Transcript
Come on, hurry up. Come on, let's do it. Come on you. Hurry up, you ready? Lao live from the overpaid directors, brunch Lounge. Poem of the industry's best Echo Chambers. It's a fresh daily dive into the boardroom blunders of corporate America. Today's top read. Boards that fail like sports teams, missing their playoffs. It's a business. Well. On today's almond butter and AI jelly filled proxy, sandwich, called, October 15th, 2024 the good game. Oh, what Matt was referred to, there is a over the weekend. He spent a lot of time, inputting our scripts, our show scripts into various AI services and asking them to write jokes for us. Yeah that was a joke that was as good as it got. I like that to live from the overpaid directors brunch. That's a good start kind of kids from there. So if you're listening to the show, we do we do business nuggets. And I asked a couple of these things to do business nuggets. So what was kind of good does such an angry AI. I love that. I was How did they know they're overpaid and what and why I love the dig that like there's some class. Warfare dig there about like a brunch Lounge, right? Because elitists are always enjoying run wild. Yeah. All the homeless are like scrounging right for for pennies? I like I will well look the AI service is I use only use the knowledge. I give them and the knowledge I gave them was just our I don't get it show notes. That's it. It was so that's what it thinks of US thinks we are the AI because we don't actually talk about overpaid directors. A lot, we talk about overpaid CEOs, but we should talk more about. There's a new study out actually. That is studying the the effect of how much directors make that the fact that they have their their pay as increased like what 300% and last summer what like X years, 10 years. So we should focus more on Direct pays what I'm trying to say. We should I don't think we've ever mentioned brunch though. I think the AI came with that. Yeah itself. Which means it's it might understand us better than we understand ourselves. That's what I'm wearing about. Hi, our show today is being sponsored by free flow, analytics.com. The only platform measuring board power connections and performance for free. Yeah, good free. It's amazing. That I had to pay, you know, twenty dollars to subscribe to a couple of AI things to get and to have it. Look at information and things that's free on free flow analytics.com, right? Like it's just it. What a stupid Universe we live in. does the AI do the AI Services come with like you know, Netflix like Cobra, Kai stranger, Stranger Things? No, it didn't. He's already. Does free play, analytics.com. Does come with Cobra Kai? All 20 Seasons, don't hold us that. All right, come on, let's play the good game. All right. Do we do? We have good game music? Let's just listen to this. I'm looking at the, the recent stats in the good game. This is a good game works. I pick headlines that seemed good, but are a steamed. Pundit steps in to actually tell me if they're good or not by. Yeah, but giving me like objective, just like Jeffery, son of Paul. He gives me an objective score. Objective completely objective. Yep. But I have noticed that you have been coming more depressed recently, in July, Your scores in June you were 6.6 July 63. September 10th, 5.6, September, 24th, 5.4. You're going down every, every show, every good game. Well, let's be clear, most of that time. Like, I have my children have been. So, so, first of all, now, like, Ari and Jesse are in the office, and when they go, There, they're off having Adventures like, like real greener pastures as I say, and second, as soon as school started, All My Children got pneumonia. So it is not been a good run for me. Interpreting these these headlines, I don't get better, this is a struggle. I looked at all the headlines, October 16th, you know, doesn't mean they're good. Let's just get right to. I actually categories this week for you because I know that you struggled to sort of process knowledge. Everything information life. Yeah. So we're gonna go, we're gonna look at the environment. We're gonna look at diversity. We're gonna look at Labor. We're gonna look at stakeholders Rule and finally we're gonna end on a speed route. Come on let's get to it. Come on. All right let's do it. Let's do it. Go Global EV sales up 31% in September as China shines. He just wanted to say China. I like, I like China shining, I like China. I like every country, but here's all of them really. Here's why not, why not? The inevitable? This is like a nice short term feel. Oh, but okay, but Europe is talking about massive tariffs and Chinese, 45%. But I think they're about the balloon, right? And the US is, if Trump is elected in three weeks, is talking about like, basically no China like nothing. I don't like just EVS, though. We're just gonna hand the market to Elon Musk because he's donating to Donald Trump. So I don't get this, my, my family like many American families. Have owned Japanese cars since the 70s, we've only owned Subarus since