacevich said in a statement. “Microsoft has underinvested in search for decades, but today’s ruling opens the door to a court mandate of default deals for Bing. That’s a slap in the face to consumers who chose Google because they think it’s the best.”

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• Doing Business in West Africa – A Case Study of Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, and Senegal

• August 20, 2024

West Africa is regarded as the most populous region on the African continent and one of the world’s fastest-growing economic zones. The region’s abundant natural resources and dynamic market have continuously attracted global investors. Over the years, the economic performance of the West Africa subregion has witnessed significant potential, evident by a notable Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of approximately 4.5% in 2022 [1] . Similarly, in 2022 the West African sub-region received substantial international interest, receiving USD 8.8 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and over USD 6 billion in greenfield investment projects [2] , reflecting the region’s prominence as a business hub, particularly in Nations like Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Senegal.

Nigeria, the region’s largest economy, boasts a GDP of approximately $360 billion in 2023. With over 200 million people, Nigeria presents a vast consumer market and substantial economic opportunities. The country’s economy is diverse with the industry sector contributing the greatest to GDP while the oil subsector is the major sector contributing to foreign exchange earnings. Additionally, sectors such as agriculture, and manufacturing have earned significant domestic and international interest.

Ghana has become an attractive investment destination due to its stable political environment and progressive economic reforms. The country benefits from rich natural resources and thriving economic sectors with the service sector contributing the greatest share of 46% to GDP in 2023. Also, Ghana is the world’s second-largest producer of cocoa beans and a leading global exporter of gold.

With a GDP of over US$ 60 billion in 2023 and a population of over 28 million, Ivory Coast is notable for its robust agriculture sector and infrastructure development. It is the world’s largest exporter of cocoa beans, producing half of the world’s supply.

Senegal, with a GDP of over $30 billion in 2023 and a population of about 18 million, is noted for the diversity of its economy with Agriculture playing a crucial role. The country’s political stability coupled with its ongoing economic reforms, has positioned Senegal as a key contributor to the region’s growth.

Why Invest in West Africa?

West Africa, with a rapidly growing population and expanding economy offers numerous investment opportunities for both domestic and foreign businesses. Investors can leverage these opportunities to make notable investments in this region.

Abundance of Natural Resources and Cash Crops

West Africa is richly endowed with a variety of natural resources. The region possesses significant reserves of arable land, water, and other renewable and unrenewable resources. For instance, Nigeria is Africa’s largest crude oil and also has substantial deposits of tin, coal, and iron ore, Ghana is a leading gold exporter, with gold exports amounting to over US$ 7 billion in 2023, and is also rich in bauxite, manganese, and diamonds. Additionally, Ivory Coast is the world’s largest exporter of cocoa beans, highlighting the region’s rich agricultural resources.

Favorable Trade Agreements and Initiatives

Investing in West Africa is advantageous due to its favorable trade environment. Regional initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) create a single continental market among African countries by reducing trade barriers and promoting cross-border business. Countries like Ghana, Nigeria, and other West African countries are also implementing targeted incentives such as Ghana’s One District, One Factory initiative and the Ghana Free Zones Authority and Nigeria’s Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) to attract both domestic and international investors. Furthermore, several West African nations, including Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, and Senegal, have bilateral trade agreements with European and American countries to promote trade and commerce.

A Growing Youthful Population and Expanding Middle Income

West Africa’s rapidly growing youthful population and expanding middle class create a dynamic consumer market. The region, with a population of over 400 million, has a significant proportion of young people, contributing to a large and evolving labor force. This youthful demographic, combined with a rising middle class, drives demand for a wide range of goods and services, making West Africa an increasingly attractive market for investors.

Challenges of Investing in West Africa

Regulatory Framework

Navigating the regulatory requirements when setting up a business in West Africa can be particularly challenging for foreign investors unfamiliar with local procedures. Each country has its own set of legal standards, which can be complex and unfamiliar to investors. For most West African countries, the processes involved in establishing a business are often not fully digitized, leading to lengthy procedures and increased reliance on local agents, who may not always act in the investor’s best interest

Extensive Bureaucratic system

Despite technological advancement, bureaucratic inefficiencies are prevalent in many West African countries. These bureaucratic systems can cause significant delays in business processes. For instance, the approval process for permits and licenses can stretch from weeks to months and may impact business operations.

Limited Access to Data and Information

Access to reliable and current data and information can be a major challenge for investors in West Africa. Access to online resources is often limited or outdated, and finding accurate, up-to-date information can be difficult. This lack of transparency and accessibility can hinder decision-making and make it challenging for investors to conduct thorough market research or obtain market insights for strategic planning.

