CEO forced to apologise after telling employees to ‘get out of pity city’

The CEO of MillerKnoll was forced to apologise to her employees after her comments asking them “to leave pity city” went viral.

Andy Owens, the head of the upmarket furniture maker, made those comments in March during a town hall in which, in response to a question, she asked her employees to stop worrying “about what you’re going to do if you don’t get a bonus” and otherwise “leave pity city”.

Now, in an email to her staff, she has formally apologised for the comments that “seemed insensitive”.

She wrote: “As a leader, I try to always pick the right words and tone to inspire and motivate this incredible team. I want to be transparent and empathetic, and as I continue to reflect on this instance, I feel terrible that my rallying cry seemed insensitive. What I’d hoped would energise the team to meet a challenge we’ve met many times before landed in a way that I did not intend and for that I am sorry.”

Her earlier comments during a Zoom meeting with her employees, in which she could be seen chiding her staff for speculating about bonuses, received a huge backlash when the 90-second video was leaked online.

One TikToker commented that if a bonus isn’t “a big deal then she should not focus on her bonus and give it up!!!”

She said: “Spend your time and your effort thinking about the $26m we need and not thinking about what you’re gonna do if we don’t get a bonus, alright? Can I get some commitment for that?”

She continued: “I had an old boss who said to me one time, ‘You can visit Pity City, but you can’t live there’. So people, leave Pity City. Let’s get it done. Thank you. Have a great day.”

Kris Marubio, a spokesperson for MillerKnoll, told The Holland Sentinel on Wednesday that bonuses for this year have not been determined because the fiscal year doesn’t end until May, and Ms Owen’s bonus hasn’t been determined, either.

“We all follow the same bonus determination,” she was quoted as saying. “It happens after financial results are reported for the full year.”

The spokesperson earlier noted that the “90 seconds out of a 75-minute internal meeting where we talked about a lot of positive things at the company, product launches, brand campaigns, connecting with customers and business results, was leaked. And on its own it’s misleading. It doesn’t represent the full 75 minutes.”

Ms Owen received $1.29m in bonuses in 2022 and $1.12m in 2021, according to reports.