the 70s. Why can't I own a nice cheap? Chinese, Evie. I want one. I want a nice Chinese. Well, you have to recognize that in the 80s. When the Japanese cars were increasingly getting shipped here. This is what they did then, too. It's all protectionism, right? Like it's all like work. Of course, it doesn't work and it's not gonna work for a lesson. I forget, let's not forget that. China is a quote unquote perceived Enemy of the State, whatever. That means when the Japanese car Revolution happened, the 70s that was only like three decades after they fought with the Germans on the access side of the world. Yeah right. Yeah. Well that's a real enemy, an actual in the 80s week. Bye Beamers from BMW, which was a German company, just bought stuff from the access to the evil. That's all we did. But China, which we've never been in a war with that. We may never be in a war with this somehow or enemy. But yeah, go ahead. What I like is that like these sales are up. There's so many companies that have been talking about like, like, like, like backing off, Evie sales and going to do hybrids, or just gas. Or I even been hearing about companies like exploring more, hydrogen cars again and it's like, get over it, EVS work, they're great, they're great drives one. Super they look nice. Get over it. I'm giving this a seven. Oh wow. That's weird. I'm surprised you started over the bank. Next one. In the category, a natural gas company, just became the first to be sued over climate change. So this is out of Oregon. They're suing a bunch of gas companies like shells, they suing. So now they're storing, suing Northwest naturally care about this. Misleading customers about fossil fuels in the dangerous imposing environment. I mean this is like isn't this old hat? I mean, I guess, How is this good? What's the good part about this? It's just, it's the first natural gas only right? Stakeholders fighting back. Okay. Have they won at all? Like fighting it 30 years? Yeah, I know. I know, I know. So I'm giving this a five. There's not move on. Yeah that's it for the environment that's it because believe me there were so much. Horrible stuff in the environmental. Had a Grace that we track on track. That's probably because of super mega A hurricanes fueled, of course, by the heating Waters of climate change. So there's not really any good news in this area. We're gonna have problems with the good game, sort of in perpetuity it's only seems like the news is trending in One Direction overall right? Yeah. Like I mean you have two presidential candidates who are barely talking about the climate. Let's be real. I mean, you know, Harris is a bit better obviously, but she's not really talking up like major policy change. Well, I mean, look, I was I went canvasing and in Pennsylvania over the weekend and it's like physically went to Pennsylvania. Yeah, yeah. Drove to Pennsylvania. With all it is, is you're going to find car and a in a minivan with oh five teenagers. It's a, it's a plug-in hybrid and you're knocking on doors and you're just trying to get voters out, you're not just like make sure you're registered. If you need any help, let us know, kind of thing. And your data collecting. When I was walking down the main street of Milford PA. Yep, there was a trump, you know, like, it's a republican county seat and the Democratic County Seat. They had a guy, they were waving flags and they were like yelling at cars are beeping when you're going by, and it's like the whole thing, terrible. Something there was a guy just standing out there and every brown person who drove by, he said, illegals get out yelled at their cars. Wonderful. So I'm not sure if Harris likes says the climate's. A problem, if he's really, if she's really gonna be talking in the same language and any of it like I hear what do we do it, I hear you. I'm not making a bigger statement about Harris vs. Trump. I'm just saying that. I'm not too sure that either one of them is about to solve the climate crisis. That's all how dare you? Yeah, no. Dare you. I'm trying to keep this Bleak is what I'm trying to do. And by the way, that's horrible. I believe game. I gotta tell you, I am so lucky to live in a bubble because I don't, I, first of all, I haven't even seen a trump sign, but second of all, there's no honking at brown people in my community. There's no none of something else. I'm thrilled about that. It's not like, it was, like, living in episode of The Daily Show where Jordan klepper goes and to Trump rallies. It was like that. It was really bizarre. It was a it was feeling like another Universe. Oh, let's move over to diversity. Care category. Speaking of Another Universe. Her the furrow, this is interesting. This first one, how gender biases shape investor response to shareholder activism? So listen to this, Matt investors view CEOs more favorably when they respond to shareholder activism in ways that conform to gender stereotypes, according to new Cornell research. So, basically, the activists likes the female CEO, who acts like a quote unquote, a woman and