While West Africa offers substantial investment opportunities, challenges such as complex government regulations, heavy bureaucratic systems, and limited access to data must be carefully navigated. join our upcoming webinar which seeks to provide comprehensive insights into the regulatory frameworks of Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, and Senegal. This webinar will provide attendees with essential insights on successfully establishing and operating a company. For more information visit our website www.firmusadvisory.com or contact us at [email protected]

About Firmus Advisory Limited

Firmus Advisory Limited is a Business Consulting firm operating in Ghana’s three core service areas: Regulatory Compliance, Trade Development, and Market Research. We facilitate the formation of companies; help secure all necessary business operating licenses and certifications, as well as provide a comprehensive range of market research services including market and sector insights and customer satisfaction studies.

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, 2023. Available at https://uneca.org/eca-events/sites/default/files/resources/documents/sro-na/icsoe-na-wa-2023/socioeconomic-profile-2023-west-africa-english.pdf

UNCTAD World Investment Report, 2023. Available at https://unctad.org/system/files/non-official-document/wir2023-regional_trends_africa_en.pdf

Bank of Ghana Annual Report and Financial Statement, 2023. Available at https://www.bog.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Bank-of-Ghana-2023-Annual-Report-and-Financial-Statements.pdf

• United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, 2023. Available at https://uneca.org/eca-events/sites/default/files/resources/documents/sro-na/icsoe-na-wa-2023/socioeconomic-profile-2023-west-africa-english.pdf ↑
• UNCTAD World Investment Report, 2023. Available at https://unctad.org/system/files/non-official-document/wir2023-regional_trends_africa_en.pdf ↑

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More From Forbes

Why vertical integration is the path to strategic advantage.

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Marc Emmer is president of Optimize Inc. and an author, speaker and consultant specializing in strategy and strategic planning.

Tesla's ascent in the automotive world is a story of innovation, not only because of technology and engineering but also because of a shrewd business strategy. Spearheaded by Elon Musk, Tesla has not just revolutionized the automotive industry but also provided a masterclass in vertical integration. In a world where supply chains have gone from being long and slow to short and agile, Tesla controls almost every facet of production.

Tesla's Strategic Mastery: A Case Study in Vertical Integration

Tesla's approach to vertical integration —owning as many aspects of production as possible, from raw materials to final assembly—is a stark contrast to the traditional automotive industry model of outsourcing key components and relying heavily on global supply chains. For example, Nissan recently announced plans to produce batteries through a partner in Great Britain.

This strategy not only allows Tesla to maintain quality control but also to innovate rapidly. By owning the supply chain, Tesla can bypass traditional barriers, accelerate its production cycles and maintain flexibility, which allows it to adapt quickly to new technologies or market demands.

The benefits of this approach became particularly evident during the global semiconductor shortage. While most automotive giants struggled with production halts, Tesla redesigned its software to support alternative chips, which showcases agility in its operations.

Impacts Beyond Risk Reduction

The shift to shorter supply chains has broader implications than mere risk reduction. It marks a significant change in how companies approach production, impacting everything from innovation to consumer relations.

1. Enhanced quality control: With more control over their supply chains, companies can improve quality standards, as this direct oversight can allow for immediate rectification of issues and help ensure the end product consistently meets consumer expectations.

2. Local economic benefits: Shorter supply chains often mean more localized and regional production, which can have positive effects on local economies. By sourcing and manufacturing closer to home, companies can contribute to job creation and economic growth in their regions.

3. Accelerated innovation: Shorter supply chains facilitate quicker feedback loops, which can allow companies to innovate at a faster pace. This rapid iteration is crucial in today's fast-evolving marketplaces, where staying ahead often means being the first to harness new technologies or trends.

4. Sustainability and ethical practices: With greater control over their supply chains, businesses can more effectively implement sustainable and ethical practices. This aspect is increasingly important to consumers, who are more likely to support brands that demonstrate environmental responsibility and ethical sourcing.

The Road Ahead: Challenges And Opportunities

While the move toward shorter supply chains is promising, it is not without its challenges . Establishing a controlled supply chain requires significant investment and expertise.

Companies must be willing to invest in infrastructure, technology and talent to manage this transition successfully.

As industries increasingly adopt this model, the competitive landscape could shift. Companies that are slow to adapt could find themselves at a disadvantage, struggling to keep pace with more agile competitors.

