When The Price For Workplace Romance Is Your Job

It’s not uncommon for romances to ignite in the workplace. The problem is when such relationships create a conflict of interest.

This is why more and more organizations are creating policies to address workplace romance, which are usually added to the Code of Business Conduct (COBC) document. When an employee violates this policy, the end result can include termination of employment.

As should always be true with stated values, if the COBC has real meaning, then it also applies to all senior leaders, including the CEO.

The COBC of Priceline is Real

The Priceline Group, the popular online travel agent (with a current market value of $67 billion) is the latest company that has demonstrated their COBC is real.

Darren Huston, CEO of Priceline, resigned after an internal investigation found that his relationship with an employee violated the company’s code of conduct. A statement released by the company indicated that the fellow employee was “not under his [Huston’s] direct supervision”, but the CEO’s activities were “inconsistent with the Board’s expectations for executive conduct, which Mr. Huston acknowledged and for which he expressed regret.”

When the board was first made aware of this workplace romance, after a tip from a whistleblower, it opened up an investigation by hiring a law firm to conduct the probe, led by independent directors. The conclusion of the probe was clear: Huston violated the COBC, creating a conflict of interest.

In Priceline’s 43-page COBC document, under the section titled “Gifts & Conflicts of Interest”, it clearly states:

“Priceline Group employees should not be in the position of supervising, reviewing or having any influence on the job evaluation, pay or benefits of any close relative… or a person with whom you are having a close personal/ romantic relationship.”

Specifically for senior leaders of an organization, it doesn’t matter if the other employee is “not under direct supervision”. It’s ALWAYS going to be a conflict of interest.

In other words, workplace romances for senior leaders are never a good idea.

Specific for Huston, the smart thing to do would have been to follow the statement he made at the beginning of Priceline’s COBC document (note: this section was removed as soon as he resigned), where he reiterates the importance of the company’s values – honesty, integrity, responsibility, and accountability – where he states:

“The Code applies to all employees, directors and officers of the Company throughout the world,?as well as others who conduct business on our behalf. I expect you to read, understand and follow the principles in the Code in all that you do for the Priceline Group.”

Clearly, Darren Huston didn’t read and understand the Code. Or he deliberately chose to ignore it. Or maybe he didn’t remember it because the document is so long and detailed…

The Need for a Workplace Romance Policy

Now, the question could be raised, “Is workplace romance really an issue?” Indeed, it appears to be a big issue.

According to a 2013 study by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM):

• 24% of employees reported have been in or are currently involved in a workplace romance.
• 43% of HR professionals reported incidences of workplace romance at their organizations.
• 54% of organizations do not have a written or verbal policy that addresses workplace romance.
• Among organizations that have workplace romance policies, almost all indicated that romance between a supervisor and a direct report is not permitted.
• The most frequently reported consequences applied to workplace romances are the transfer of one of the employees to another department (34%) and/or counseling (32%).

For most employees, the termination of employment may not be their biggest concern. But for senior leaders, termination is always a serious and real occurrence. Popular examples include: Steven Heyer, former CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts; Harry Stonecipher, former CEO of Boeing; and one of the most publicized being Mark Hurd when he was CEO of HP (I wrote about his story here).

Bottom line: if senior leaders want to keep their jobs, they should avoid any and all workplace romance considerations.