is more cooperative and they like and they like male CEOs who are not cooperative and are pushy and and act like men, what do you think? What is this? What? I don't know. I don't know, but I had to throw this in here for you to to complain about like because first of all, you have to come at it with some conception of what it is to have a woman quality versus male quality. Yeah. So already you're you're not research on this though and then there's a bias on top of the bias, which Is I am going to, like, subconsciously evaluate the CEO by how gender manly and look. And what's, what's the sample size on female? CEO? Seven. Yeah, well, like so none, like what we really do this? Here? Stupid is study I've ever seen but here's the thing, I'm at least relieved that they were angry that women aren't acting more like men. That's my takeaway. Oh, that was your take. That's a real stretch. I will come on. What's your grade? Come on. It's a zero. That's just because you hate Cornell because you're ruining your Cornell. I like you, that's a zero moving on. Maybe this one would be better 29% of c-suite roles or now held by women 29%. It doesn't distinguish unfortunately between like is that CEO is that she's all the chief marketing officer marketing? Yeah, I don't know. I don't know. But okay, so percent 29%. So let's do the basic math season is usually, what four to five people? It's no. Surely okay more. Let's say on average. Yeah. oh, Ahead of marketing or investor relations like that. There's been resources, human resources or people? Yeah. And legal, usually like that growth officer they love and then oftentimes, you know, like there's one sort of like, technical person like a head of technology or ahead of a hearing, or has like a like so you got six people there, right? Oh, they're not, you know, we, we know that we know, they're definitely not the CEO. Oh, I left out CFO. We know that they're not a lot of women. There are more and more women in that role, but we know they're not the CEO, they're never the CEO, right? So, yeah, I don't see that 29% is, is effectively one in three, which means out of the six-ish roles the two that you as you eliminate things that are left over our head of human resources and legal and we know this empirically we can count it. We've done it before. We know that those are just Personally, when it correlates with the attainment of educational degrees, right? The law schools are granting way more degrees to women. Yes, yeah. So so the situation what this headline says it makes it implies that like there's more leadership by women, but what it doesn't say is that women are getting slotted into the c-suite in the same role. It's like head mother. Like when we when we started this show in 1982, remember that the first show in 1990 I remember yeah. This figure was 2.9% to 0.9% so now it's 29%. That's it. Was that Congress progress is slow and steady right? Like so by 204. Yeah. By 274 when they released Tron 13 we will be here. Come on, 40% features girls. This is a three. This is what is this is just good game. All right. Now this one you're gonna like elf Beauty. This is the I already like it. Are they yellow 500? They are they Fortune? 500. Elf Beauty. I generate database. I know that they're definitely in our database free flow.com elf Beauty in the North Carolina, Agricultural and Technical State University. This is the nation's largest historically. Black college or university, I did not know that it's the largest historically black college in the in the country. They released a paper called The Not So white paper, linking diverse boards to corporate success. I wanted to point out a few of these areas that they covered in this paper. It's gonna be a this is gonna be a 1000 research shows that diversity in the boardroom, can have several positive benefits including higher return on Equity, reduce Financial Risk, better returns for shareholders and fewer. Lawsuits are like that last one. Actually so that conforms to research that we did yeah like like many years ago right. Like eight years ago. Yeah. Yeah. That shows that having more women on the board the whole time there were, there was, there's always trying to prove a link between performance and gender diversity or diversity of some kind. That's the wrong thing because you want to, really what diversity means is. It's like a risk adjustment. It's it's defense not offense. And when it's offense, it's usually long-term offense, like Innovation because you want different perspectives, but the way you actually see this, like when you think of it as immediate defense is fewer controversies, which is what we found 14 years ago and less lawsuits. And you know, like, basically they're not a shity, that's your avoiding shittyness. Is that academic term, is that that's what that wasn't in the Cornell report though. That was the problem, I like this is A 10. Yeah. Like I like anything that conforms to my deeply helps to our former papers. Yeah let's move on to labor bunch of headlines and labor. Unions defy their leadership