The New Era Of Supply Chains

The Covid-19 pandemic was as a significant disruptor across industries, underlining the fragility and complexities of extended global supply chains. It’s particularly crucial in an era marked by frequent and unpredictable global disruptions.

Alongside the primary objective of risk mitigation, the adoption of shorter supply chains presents a myriad of supplementary benefits. These include an enhanced ability to swiftly adapt to evolving market trends and consumer preferences, leading to more dynamic and responsive business operations.

• Logistics: Companies may observe a reduction in transportation and logistical costs, as shorter supply chains typically involve less complex and more direct routes.

• Carbon footprint: From an environmental perspective, this shift may also lead to a reduction in the carbon footprint, as shorter supply chains could mean less extensive transportation requirements.

• Inventory management: A critical element in this transition is the evolution of inventory management strategies. I've observed many companies that are actively rethinking their approach to inventory management, aiming to revise strategies that include redefining decoupling points and adjusting buffer sizes.

As companies adapt to this evolving landscape, the insights from Tesla's model are invaluable. The future of business success increasingly hinges on adept supply chain management, a domain where Tesla has already set a precedent.

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Kolkata doctor rape-murder case: How the incident unfolded, what we know so far

In the latest, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has launched a nationwide strike which has majorly hit the medical services throughout.

• Updated Aug 17, 2024, 9:02 AM IST

The tragic rape and murder of the female trainee doctor at Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College and Hospital have drawn nationwide outrage, leading to protests by junior doctors who have halted work to demand justice for the victim.

Related Articles

• Kolkata doctor rape and murder: Parents allege role of interns, doctors from RG Kar, 30 suspects in CBI list
• Kolkata doctor rape-murder: IMA 24-hour strike begins, medical services hit nationwide; Here are top developments in case so far
• Kolkata rape-murder: CBI questions RG Kar's ex-principal Sandip Ghosh who propounded 'suicide' theory
• 'File FIR within 6 hours': Centre's directive to protect healthcare workers amid uproar over Kolkata doctor's rape and murder

Non-essential services, such as routine OPDs and elective procedures, will be closed for a whole day on August 17 and 18, starting at 6 a.m.

In the wake of the vandalism incident at RG Kar Hospital, Kolkata Police have arrested 25 suspects connected to the attack. Authorities utilised social media to identify those involved, with efforts continuing to apprehend additional individuals.

The night of the horrendous act

- A second-year postgraduate trainee doctor spent her night just like any other night. She had dinner with her juniors and decided to go take some rest at 2 am, early morning. 

- Due to a lack of rest space in the hospital, the doctor decided to go rest in the seminar hall, considering it safe to rest.

- Cut to next morning when her body was discovered semi-nude inside a seminar hall on August 9, after she had been on duty the previous night.

- Her father expressed grave concerns, stating that there were clear indications of rape and that the hospital was delaying the investigation.

How did the community respond?

- PGT doctors at the hospital immediately stopped working across all departments except the emergency services, demanding the immediate arrest of the perpetrators.

- Student associations organised rallies for a swift investigation.

- Opposition leaders, including Bengal BJP legislators, called for an independent magistrate-led investigation.

Autopsy revealed shocking details

- Several doctors who accessed the autopsy report have indicated a possibility of a gang rape.  In an exclusive interview with India Today TV, DR Subarna Goswami pointed out that the kind of injuries inflicted by the 31-year-old trainee doctor cannot be the work of one single person.

- She said that according to the autopsy report, 151 mg of liquid (semen) was found from the vaginal swab. "That quantity cannot be of one person. It suggests the involvement of multiple people," Dr Goswami said.

- Preliminary autopsy reports indicated that the victim was sexually assaulted before her murder.

- The autopsy ruled out suicide and found multiple injuries consistent with a violent death, including broken bones and bleeding from various body parts.

- Sources suggested that her nose and mouth were covered, and her head was forcefully pushed against a wall or floor to silence her cries for help.

- The crime is believed to have occurred between 3 am and 6 am, with signs of strangulation and smothering.

Arrests and investigations so far

- The police have arrested 33-year-old Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer, for his alleged role in the crime. Evidence, including a torn Bluetooth earphone, helped lead to his arrest.

- Roy had access to various hospital departments due to his connections with senior police officers and hospital authorities.

- Allegations surfaced regarding Roy’s past behaviour, including previous marital abuse and his history of watching pornography.

The buzz around the college's principal

- Dr Sandip Ghosh, the former head of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, was asked to go on leave after concerns were raised over his leadership and response during the case.

