You know, I simply cannot comprehend shit like this– This must-read article in Friday’s New York Times says quite a bit about Julie Roehm and her conduct:
While some of the details are in dispute, several people briefed on the matter said that Wal-Mart dismissed Ms. Roehm and a lower-ranking marketing colleague, Sean Womack, after deciding that the pair had a personal relationship that violated the company’s strict ethics policy, which forbids fraternizing with subordinates.
Ms. Roehm acknowledged that her style and ideas did raise eyebrows at Wal-Mart. “I think part of my persona is that I am an envelope pusher,” she said last night. “The idea of change in general can be uncomfortable for many people, and my persona as an agent of change can prompt that feeling.”
And it just gets more bizarre:
She was spotted taking a ride in an Aston Martin owned by the chief executive of one agency, Draft FCB. At another time, she was seen riding in a BMW convertible with the president of another, GSD&M, according to people familiar with the matter.
And she attended a September dinner given by Draft FCB at the Manhattan hot spot Nobu, during which she lavishly praised the ad agency and appeared to suggest it had the upper hand in the contest more than a month before an official announcement of the winner was due.
One agency executive familiar with the Wal-Mart agency search, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that Wal-Mart executives were “gagging and spitting and turning green” over the Nobu dinner because of the strict Wal-Mart rules that prohibit employees from accepting gifts of any kind — including drinks or meals — from a supplier or potential supplier.
After learning of such incidents, and the suspected relationship, Wal-Mart fired Ms. Roehm and Mr. Womack around noon on Monday in terse meetings at the company’s headquarters in Bentonville, Ark.
I’m speechless. Really. This chick must have some Jedi mind-trick shit working for her. And what kind of self-aborbed nitwit says things like “My persona as an agent of change…”? Can someone explain how Corporate America dumbasses fall for this nonsense?
Unbelievable.
Dan Goldgeier
David Burn
Shawn Hartley
Wade Sturdivant