Mark Zuckerberg’s Memo Isn’t Leadership
It was recently reported that Facebook Founder, Mark Zuckerberg released a letter dealing with intolerant behavior on behalf of his employees. Apparently, within Facebook HQ has a wall where employees are encouraged to share thoughts, ideas or general musings for public consumption. “Black Lives Matters”, the hashtag turned social movement, was among the material written on the wall. Unfortunately to some faction of Facebook employees this was not well received and the words were either erased or replaced with the demeaning counter argument of “All Lives Matter”. Mr. Zuckerberg having already released an internal memo to deal with and denounce these incidents only to have them continue upped the ante in a tersely worded letter to employees. You can read it in full here.
The letter was positively received as evidence of Mark Zuckerberg “getting it”. He was applauded for his clear and unequivocal support for a tolerant work place environment. He also scored points by making a concise case for Black Lives Matter and its relevance given the historical and current social climate. All of these things are good but they are not positions to be lauded. Nor are they examples of visionary leadership.
Peter F. Drucker sums it up perfectly “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”
What Mr. Zuckerberg demonstrates is good managerial skills (with a healthy dose of understanding the power of public relations), nothing more and nothing less. As the Founder and CEO of one of the most highly visible companies in the world it is Managerial 101 to confront any issues of workplace intolerance head on. In this respect he does 100% the correct thing. His messaging is clear and leaves no grey area for the offending employees. But, this is NOT an example of leadership, least of all visionary leadership as many have cited. In short, Mr. Zuckerberg is doing what he is “supposed to do” and as Chris Rock says I can’t give him too much credit for that. Facebook exists within an industry that has rightly come under fire for its shocking lack of diversity. Only 2% of the Facebook total workforce is African American and 4% is Hispanic. Leadership in this context would be an aggressive push to diversify Facebook ranks throughout the organization. Recruiting, hiring and retaining a diverse workforce would prove that Facebook is inclusive in both word and action. The right thing, the visionary leadership thing, is to put forth actionable plans designed to upend the status quo. It is no longer enough to give lip service to diversity while not making concerted efforts to address inclusion. Mr. Zuckerberg is a great manager but we’re still waiting for the leader to emerge as it pertains to diversity and inclusion.
The Deep Dive
- Episode 256: The Great Resistance w/ Carrie Gibson April 22, 2026Philip welcomes Carrie Gibson, author of The Great Resistance: The 400 Year Fight to End Slavery in the Americas. In their conversation they trace how the history of resistance has been purposely obscured and how the lessons from those ancestorial responses to slavery and oppression are relevant today. The Drop – The segment of the […]
- Episode 255: The Business of Meaning w/ Peter Spear April 16, 2026Philip welcomes. Peter Spear, host and curator of the newsletter and podcast That Business of Meaning to the show. In their conversation, they discuss all things culture and how the current marketing and media landscape make sense of the world around it. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his guest […]
- Episode 254: Bernie Goetz, Reagan and the Rebirth of White Rage w/ Heather Ann Thompson April 2, 2026Philip welcomes Heather Ann Thompson author of Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, The Bernie Goetz Shootings and the Rebirth of White Rage to the show. In their conversation they discuss how the pivotal Bernie Goetz shooting of four innocent Black teens alongside the conservative austerity and race baiting of the Reagan Presidency set the […]
- Episode 253: Crafting Stories of The Future w/ Betty Sue Flowers March 26, 2026Philip welcomes Betty Sue Flowers, author of Scenarios: Crafting and Using Stories of the Future to Change the Present to the show. In their conversation they discuss the power of stories and narrative to influence the stories we tell to shape our future. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his […]
- Episode 252: When Trees Testify w/ Dr. Beronda Montgomery March 19, 2026Philip welcomes plant biologist Dr. Beronda Montgomery, author of Lessons From Plans and When Trees Testity: Science, Wisdom, History and America’s Black Botanical Legacy to the show. In their conversation, they trace the intimate relationship between Black people and the natural world and our historical legacy as told through America’s trees. The Drop – The […]
- Episode 251: No One Leaves Clean w/ Yaw Ofosu-Asare March 12, 2026Philip welcomes designer Yaw Ofosu-Asare, author of No One Leaves Clean: Living, Breathing and Surviving the Post-Colonial Economy to the show. In their episode they discuss how Africa is reshaping itself in a post-colonial reality, how we navigate identity and the power of culture to understand our past and future. The Drop – The segment […]
- Episode 250: Getting Lost with Lost Maps w/ James Cheshire March 5, 2026Philip welcomes cartographer James Cheshire, author of The Library of Lost Maps to the show. In their episode they discuss the history of lost maps, the cultural relevance of maps and whether they still can help us navigate the worlds we inhabit. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his guest […]
- Episode 249: Culture & The Rules That Make Us w/ Oliver Sweet February 26, 2026Philip welcomes Oliver Sweet, author of The Rules That Make Us: How Culture Shapes the Way We Act, Think, Believe and Buy. In their conversation they discuss the complexity of culture and how it impacts our thinking across a variety of criteria. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his guest […]
- Episode 248: True Human w/ Samantha Sweetwater February 5, 2026Philip welcomes Samantha Sweetwater, author of True Human: Reimagining Ourselves at the End of the World. In their conversation, they explore the meaning of what it is to human, how we navigate death and what future(s) can we build. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his guest share tasty morsels […]
- Episode 247: Artificial Humanities w/ Nina Begus January 29, 2026Philip welcome Nina Begus, author of Artificial Humanities: A Fictional Perspectives on Language in AI to the show. In their conversation, they discuss the important role that humanities can play in how AI is positioned in the world. The Drop – The segment of the show where Philip and his guest share tasty morsels of […]