- Dr Ghosh faced backlash for comments perceived as victim-blaming and for failing to maintain adequate safety for staff, after which he resigned from his post.

- However, in a surprising turn of events, he was reinstated as Principal of Calcutta Medical College and Hospital just 24 hours later.

Government and legal actions

- West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called for the death penalty for the accused and has stated her support for the protesting doctors while also urging them to continue patient care.

- The state government has implemented police camps in hospitals to enhance security for healthcare workers and has promised to transfer the case to the CBI if local police do not make sufficient progress by the weekend.

Justice delayed is justice denied: Court hands over the case to CBI

- After pointing out serious flaws and lack of support from concerned officials in the case and no significant progress, the Kolkata High Court transferred the case to the CBI.

- The specialised team from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrived in Kolkata on Wednesday, accompanied by forensic and medical experts, to begin the investigation into the alleged rape and murder. 

Reclaim the Night protest goes violent

- The 'Reclaim the Night' protest in Kolkata turned violent and chaotic late Wednesday night as a violent mob breached the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, the site where a 31-year-old trainee doctor was tragically raped and murdered.

- Visual footage revealed scenes of havoc, with mob members vandalising the emergency ward of the medical facility and damaging police vehicles stationed nearby. 

Arrests and investigation

- A total of 25 arrests have been made so far in the RG Kar hospital case. Five of those arrested were identified through social media feedback, according to the Kolkata Police

- Eight physicians and other medical personnel have been called in by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to be questioned in connection with the rape and murder case at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. 

- The ex-principal Ghosh was summoned by CBI for questioning

- 3-4 resident doctors, colleagues of the victim were also called in for questioning by the CBI.  

Further investigations are underway. Now, the call for justice and safety in medical institutions is growing louder across the nation, impacting patient care and challenging the authorities to take decisive action.  

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Embracing Gen AI at Work

• H. James Wilson
• Paul R. Daugherty

The skills you need to succeed in the era of large language models

Today artificial intelligence can be harnessed by nearly anyone, using commands in everyday language instead of code. Soon it will transform more than 40% of all work activity, according to the authors’ research. In this new era of collaboration between humans and machines, the ability to leverage AI effectively will be critical to your professional success.

This article describes the three kinds of “fusion skills” you need to get the best results from gen AI. Intelligent interrogation involves instructing large language models to perform in ways that generate better outcomes—by, say, breaking processes down into steps or visualizing multiple potential paths to a solution. Judgment integration is about incorporating expert and ethical human discernment to make AI’s output more trustworthy, reliable, and accurate. It entails augmenting a model’s training sources with authoritative knowledge bases when necessary, keeping biases out of prompts, ensuring the privacy of any data used by the models, and scrutinizing suspect output. With reciprocal apprenticing, you tailor gen AI to your company’s specific business context by including rich organizational data and know-how into the commands you give it. As you become better at doing that, you yourself learn how to train the AI to tackle more-sophisticated challenges.

The AI revolution is already here. Learning these three skills will prepare you to thrive in it.

Generative artificial intelligence is expected to radically transform all kinds of jobs over the next few years. No longer the exclusive purview of technologists, AI can now be put to work by nearly anyone, using commands in everyday language instead of code. According to our research, most business functions and more than 40% of all U.S. work activity can be augmented, automated, or reinvented with gen AI. The changes are expected to have the largest impact on the legal, banking, insurance, and capital-market sectors—followed by retail, travel, health, and energy.

• H. James Wilson is the global managing director of technology research and thought leadership at Accenture Research. He is the coauthor, with Paul R. Daugherty, of Human + Machine: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI, New and Expanded Edition (HBR Press, 2024). hjameswilson
• Paul R. Daugherty is Accenture’s chief technology and innovation officer. He is the coauthor, with H. James Wilson, of Human + Machine: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI, New and Expanded Edition (HBR Press, 2024). pauldaugh

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New Relic is named a Leader in the 2024 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Observability Platforms for the 12th Consecutive Time

New relic has been named a leader in every report since 2012.

By Katrina Wong, Chief Marketing Officer

We are honored that New Relic has been named a Leader in the 2024 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Observability Platforms . We are the only observability company to receive recognition as a Leader each time since 2012. This demonstrates our commitment to helping our customers like Domino’s , Mercado Libre , and Forbes Media stay consistently ahead in their respective markets.

