Genius or internet troll? 54% of Tesla respondents believe Musk’s Twitter activity is harming the company
The outspoken CEO Elon Musk is an active Twitter user, and his tweets have gotten him into trouble in the past, beyond wiping out $14 billion dollars of stock value. Blind, the anonymous professional network with over 3.5 million verified users, 2,300 of which work at Tesla, asked 50 Tesla employees two simple questions:
How do you think Elon Musk’s Twitter activity is affecting your company?
- It is benefiting Tesla
- It is not affecting Tesla
- It is harming Tesla
In your opinion, Elon Musk is:
- A genius
- Misunderstood
- An Internet troll
- All of the above
- None of the above
Key Findings:
- 53.7% of respondents believe Musk’s Twitter activity is harming the company
- 26.1% of Tesla respondents believe Elon Musk is a genius
- 10.9% of Tesla respondents believe Elon Musk is misunderstood
- 10.9% of Tesla respondents believe Elon Musk is an internet troll
- 43.5% of Tesla respondents believe Elon Musk is a combination of the three
Tech employees are known for having their compensation linked to company value/stock price. So while Elon’s Twitter activity does generate conversation and media coverage, the impact on stock price does raise the question of how those directly work for him and compensated as such think of the situation. In other words, memes and Twitter storms can be funny from an outsider’s perspective. Still, one does wonder if the joke is less funny when the compensation you’re receiving after pulling long hours is significantly and quickly reduced.
These tweets also have non-Tesla professionals concerned. One user at Intel asks “What are your views of Elon musk’s recent tweets and company health? Thinking of cashing out of Tesla.” Another user at PayPal states “I love the company’s products and space. But the guy is a true nutter who doesn’t know the difference between a personal opinion and a publicly shareable statement.”
What do you think? Should company leaders be allowed to freely share on their social media pages? Is there another standard or layer of accountability for company leaders as the can directly impact company value?