with more no votes on contracts. So they're saying fed up with inflation and seasoning. A moment of Labor power workers at Boeing AT&T in Southwest reject deals. Negotiated by Union boss. What do you think about this? Um, I picked it, part part of the reason I picked this out, because we have a activist battle heating up at Southwest. We have a strike, a Boeing that's not five weeks long, that they just announced that they're laying off, 10% of Workforce, which is horrible. Of course, I'm not sure how to feel about this, yeah, because a, the workers seem to be pushing for more, which I don't usually generally have a problem with, although, at some point you, you know, Hostess cupcake, the twinkie, the whole thing and and sink the company. but, on the other hand, There. The and this goes back to the fact that I was canvassing. I spoke to a lot of Union people. Yeah, who said their unions are like aligned with one candidate or another and they're all on the fence is individuals and it's very interesting to me because it's like the like the inflation question. Like who controls inflation? It's not like you're bargaining. Is a part of inflation and B. Also like you have been left out of the inflation, right? Like it's usually just the c-suite and the shareholders that make the money and you don't. So, I don't know. This one's like somewhere in the middle. Like, I don't know what you expect of the union bosses. Nor do I feel bad for you for asking for more, you know what I mean? I'm giving this a five, so, that's a long winded. Five basically passed on that one. Yeah. Before to feel I think you're gonna like this next one. I tried a tool that led to your co-workers rate, your character, the startup behind it, once employers to use it for hiring, it's just incredible. You would have used this msci, you would have used this come on. I your co-workers character, that's fun, that's fine. I would have made the tool if I, if I could have. This is their version of the good game, but incorporate, you know, imagine like, State Street. Imagine not Fidelity all using this tool, right? To write their thing. You know, I saw her steal his yogurt. So, I'm gonna give her two. I think this is actually your dream. I actually think this, I didn't make this up. This is right. I know you didn't make it up, but like you, you used to like, like jokes about wet khakis in the office and you like, you love rating who was it, was the Verizon CEO, who has a spreadsheet where they do one through five every day. How they feel? Like I think this Is I love it too. As fabulous. It's a nine. It's a nine. I just want to get this data into artery. Amazon could be forced to treat drivers as employees. That's the headline. So that's all the time is the shocking part. Yeah. Right. We see this all the time with Uber with Lyft with any stuff from the in the gig economy, right? We see this. So, Labor Regulators are pushing for this possibly opening the way for you more unionization. What do you think about this? I mean it could just have this is a no-brainer right? It's a no-brainer 5 because they could be forced to do it. Yeah. And that actually have this is also Uber and Lyft doing the same thing where they could have been employees. But law like they, they win everything because they, they Lobby. So last one of the labor category, another one that you're gonna like Home Depot I mean, I don't know if you're going to be, if you can have a positive or negative reaction, but you're going to like the headline Home Depot orders corporate staff to take eight, our retail shifts. I mean, there's another one of my dreams, right? Like, I don't want this at all companies, I want, like, I want all c-suite, people all management to do like shifts, didn't they make a show about this? Like, my Undercover Boss or something, is maybe like the boss, that's right. Yes, tends to be a retail employee, put like a prosthetic, like, go Tiana. And they go do something. And that's and then they go like, at the frialator for three hours. And, and like, then they see all the challenges at their own company and they're either the bosses change. The employees are embarrassed. Well, this is Starbucks too. Locksmith nearest, Seaman, who was CEO for like, 18 months. He tried to do this. He tried to be a barista, then he got fired and he got fired for work out. He was a horrible brief stuff apparently. I, Look, I have a I'll out my bias on this. Yeah. My mom is a was a high school teacher. Yeah. She used to complain all the time that like the school board, the superintendent, the administration I can back you up on this. My mom was a first grade teacher, exact same, as a kid five percent of all conversations in the home was her like bitching about the about them, about the fact that they never taught and have no idea, they would, they would come into like, classroom and evaluate them. They would, they would loom in the background with the clipboard. This is right, this is 1924. Of course where they had clipboards, there is no better. I know it seems like like an inefficient use of time to somebody, but there is no better way to actually. This is why free float is what it is. We didn't we started this company because we analyzed stuff. Yeah, we analyzed directors, we analyzed governance. We analyzed people, we didn't stop once we made a database and started selling it. Like we tried to stop but we have like, stopped honestly like the amount of grunt work. We end up doing is really high and it's on purpose because it's the only way you can know. I love it. It's a 10. All right, that's the question, answer. All. Let's move over to stakeholders rule. So these are all the headlines where stakeholders are fighting back against their corporate overlords. So that's a bit strong. What I just got the idea. Yeah, no wonder why. The AI said, brunch Latin really mean that. All right. This first one is a great one. Ryanair is retaliating against Germany's tax hikes, right by slashing roots, and cutting 1.8 million seats. To me, this is like, I love this, I love it. Stopped flying ryanair's. Charging, like, 90 cents to fly all over the place, and then they charge you like Green dollars to have a couple of water on the plane. There's no reason to fly all over the place. Stop Flying. There's great. I love the day that they're telling, like, I know you hate. When I mentioned France, recently is outlawing, these short hop flights, right? These yeah, flights, right? That you should be taking a train because the train is 1,000 times more. Marvelous anyway, but I love that that the airline thinks that they're, they're punishing people by getting rid of these stupid flights. Honestly, I really think the greatest failing of capitalism is convincing people that your time. It has a monetary value like boredom is great but like having time to like read sit think not be distracted. Put your phone away like just before to look out the window and think like stay on the ground is great. To us. Staying on the ground is not I love the ground. Yes I do. I I'm a big fan of the score in this one. I'm gonna give this an eight for the reason you're saying, which is it's not retaliation. Next one, TD Bank. We talked about this in the show last week. TD Bank was a safe haven for criminals. Feds say and we'll pay three billion dollar fine for. So what do you think about this fine? I just know. It's never Justice. It's like text deductible. It's a five. It's it's I'll give it a six for being something, right? Like you gotta do it. Well yeah, that's true. It is it's not like could be forced to treat drivers as employees. They are being fired. They are getting fine. Right? British Pharma is another one of these types of situations British farmer giant GSK we never talked about GSK, they, they strike a 2.3 billion deal to put an end to 80,000 us lawsuits. And I believe these were lawsuits that that were alleging, that I don't remember the product, it was giving people cancer. I mean, this is like a big deal. Heartburn thing like, yes, exactly. Exactly. 80,000 lawsuits. I took Zantac like, how do you feel not like, not in the last time. Your hearts. Like, I feel not cancerous yet. Oh, boy. All these deals to me like You still? Let me ask you, what is it the monetary value of you getting cancer? Oy vey, that's all that's the answer, right? So like whenever they do one of these deals, right? Like it's sort of like I don't I don't know how to feel about it because it's like, you know, for some of them like we talked about a company on proxy countdown that was making, you know, implants like iuds for women and it was Perforating their uterus Johnson Control. I don't think it was Johnson & Johnson. It was Boston's Pfizer, I think bought them at some point, um, but the point is, what's your uterus Worth, right? I'll tell you this, I just did a quick math. 2.3 billion divided by 80,000 is 20,750. That's that's not a lot that's if that's assuming that people even get that full amount and the worst part, Out that is they won't, right? Because then like like 20% or 30% of that goes to lawyers but the worst part about it is, there's usually an indemnification clause, which says now that you've been paid. You cannot sue us, ever. Again, the problems are yours. And no one can sue us for this problem, because we've stopped it. So, I never know how to quite feel with like these particularly the health ones like the, you know, TD Bank. They can they're gonna, you know, like, work with terrorists all, you know, as much as they want or try to and just pay a fine and then move on, if they get caught, yeah. These like, they're people that don't move on, right? Like you know, good score coming I'm hearing a low score coming, right? It feels like a four because it's not enough nothing but it's it it's it's still like just makes me feel icky and can I just say hats off to Fortune Magazine fortune.com for their reporting on this story because this story is a company by a giant. Early. I mean giant it's full screen on my like 20, you know, three inch monitor, whatever full screen picture of the CEO of GSK. And I I