Proliferation of monitoring tools is driving operational complexities

Businesses are facing growing technological and operational complexity due to the proliferation of specialized monitoring tools and distributed applications. This often leads to inefficiencies, miscommunication, and delayed responses to issues, negatively impacting customer experiences and revenue. We address these challenges with our unified observability platform, giving businesses a holistic view of their technology landscape and deep context for troubleshooting. We help businesses streamline their monitoring processes, quickly identify and address issues, and make data-driven decisions. This simplifies operations and enhances the ability to deliver consistent, high-quality customer experiences and drive innovation.

Innovating ahead of the market with OTel, AI, and DEM 

Innovation is at the core of our success. In the last few months, we have maintained our long track record of innovation by collaborating with NVIDIA to provide New Relic AI monitoring for applications built with NVIDIA NIM, launching the first integrated, AI-driven DEM solution and New Relic Pathpoint , and deepening our support for OpenTelemetry . These innovations provide businesses of all sizes the latest advancements needed to optimize the performance and reliability of digital applications. We are delivering on our mission of making observability accessible to every business with the industry’s only true consumption pricing and natural language querying and analytics powered by its in-platform generative AI assistant, New Relic AI . 

Recommended by 90% of customers as their platform of choice

We are one of the most-rated observability vendors by customers on the Gartner Peer Insights™ platform. We have an overall rating of 4.5 stars out of 5.0 based on 1389 verified customers, with 90% willingness to recommend the platform. A high percentage (63%) of verified reviewers rate New Relic 5.0 stars for observability. Our customers recognize us for our ability to:  

• Ensure system resilience and up to 100% uptime : “New Relic has been there for us through the ins and outs of sunsetting zabbix and the noise that it has brought, and replacing it with a holistic, data-driven observability and incident management policy, I cannot speak highly enough of how much they helped us along the road to a successful implementation, and it's led to quarters at 100% uptime so far!" — Staff Platform Engineer - Healthcare and Biotech
• Deliver superior customer experiences : “Our organization's observability journey centered in customer experience from zero to hero: New Relic as [a] vendor helped our company to establish true O11y." — Principal Software Engineer - Travel & Hospitality
• Provide deeper insights via single view of both apps and infrastructure : “New Relic provides a holistic solution that goes above just APM monitoring. It provides deep insights into the health, performance, and behavior of applications and infrastructure. As a user, I like how much I can get from one tool, and it reduces dependency on multiple tooling to get reporting and metrics. The APM feature provides real-time data and insights and helps us to track down bottlenecks and optimize code with the help of the granular data provided." — Sr Solution Architect - IT Services
• Maximize value with a flexible consumption model : “The evolution of their pricing model has been noteworthy, transitioning to a more flexible consumption-style approach, enabling us to pay for the precise services utilized. The implementation of New Relic surpassed our initial expectations, streamlining the execution of our observability project and accelerating our project timeline. A pivotal factor that significantly enriched our overall experience was the unwavering dedication and transparency demonstrated by our New Relic Senior Account Executives. Their tireless efforts in developing precise cost projections, facilitating conversations with subject matter experts, championing our cause during contract negotiations, and consistently maintaining open lines of communication showcased their commitment to our success.” — Senior Manager, Infrastructure Engineering - Hardware

Thank you to our customers and partners who trust New Relic to monitor, secure, and optimize their stack. We’re honored to be the sole vendor recognized as a Leader in the Magic Quadrant for observability platforms for 12 years running, and remain committed to eliminating disruptions to your digital enterprise so that your business can grow.

• Download your copy of the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Observability Platforms.
• Quantify the benefits of observability to your business with our Value Calculator.

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Katrina is New Relic’s Chief Marketing Officer. She brings 20+ years of experience in marketing, go-to-market, and community development to New Relic.

Katrina is an AI-driven marketer with a passion for reaching developer communities. She has a proven track record for helping companies through stages of substantial growth and launching products in new markets. She has also created award-winning integrated campaigns with data storytelling. Katrina most recently served as Divisional CMO and VP Marketing at Twilio Segment. She has also held marketing and go-to-market leadership positions at Hired, Zuora, Salesforce, and SAP. She started her career as a management consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers.

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The views expressed on this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of New Relic. Any solutions offered by the author are environment-specific and not part of the commercial solutions or support offered by New Relic. Please join us exclusively at the Explorers Hub ( discuss.newrelic.com ) for questions and support related to this blog post. This blog may contain links to content on third-party sites. By providing such links, New Relic does not adopt, guarantee, approve or endorse the information, views or products available on such sites.

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Observability Platforms, Gregg Siegfried, Padraig Byrne, Mrudula Bangera, Matt Crossley, August 12, 2024.

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