As a manager, and leader, the words and actions you take are incredibly important. John Schnatter, founder and chairman of Papa John’s Pizza, found this out the hard way. During a media training conference call, Schnatter used derogatory comments and racial slurs. This call, although intended to be a role-playing exercise, quickly turned into a bad dream for Schnatter. In response to this action, and having admitted the fault, Schnatter was forced to resign as chairman after the local NAACP branch called for his resignation. In addition, the board of directors decided that he would be removed from all marketing, publicity, and pizza boxes, and they took the stance that “Papa John’s is not an individual.

Papa John’s is a pizza company with 120,000 corporate and franchise team members around the world” (Forbes 2018). Shares of stock for Papa John’s soared after the announcement of his resignation, adding $50 million to Schnatter’s total net worth (CNN Money 2018). The values of the company prevailed through the actions of Schnatter, showcasing that despite making a mistake, the commitment to maintaining an ethical standard is still an important value to Schnatter as well as the company overall.

Question 1: Do you think the actions of the board of directors were enough to uphold Papa John’s reputation?

Question 2: What other actions or types of training should Papa John’s take with their employees in light of the current state of ethical defamation of the company and founder?