For years, Tractor Supply has touted its values and how firmly it has committed to them, as demonstrated by the fact that the Tennessee-based retailer recently set new targets, having already met the ones it established in 2018. But a vitriolic campaign by a right-wing podcaster led the company to summarily abandon those values, leading some employees to quit and diverse members of the company’s customer base to speak up. In this short midweek episode, Neville and Shel discuss how firmly a company should stand up for what it believes, especially as political divides threaten organizations’ ability to do what’s best for the business.

Links from this episode:

• Tractor Supply retailer drops diversity efforts, and employees quit
• Black farmers’ group calls for Tractor Supply CEO’s resignation after DEI cuts
• Lessons From Tractor Supply’s Sudden Reversal On Its Commitment To DEI
• Tractor Supply’s Customers Cheer as It Dumps ESG, Says Survey
• Tractor Supply may have thought it solved a big problem. Now it has a few more.
• DEI Might Be Dying: John Deere and Microsoft Make Big Changes

—-

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, July 29.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat most Thursdays at 1 p.m. ET. To obtain the credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request them in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. You can catch up with both co-hosts on Neville’s blog and Shel’s blog.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this podcast are Shel’s and Neville’s and do not reflect the views of their employers and/or clients.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices