Real question: were any of you aware of BetterUp before Prince Harry joined the company as Chief Impact Officer in 2021? I was not, but I’m sure other people were, especially people in the corporate world (BetterUp has a lot of corporate clients) and people who like life-coaching stuff. Personally, I think Harry’s main work as CIO was to give the company a global platform and global hype – soon after his position was announced, BetterUp;s valuation skyrocketed and the company massively expanded in North America and Europe. Their client roster includes multiple Fortune 500 companies and they went on a hiring spree. What happened next was predictable: they grew and expanded too fast and demand for the “product” stabilized rather than increased. As such, the company has laid off 16% of staff, and the Daily Beast made sure to talk to disgruntled former employees who blame Prince Harry.
Last valued at $4.7 billion, BetterUp is perhaps best known for its chief impact officer: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, who joined the corporate team in 2021. But even with a former royal among its ranks, the startup has struggled to maintain its footing. Last year, its vast roster of contractor coaches staged a revolt after the company modified their pay; the relationship remains fraught, several coaches told The Daily Beast. And this week, BetterUp laid off 16 percent of its staff, the culmination of what multiple workers described as months of turbulence, filled with outbursts from executives, mysterious staff departures, and declining morale.
“We’re all there because of the same bullsh-t story they keep telling us: ‘We’re mission driven, and the mission is going to change the world,’” a recent employee said. But inside the business, he added, “they treat us like sh-t.”
Under Robichaux’s leadership, BetterUp steadily expanded, and the pandemic accelerated its ascent. “I think you’ve got a company that was kind of at the right place at the right time with the rise of employee health and mental wellness coming out of COVID,” a former staffer said. “BetterUp just saw a tremendous amount of growth.” That trajectory has seemingly flattened, however. Two people familiar with BetterUp’s finances said that, during the last fiscal year, the company fell more than 20 percent short of its initial revenue targets. “They were counting on really big expansion numbers,” one of them said. In reality, “they were nowhere close.”
As BetterUp struggles to regain momentum, recently departed staffers are eager to assign blame. Three employees described Robichaux as capricious and prone to flying “off the handle,” and alleged that he insulates himself with loyalists known as FOAs, or “Friends of Alexi.”
Amid the tumult, Prince Harry has become an easy target for aggrieved staffers as well. One former employee, mirroring statements by several peers, assessed the Duke’s day-to-day responsibilities: “I’m going to go with zero things.” Other staffers were more charitable, suggesting that he has helped the company increase its reach in Europe and has lended his celebrity to help close major deals.
Indisputably, though, Prince Harry has become a fixture of tabloids on both sides of the Atlantic, creating the risk that BetterUp’s reputation will be linked with the drama. “At first I was like, ‘This is cool,’” a recent staffer said of the Duke’s corporate position, but increasingly “it’s been more of a distraction.”
“Every article mentions his role at BetterUp, then goes on to roast [him and Meghan Markle].” At some point, the employee argued, “the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.”
I’m not aware of Prince Harry taking the CIO position to work there 9-5, with the kind of daily responsibilities of a manager? It was always pretty clear that he took the position to help raise BetterUp’s profile and build the BetterUp brand because he legitimately believed in the company and wanted people to have access to the kind of coaching BetterUp provides. Of course, it also sounds like the business itself is being poorly run, and that the business model is somewhat flawed. Are you trying to actually support workers by giving them life-coaching and mental-health coaching, or are you just doing corporations’ bidding to squeeze as much as possible out of stressed, overworked and strung-out workers? What is the actual business model here, and is it aggressively staking out the “mental health coaching to Fortune 500 companies” franchise?
Photos courtesy of Backgrid, BetterUp’s Instagram and screencaps from BetterUp videos.
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- San Francisco, CA – Prince Harry, ‘chief impact officer’ at coaching platform BetterUp, appears onstage with BetterUp co-founder and CEO Alexi Robichaux at the ‘BetterUp Uplift’ two-day event at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, CA. Harry and Alexi spoke for 40 minutes onstage at the event. They discussed children, International Women’s Day and their respective careers. BetterUp is based in San Francisco. Pictured: Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 8 MARCH 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- San Francisco, CA – Prince Harry, ‘chief impact officer’ at coaching platform BetterUp, appears onstage with BetterUp co-founder and CEO Alexi Robichaux at the ‘BetterUp Uplift’ two-day event at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, CA. Harry and Alexi spoke for 40 minutes onstage at the event. They discussed children, International Women’s Day and their respective careers. BetterUp is based in San Francisco. Pictured: Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 8 MARCH 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- San Francisco, CA – Prince Harry, ‘chief impact officer’ at coaching platform BetterUp, appears onstage with BetterUp co-founder and CEO Alexi Robichaux at the ‘BetterUp Uplift’ two-day event at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, CA. Harry and Alexi spoke for 40 minutes onstage at the event. They discussed children, International Women’s Day and their respective careers. BetterUp is based in San Francisco. Pictured: Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 8 MARCH 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- San Francisco, CA – Prince Harry, ‘chief impact officer’ at coaching platform BetterUp, appears onstage with BetterUp co-founder and CEO Alexi Robichaux at the ‘BetterUp Uplift’ two-day event at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, CA. Harry and Alexi spoke for 40 minutes onstage at the event. They discussed children, International Women’s Day and their respective careers. BetterUp is based in San Francisco. Pictured: Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 8 MARCH 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM – Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall visit the Trinity Buoy Wharf site of The Prince’s Foundation. Pictured: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton BACKGRID USA 3 FEBRUARY 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM – Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall visit the Trinity Buoy Wharf site of The Prince’s Foundation. Pictured: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton BACKGRID USA 3 FEBRUARY 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
Oh lord. If Harry went to let’s say Aldi and bought a bag of chips and then the following week that store closed the British tabloids would blame him for the closing. Land of make believe just never stops.
I’m sorry, but this is the kind of mental gymnastic typical of the die-hard Sussex fandom. He didn’t just buy a product or happen to visit the office once; he is a member of their C-suite executives and, whether he had a 9-5 with them or not, still has responsibility over the company’s performance and reputation. He and his wife have received a lot of unfair criticism and vitriol, but it has come to a point, particularly on this site, where even a fair comment cannot be made without the same 15 people jumping in defence.
I agree Penguin, there can be a lack of objectivity and viking-like Sussex defense. However, I think this is a hit piece from a few disgruntled employees who were carefully selected to run this narrative.
He’s a spokesperson for the company. He is not part of the strategy team. And like Kaiser said, whatever they pay him they are more than getting their moneys worth. And it’s not criticism but fake “criticism” that people take exception too.
How is Harry responsible for the CFOs poor planning?
This isn’t fair criticism. The article says that these employees were responding to questions about Harry’s day to day responsibilities. Harry doesn’t have day to day responsibilities at better up. His role at betterup was specifically defined as helping them expand in the area of making their services more accessible and increasing charitible partnerships. That was in the announcement. They’ve done that. After a series of investment. They missed one target. They’ve corrected. That is not a sign of a failing business. And there is not indication that Harry’s role in any way contributed to not meeting that target.
He did what he was hired yo fo. Now everyone knows the brand. Look at us talking about it….
Penguin. No he is not responsible for how the company deals with the employees. He was hired to use his name and bring attention to said company and that is what he has done and the company expanded. Yes I will come to the defense of this because he is not responsible. I needed no mental gymnastics to get to my defense.
I think Harry jumped in a little too quickly on this one. The company uses contractors to provide its service. That model works in other industries, but is a lot tougher in the mental health space because scaling while maintaining experience and quality is really hard.
I’m not even remotely suggesting that somehow he should be held responsible for this or that I agree with this attempt at making him the scapegoat. I was taking issue with the comment above that likened what happened with him simply purchasing a product from a company off the street; therefore, he should be absolved of any connection whatsoever.
@penguin. What you are saying is that if enough accusations and lies are thrown at the Sussexes, they should own one or some of them at some point?
Also, can you name one company that has not layer off workers?
I have never really seen where one singular person is blamed for layoffs.
I never knew how effective the Tabloids were at fooling people until recently.
@Penguin, I have a big issue with your “Harry and his wife” “the Sussex fandom” ” its become a point on this site” but I will just sit on my hands.
Penguin. The article was from a British tabloid not known to be fair to the Sussexes. So when I said what I did about buying something and then being blamed it’s because a tabloid wrote the piece not a reputable organization that prints facts. The facts are this. Yes Harry does work for the company but he is in no way responsible. Just because he works there does not mean he should in any way shape or form be responsible for something he did not do.
This is a bad take, Penguin. I see the naysayers are again engaging in this forum only to complain about it. If it’s so bad, why bother? You have your reddit groups where they refuse to say Meghan’s name and this analysis would be welcome. Maybe hang out there instead.
Also there are a lot more than 15 of us, lol. We see the actual mental gymnastics required to view Harry and Meghan as unsuccessful. Their projects have been overwhelmingly successful. It’s an incorrect narrative.
Where were you when vendors were literally losing money because of the Middleton bankruptcy? Nowhere. Massive hypocrite for even pretending to be neutral.
I’m with you Penguin. It’s pretty absurd to claim that the number 3 person on the roster of their upper management is not a representative of the company, regardless of what his nine-to-five looks like. He is part of the executive team, and as such is also responsible for how the company is managed, whether directly or indirectly. The thing is, I think he cares. I think he took on this position because he truly believed in they company’s mission. So he SHOULD care about the fuckery happening here and I hope he distances himself, because to pretend like it doesn’t taints him by association and no competent PR person would suggest otherwise.
As to the other replies you’ve gotten, they’re indicative of people not familiar with how the corporate world works so I wouldn’t pay them much mind. Spokespeople are literally the outward face of the company. Either they’re a figurehead spokesperson, in which case not speaking up equals tacit endorsement of company behavior, or they’re an internal rep doing the company’s bidding. They’re both bad options, but if Harry is truly the former, he needs to wash his hands of this. Company success or mismanagement also can’t be boiled down to “strategy” or the “CFOs failings”. It sounds like there were systemic issues that likely touched on all different areas of the business that upper leadership failed to redress.
Pamplemousse. What company are you the head of to tell others they don’t know what they talking about with this topic. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist for anyone to believe that Harry, who does work for the company but in a completely different category than those who deal with the everyday running of the company, is in no way to blame for the layoffs of its employees. You are wrong if you believe otherwise but it is your right to let everyone know how wrong you are on this.
Hi Susan, I appreciate your engagement. You may have misread my comment — I never blamed Harry for the shenanigans, only that he has a responsibility regarding the handling and optics of the situation more generally by virtue of his leadership role at the company. One does not have to be at fault to accept responsibility — good leaders know this, and I’ve been lucky enough to work for some truly inspiring ones. My C-suite boss would be appalled at the notion of any other member of the C-suite shrugging off responsibility for such a dramatic corporate downturn. And any upper level executive worth their salt knows that you can’t work in a silo and hope to be successful. So either Harry is just a token figurehead completely removed from the day-to-day operations of the company, in which case his bloated title and over-hyped responsibilities were just blowing smoke up investors’ asses, or he belongs up there in the executive team and has earned number 3 billing, in which case he needs to weather this storm.
Pamplemousse. I’m tire of beating this dead horse. He is not responsible. Please read @Saucy&Sassy’s response below she wraps things up nicely.
@Bee, I’m not complaining about anything; I’m engaging with the article and the comments just like you are. I’m sorry you can’t exist within a forum where anyone disagrees with your viewpoints. Maybe you’re the one that would be better off on Reddit.
@susanCollins, yep, didn’t you know that Harry was advising the UK treasury , he was advising the US treasury, he was advising all the car makers, the candle stick makers, because everybody knows that all the ails of the world are Harry and Megan’s fault!! Ffs when will this stop Harry is not the finance officer or the MD or the person who makes all business decisions, he believes in the benefits of a company that supports mental health, end of.
@ Mary Pester, isn’t that the truth!!
For all of those curious about the current influx of layoffs, allow me to add some data!! Unfortunately, it’s more than we could have imagined or expected.
https://www.businessinsider.com/layoffs-sweeping-the-us-these-are-the-companies-making-cuts-2023
This morning as I pulled into work, the sky opened up and poured down antelope and buffalo (this went way beyond cats and dogs) and me without an umbrella! Obviously that’s Harry and Meghan’s fault.
BothSidesNow, I looked at the article and what struck me was that layoffs are happening across the spectrum. This isn’t just happening to one industry. I think there were a lot of companies that wanted to strike while the iron was hot after the pandemic. It appears that BetterUp isn’t the only company that expanded too fast.
Penguin, you’re very wrong thinking people don’t understand the corporate world. I’ve worked in the executive suite as an executive assistant. We didn’t have a CIO, but we had a CEO, EPV and CFO. The company I worked for also had a Board of Directors. Believe me when I tell you that thinking that a CIO is responsible for the adminstration/management of the business is just wrong. I can see how some would assume this is the case, but a CIO has a specific role. It wouldn’t have anything to do with the management of employees.
« How Prince Harry’s 6 billion startup went south, » is literally the headline in Daily Beast and US News.
So, yeah Harry is getting total blame. And Betterup’s demise is accepted as a known fact.
You can always spot a troll because they need to weave « Harry’s wife » into everything.
I notice he’s called a former royal he’s not. And he is called duke instead of prince at times like to downgrade him. Each day more of these sorts of articles
Duke is higher status than Prince. And again, you can find disgruntled employees at every company.
Right but the narrative is harry is no longer a royal. And even though there are nuances with titles the spin is that harry has been downgraded and is no longer a royal. Harry is more commonly known as prince harry rather than duke.
@Msiam, I’ve noticed recently — can’t remember where, but it’s been a few times — that a few outlets have been referring to him more frequently as a duke or “Meghan’s duke.” And while those of us here know that duke = a higher status than prince, I don’t think that most Americans (who a lot of this crap is targeting) know it, so I do think it’s their way of trying to take him down a peg (no pun intended, I swear!!) in the eyes of many readers who assume that “prince” and “princess” are the more desirable titles.
i think this is one of the cases where two things can be true at once. Harry is being paid big bucks to promote the brand, which he did, who had head of Better Up before him?
AND the company is being badly run, which isn’t Harry fault, but as the unofficial face of the brand, he is getting dragged into it which is to be expected, BUT because the white hot intense media attention, on everything that he does, the level at which he is targeted is totally unfair.
Personally i think the Sussex would do well not to get involved in these types of ventures / being brand ambassadors. they are the face of archewell, their own enterprise and that is more than good enough
The company was making million dollar profits before harry even joined. It’s not badly run.
Honestly I think this is just business being business. It’s no secret that Silicon Valley has had a bit of a rocky period. Maybe BetterUp is seeing harder times ahead and is simply trying to prepare for that now. But i don’t know. I’m not an expert
Maybe its a different in the US, but laying off 16% of your workforce isn’t a good sign. The employees are right to be pissed off and this has nothing to do with Harry
If they hired in anticipation of a sales increase and it didn’t pan out, then laying off staff is the right thing to do . You don’t need to pay people if the work is not there. A lot of tech companies depend on venture capital money for funding and that has dried up with the rise in interest rates. So money has to come from sales. All of these tech firms are going through the same thing, firms that are way bigger than BetterUp.
Agree. I don’t know if anyone has been watching what’s been going on in the world, but pretty much every company is laying off people – this is part of the highs and lows of being in the corporate world. Look at any industry and you’ll be hard pressed to find a company that isn’t laying off its employees.
There was hiring boom during covid, and now that the world is moving in the completely opposite direction (rate rises) – cost cutting is is what they do. Wages are the easiest expense to reduce. It’s just business.
But was it? The valuations of these companies tend to be total BS. The goal is to go public, more than it is to create a great product. Harry is doing his best, but the business world, especially at the levels of money he needs to get paid, is fairly terrible.
@ Princessa, that is exactly what is happening. We have seen dramatic lay-offs from Meta to Amazon. This isn’t an isolated case. There are hundreds of companies, in the US alone, that are facing lay-offs.
You don’t hear Bezos or Zuckerberg being blamed for the layoffs? No. Because this has been happening for the better part of the last 9 months.
Profitable companies can still be badly run. Sometimes market conditions are in your favor so your bottom line is relatively unimpacted by mismanagement. Sometimes market capture leaves customers with few alternatives. Sometimes large contracts that don’t expire for many years can hide mismanagement. The problem is, the rot is there. It’s just a matter of when it will be exposed. For what it’s worth, I can’t find any information on the company’s net income, only revenue, funding rounds and valuation. Would be curious to see a more detailed breakdown showing if they have indeed been profitable.
Co-signed.
They’re facing more competition with teletherapy providers that accept insurance payments.
They offered a relatively unique service
Now they are competing with people who saw their success and copied it as well as tele therapy that accepts insurance.
It’s a tale as old as time and growing pains are to be expected. It’s awful for the people who were let go. But hopefully with such a well known company on their resume, they will get snatched up.
Corporations have well known spokes people who do a whole lot less than Harry and don’t take any blame when there are lay offs or they don’t meet quarterly projections.
The current success better up has had however is attributable to Harry’s visibility and platform and hard work. The running of the company is not up to him nor does he have any part of it. People are so damn weird
Agreed. It’s not Harry’s fault there’s a big layoff *and* it underscores what is a systemically inequitable business practice (not just BetterUp but most companies) of throwing tons of money at impact/brand ambassadors for PR. That is, I’m talking about resource allocation: resources are going to the C-suite (including CIOs like harry) when they should get pay cuts and be redistributed to lower-ranking employees to save their jobs. So again: None of this is Harry’s fault, but the situation at Better Up highlights how workers are devalued by those at the executive level. Harry doesn’t deserve this criticism, but Better UP and all the companies that dole out bloated salaries on C-level and PR-type work does deserve criticism. Becuase whatever money Harry brought into Better Up, that money clearly did not ‘trickle down’ to workers who were laid off!
Your “solution” makes no sense because redistributing salaries doesn’t save any money. The issue is cost cutting. Executive salaries are usually based on a contract. Whereas “at-will” employees can get the boot at any time. You have to understand this going in. I’m sure Harry has a contract and it’s a good chance that he would get a lump sum payout if they let him go. So they might as well keep him. Also executive compensation usually has performance bonuses and incentives so that is how their pay is “cut” if they don’t hit targets. Also a lot of the lower level staff at those tech firms make six figures plus bonuses too so it certainly does “trickle down”.
@Julie, ITA. This is most definitely not Harry’s fault in any way. How many of us had ever even heard of BetterUp before Harry became affiliated with it? And tons and tons of companies are currently laying off employees.
It’s reminiscent of the way every article makes sure to say that Pearl was dropped, while totally neglecting to mention that Netflix axed its ENTIRE ANIMATION department. They will twist anything in an effort to make Harry and/or Meghan look bad. It’s exhausting.
I have no idea if BetterUp is poorly run or not, but either way, that has nothing to do with Harry. He brought the company attention that most brands can only dream of.
So Harry is to blame for layoffs, but silence on blaming the head of state for the current messy state of the Uk economy. Ok. Make that make sense.
Hmm…those comments about Harry seem suspect to me but there’s no disputing that a lot of Silicon Valley companies overextended themselves are now trying to course correct. Harry has brought attention to the company, there’s no doubt about that though.
The daily running of the company isn’t Harry’s job, so I’m not sure why he’s getting blamed for it by the actual employees. I get why the press is blaming him – he’s the public face of the company at this point. But the actual employees know who is running the show on a day to day basis. I guess if they didn’t blame harry though then the DB wouldn’t be able to write this article and make it seem like Better Up’s growing pains are all Harry’s fault.
I thinks the press seeks out people until they find those who will say the most negative things. When Spare came out all the tabloids had the same three ex military guys criticizing Harry. IMO. That was not coincidence. They were taking non stop until it was revealed that all of them had written books or given interviews where they had talked extensively about killing terrrorist. Then they disappeared. It was a set up to push the narrative that the military community has turned on Harry. But the military community pushed back on it.
I’m assuming they were let go and then approached with money to make a statement about how sh$t Harry is. And they took it due to just being let go and probably pissed about it. As most people would be.
I think they gave away the bag in this article – making them so toxic nobody will work with them…they keep trying and trying and trying, though the more Harry and Meghan work on the down low, the harder it is.
@ Becks1, i highly doubt that DB was able to easily find 3 BU employees that were laid off to make these statements. As for these so-called “ex-employees”, I actually believe that the actual interviewees statements were twisted. I find it very unlikely that they are blaming Harry for the layoffs, but of course we are talking about a “niche” Britshidmedia rag so, there you go.
@BothSidesNow, I believe that these people actually made those comments, but imo it’s just human nature— if I, along with 15 of my colleagues/friends were laid off, while our company was paying a celebrity millions of dollars for a fairly amorphous job description— I’d likely be pissed, too. I don’t blame them for the way they feel; I’d probably feel exactly the same way.
BUT that doesn’t make them right. The layoffs are not Harry’s fault in any way. I just don’t know why you would assume that their words were twisted.
I do not know enough about how Better Up is run to make a comment about what they could should do. I do follow their Tweets and like their messages. I also know Harry is a big proponent of mental health and wellness and I support both as well. Laying off workers in this economy is par for the course. How and why those folks were laid off I have zero clue. Anything the Sussexes will do will attract negative press from the gutter UK media brigade. I support their earning money in any legal method afforded to them that they support. Of all the people to try to scrutinize someone, the gutter UK media with all the dirt and grifting that happens in their royal family. I wish the Sussexes to continue to do what they feel is in the best interest for them and their family while living their best lives.
This is silly. Not that the company has laid off people but that essentially a company spokesperson is to fault for it. He’s supposed to bring awareness by increasing their visibility by sitting on panels(which he has done) and showing up to industry events to talk about how workplace therapy can be beneficial to companies and employees ( which he has also done). If they expanded to quickly, which pretty much every industry did during the pandemic due to changes in how we interact that’s on the CEO and COO, it’s literally in their titles. This is like blaming Tom Brady if Hertz does layoffs of Beyonce if Tiffany doesn’t hit their Q3 sales goals as a company.
I think BetterUp is doing what most major players in the coaching business do: franchise the coaching model to smaller coaching contractors with their own staff, and let go of their own coaches. I’m in this business.
Recently, I saw BetterUp expanding to 2 European countries with their Coaching model – acquiring major coaching contracts from multinationals and other big companies,. I’m sorry for those lossing their jobs, but business wise, nothing new here.
PS: I like that they offer Invictus Games’ participants, mental health coaching for free. They’ve acquired a major coaching contracts too from the US Military Department. Both definitely because of Prince Harry’s involvement.
I think is a classic case of people who get laid off feeling ,rightly, mistreated. Also it sounds like one or two people who are pretty jealous of Harry’s salary.
I was recently laid off from a Fortune 500 tech company and BetterUp counseling was offered as part of the “support”. My coach is great and I’m finding it useful but it definitely feels like it was my former company finding a way to pat itself on the back about helping employees about their mental health without doing anything to address the actual root causes that come from working in an intense industry and the horrible way they handled the layoffs themselves.
I don’t blame Harry whatsoever in this and I do think what the coaches do is helpful. However, it definitely feels like it’s geared to make big companies feel good about themselves and being able to say they offer mental health services.
I’m kind of shocked by the lack of support here for the people who were laid off. Nobody is blaming Harry, of course, because he has nothing to do with the day to day running of the company. However, he is collecting a big (?) paycheck while people not earning that kind of paycheck are now without a job. It’s pretty easy to understand the criticism. I’m sorry for your situation, Lavender. I hope you find a job way better than the one you left.
@FHMOM I’m not surprised because sometimes on these posts the support is pulled towards H or M regardless of the actual human element on the story. For me the “human” element that deserves our sympathies are those laid off. I think it’s rational for any person recently fired from that type of corporate job to look at the uppermangaement and consider where else could the fat be trimmed? Who doesn’t have a daily functioning role that is using lots of payroll resources? Like those are just knee-jerk immediate questions one would ask and ponder.
You can level that criticism at any company though. Whatever Harry makes, the other executives are making more and they are the actual decision makers. And there are far more egregious examples of lower level employees sacrificed while top execs keep making tons of money.
Honestly?
I think it’s because saying something 16% doesn’t have a human face. But I do feel terribly for them. As a much needed stay at home parent, this type of scenario definitely scares me and j think of all the other spouses and kids and the hardships and worry that come from layoffs.
We can feel very sad for them. But also say that it’s unfair to criticize Harry as – again – businesses KEEP doing this. They expect a certain amount of growth based on no competition in their market. They hire as such. And are shocked when others follow their success and take away portions of the market share. And then lay off. At this point it’s just like F-ING LEARN ALREADY. STAY INNOVATIVE AND PRICED COMPETITIVELY. AND DONT EXPECT THE WILD GROWTH SEASON TO CONTINUE AND PLAN AS SUCH
I agree with this. Sad news for the workers. I can see the criticism from them as well. These are people working 9 to 5, while Harry did not and probably had an ancillary role and collected a big paycheck. If I was laid off, I would be disgruntled if someone did minimal work other than allow the company to use his name to promote the product and I’m the one being laid off after bad planning. It isn’t fair, and outside of Harry’s control, but he is in a leadership position in the company. This is part of accepting a leadership position, there will be criticism and you may have to take ownership for things that you did not do.
@Aimee, I completely agree. Harry is in a leadership position, whether it’s auxiliary or more integral to the day to day operations, which is slightly irrelevant because, as a leadership role and face, there is some criticism that he will face. I agree that’s just par the course. It’s human nature for an everyday man type person being laid off to criticize decisions made by uppermanaggement. That’s not new. The everyday man being laid off in this market and economy are the ones deserving grace and empathy in this news story.
I think in the right hands the best tools can become bludgeons.
Just look at the Bible. Love each other has led to centuries of war and genocide from some countries. 🤷🏻♀️
The quote ” every article mentions his role at betterup” is a blatant lie. Most of the time even the tabloid media completely ignores betterup. These stories pop when they want to try and taint Harry’s association with the company. So if one quote is a lie I question the legitimacy of the other quotes. They tried this narrative twice before. Once, Right before betterup expanded into Europe and the other time was right before they entered into a new series of funding. Also. Missing a financial target after a period of substantial growth is not necessarily a sign of a poorly run business. It often repreesnts a market correction that is typical. They are not losing any of their funding. Profit it still high. Just not as high as predicted. As pointed it is still a multimillion dollar enterprise. I certainly sympathize with anyone being laid off. It’s easy to see betterup coaching being offered as a cynical move. But companies particularly tech companies have been criticized for the cold often cruel way they deal with employees so it could be a legitimate attempt to help people cope with a really difficult transition.
I think they meant every article about Better Up mentions Harry, not that every article about Harry mentions Better Up
Yes! That quote made me question the article too. It is a lie. Also, why is an employee that works/ed for/at a company that is involved in mental health, reading ‘every’ tabloid article.
I question the legitimacy of the sources. That particular one doesn’t sound like a good fit for BetterUp in the first place.
Layoffs are hard and Silicone Vally & tech have been going through a lot.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/08/04/tech-industry-layoffs-2023/
I can understand why staff are pissed that the company is letting that many regular staff go but keeping their celebrity brand ambassador with a 7-figure salary. It’s becoming clearer and clearer to people that the rich and famous aren’t being affected by the current economic situation and when things like this arise it feeds into that even further.
Agreed, but here’s the thing: can Better Up even take that seven figure salary away from Harry? Would his contract allow for that? It’s ultimately probably easier contractually to fire employees over a brand ambassador.
Nope. In the US we currently have a pretty great economy, and the job market is historically good. Rich and famous has nothing to do with these layoff’s and you can be sure that if Harry wasn’t more than earning his salary he would no longer be there either. Sorry, all you have is bitter people jealous of Harry only because his supposed salary is so often published, though most likely its inaccurate. I will say it always is unfair to be laid off, usually it’s no reflection on job performance and it’s always immediately effective and that is pretty hard to take.
There’s a huge round of layoffs happening in San Francisco with companies like this. This is not unique to this company. Have friends at Salesforce and other tech related companies who were part of recent layoffs. A bunch of layoffs happened at my workplace, who have gone through a lot of CEOs and division heads . Harry is a visible part of this company but if anyone thinks it’s the reason for these layoffs, they don’t know anything about the current landscape here. Demand more accountability, sure, or question how things are run, but this is not a unique situation. Like stated here, everyone knows about this company because Harry’s involvement raised the profile, so the scrutiny will also increase. This is round 8 of let’s attack the Sussexes livelihood and doom cast everything they’re involved in. If it’s not perfect their lives are failures and they have to go back to the UK, oh noes. Business downturns happen, it affects the lower level workers way more than executives, and then we question how they run things. Hello capitalism.
I’m curious how many of these laid off folks were working for Better Up before Harry arrived? How many were hired as part of the expansion boom brought on by Harry bringing attention to the company?
@Rapunzel— good points in both this comment and the one you made a bit upthread. It’s possible that some of these people wouldn’t have had jobs in the first place if it wasn’t for the attention Harry brought to the company.
I can’t fault them for being bitter right now— being laid off must be terrifying, and seeing Harry’s salary is probably tough to swallow, especially if these people were in the office every day. But that still doesn’t make the layoffs Harry’s fault in any way.
Agree 100%. It’s always a fair discussion to look at the wages of executives versus the rest of the workers, but singling out Harry is just for the benefit of the tabloids. Also, layoffs are usually timed to be the last day of monthly benefits cycle so their (and maybe their whole family) lose health insurance too.
A few facts that were not included in this story. The failed financial target was announced last fall. But this story is coming out now. Blatant attempt to push the Sussexes are failing narrative. In the time since they have announced new partnerships and charitible endeavors. Hardly the sign of a failing company. Again anyone laid off deserves support and sympathy but the creation of a direct connection between Harry and those layoffs in unfair. The media has gone from claiming that it was a real job to claiming he’s responsible for company layoffs. Make that make sense. Lastly. It was never announced that Harry was receiving a salary. Or if he was getting a salary what it was. His compensation could have been investment in the company. So he may only profit if the company is profitable.
Thanks for clarifying and putting real facts out. All this is starting up again as Harry has two big events happening this month and next. They just recently tried this with Travalyst as well.
@Catherine — Exactly. I don’t imagine Harry was given a huge salary right out of the gate. His compensation may very well be based on a combination of base salary, plus bonuses, profit sharing, etc. according to how well the company is doing. He’s certainly not in a position where he relies on BetterUp to pay the bills, he works with them because he’s passionate about the benefits of mental health counselling. This article is just another example of fatuous Harry-bashing.