think it's because it's a blonde woman named Emma. Oh no, I don't like that. I don't actually see a giant picture of the CEO like implicated in these stories, but I, you know, you do. But when it's a woman, it's actually when it's a blonde woman, you do tend to see them kind of named and shamed. So, yeah, going that's makes me feel not good. I shall I lower the score? I don't know. It's too late. Let's move on last one, in our stakeholders rule categories might be easier for you. The Department of Justice indicate is considering Google breakup following Monopoly Monopoly ruling. I love that we don't even know the name of the company, Google breakup. Yeah, it's alphabet and Google and Google search function, and it's not alphabet or Google. It is Sergey Brandon Larry Page. They owned the voting control. So you're breaking up the Empire of two dudes. That's what you're doing. Just remember, they're just not the CEO doesn't mean they don't still have voting power control over the company. We covered this on good list. I said it was good list and you argued against it being this. Yeah, but this is your time to shine, not mine. I don't have to say in this. I just want meta. I want Zuck and meta platforms to be broken up. I really hate that like because of the way, the rule, the antitrust rules are worded, it has to do harm specific to a customer. So a free service is very difficult to ever bring up for antitrust, right? Because Proving the harm to the customer by giving them something for free. They don't have to take it, right? So it instantly Zuck in a way that, like, Google hasn't been insulated because the harm is not to like an individual, but the harm is to businesses and advertisers, right? Like that's what the this was about. I makes me uncomfortable, but I'm gonna give this a six. I think they might be too late anyway. I think a lot of the search function has. Yeah. That's what he said before. Going away from Google, right? I mean with special you were talking about AI at the top of the show. People are using that more and more often to For their searching needs. All right, that's it. Let's move on to our speedrun. Let's end this show. This is a good game. Oh, wow. Hold on, hold on. That's the best part of this game so far. Let's end this show. And this is a, I'm gonna, I'm gonna let you define the parameters of speed. You can go quickly. You can, I mean, speed is a relative term, right? Yeah. Technically, one mile per hour in your new. EV could be your speed right? Or could be 100 miles an hour. You see where I'm going here? Is it a Chinese Eevee? Because she first headline in our Speed Run for the good game. JetBlue is axing hot meals for economy. Flyers, that's it. Looks to cut costs. Two things are a problem. Number one only economy Flyers but number two, that's not food. So it's kind of like a mixed bag. I give it a five, you're you're absolutely wrong about that. One first of all as someone who only flies economy, I hate the smell of hot food on flights so that we're very specific to you, peanut butter and jelly and like cheese wedge, I'm thrilled I'm absolutely hate the smell that you like all the people who are allergic. So the one we're gonna get I don't care about no black dots. They're just gonna give you cheese cold, chesse, South Park Creator. Matt Stone asks, if open AI CEO Sam Altman, does anything other than go on podcasts? That's correct, that's all he does do. He just what are the best headlines I've seen in a long time by the way that's why Elon Musk bought a social media company. These are people who heard love ego love hearing Themselves talk. And we, as a person who loves hearing himself, talk I can sit, I can speak to this like that CEO of a small company that's that made its own meals. Just to hear itself talk. This is a five oh humor there. I like that one. If finally on the good game, October 15th 2024 and then we'll get to the scores and the speed round Elon musk's underground transit system in Las Vegas. Is a magnet to trespassers and Confused drivers who have to be escorted? I love this. Yes, that's stupid. That's a thing. I have stupidity. All right, that is basically a stupid. As it gets for anybody involved including me. Picking the story. Wrap me up what I get Would help if I had spelled the, the formula, right? In my calculation, you a little bit up, you're up to a five point now you just six. It's a six, it's a little bit better. Six am I? Well from a five last time, I'm from a five, my last kid with the ammonia. Just got out of the house. Exactly. Everyone's back at school today. All went back to school today else like, you know, they're all like yeah, it's just like a day or two that yeah, they're getting. They're catching IBS today. That's what my fear. That's all we got, that's it. We are free float, we'll be back on Thursday with Parker Hannifin on the property countdown. We are dropping a shareholder Primacy on Wednesday, that's Michael then and and Lipton podcast really, they're fabulous. And on Friday, we'll wrap up the week until then goodbye.