Apple Bends to Cook

I'm confused.  I worked for HP (then EDS), and a couple of other businesses that had clients in all parts of the world.  We found it beneficial to business interests to keep our politics to ourselves, lest we offend a client or two who might not agree with our position.  We were not alone in the IT marketplace, and business partners and clients had choices about where they went.

I was pretty surprised when Meg Whitman, the CEO at HP, announced she was endorsing Hillary Clinton.  That kind of thing was discouraged when I was there.  Sure, we had people in high level positions that gave money to parties, even went to conventions, but they did it as private citizens and not as company employees.  

Now, I don't much care what Tim Cook or Meg Whitman does as a citizen of our country.   They are allowed to say who they endorse and who they will vote for.  They even have a right to hold fund raisers.   But, I believe it is bad for business and I am a stockholder.  If I were to be on the board, I think I might have something to say about it, and it is not hard to explain why.

You can't separate Tim Cook or Meg Whitman from the companies they represent.  Unlike Justin Bieber, or any of the Hollywood elite, their brand is the corporate brand, not a personal one.  At the level I worked at, people used to ask me who I worked for and we exchanged business cards.  At the level they work at, nobody asks.  They know who they represent.  So, as a shareholder I want to avoid offending those people who might be supporting another candidate.  We have enough trouble making money as it is.