Hey, wasn’t the Travelyst board of directors change a few months ago too, and the tabloids just started screaming last week he was being frozen out.
Tabs contact everyone from neighbours upwards who has any connection however tenuous with Meg and Harry to run another negative story on them. It is rinse and repeat and oh so tiring.
Back when it was reported that Harry had those position my thoughts were (1) so he’s basically there for publicly and pulling clientele and support on a global scale. Kind of like a spokesperson (2) how exactly is this company sustainable and how does it actually function and support itself (3) how do they plan on business wise expanding on this structure and use Harry. So this current news isn’t really a shock to me. Hearing some of the comments from those let go, I can see how the business model needs to be tweaked.
This British rotas are on again to destroy Harry’s reputation. So what’s new?
Apparently this is recycled news because they can’t cope with the Sussexes doing anything. Can’t wait to see Harry in Tokyo and Singapore.
And when Meghan doesn’t attend, prepare to be inundated with “Divorce!” stories. Rolling my eyes so hard because when I go on business trips (though not nearly as exciting as his ) I don’t bring my SO with me, no matter how supportive he is.
It’s awful that these people lost their jobs but how is it Harry’s fault? Unless he made the decision for the layoff I find it hard to believe this story.
I work in finance. Money was super, ridiculously cheap to access the last few years. It meant tons of startups and high valuations on companies that didn’t yet have the revenue to support their expenses but were expected that with growth they could. Since Marco of 2022 money is now at a a more normal rate, which is not only shocking folks who grew into adulthood with lower interest rates, but it also means the venture capitalists want the organizations to right size and see returns. That’s why your Uber ride is more expensive and your driver makes less per ride. Same thing for delivery services. And Airbnbs. It’s time for all the startups to pay the bills. And that means cutting way back on the “ growth times” staff and expenses. We also saw this in tech, with massive layoffs at Meta and twitter and Microsoft and apple earlier this year and canceled hires last year and it appears the timely appearance of AI will stop that bleeding. They got the lift they needed with Harry (there are TONS of online counseling services out there, how many have you heard of) and may not renew his contract at a later date or maybe they will. He did his job for them.
I worked in the dot com boom in the early 2000’s. Same contraction happened then.
*March of 22. 😊 another example of cheap money leaving was Netflix axing their entire animation division. But we all know that only happened to Megan/s
Lol Harry not only raised the profile of the company but worked to integrate them with the military. He’s not working 9-5 but he’s definitely more than just the face of the company.
I also wouldn’t trust the tabloids they either lie or misconstrue. The Sussexes don’t renew Spotify contract, Tabloid: They’ve been fired everyone hates them!. Netflix drops animation department, Tabloid: They’ve been fired everyone hates them!. BetterUp lays off people, Tabloid: people were fired and everyone hates Harry!
Rinse and Repeat
From bots/trolls attacking fashion houses and charities. To Brit tabloids and tv bashing them everyday despite the fact they left over 3 yrs ago it all serves the same purpose. Isolate the Sussexes and try to convince the world they are toxic to align with.
“From bots/trolls attacking fashion houses and charities. To Brit tabloids and tv bashing them”
Off topic but the newest thing on SM seems to be that Derangers are crowdfunding to rent a tour bus, and planning to invade Montecito to harass local businesses and ambush the people living there.
I hope they enjoy getting arrested. Those rich people ain’t gonna tolerate that.
Um, what?
I just don’t get that level of obsession for someone you hate. I don’t like Kate, I’m pretty clear on here about that, lol. And yes here I’ll share that opinion and criticism etc. You know what I dont do? I don’t contact every store where she’s ever shopped to demand details. I don’t attack charities she’s involved with (however minimally) on social media. I don’t engage with KP on social media. And honestly when I’m not on here or reading something royal-related….I dont think about Kate.
and I definitely am not looking to rent a bus so I can…..what? harass people just living their lives? We were in Windsor last summer, I did not ask one person about Kate.
What on earth.
@Nanea— WHAT!? That is next-level crazy, omfg.
What unbelievable losers these people are. Don’t they have lives outside of hating the Sussexes?! Families or activities or responsibilities that require their time and money??
I’m with Becks, I just ignore people I dislike. I can’t even fathom what goes through these people’s minds.
Renting a bus to Montecito?? JFC
And yeah, @Snuffles, if they actually pull this nonsense off, I also hope they get arrested. From everything we’ve heard, this does *not* seem like the kind of community that would tolerate their BS.
FYI, the non American citizen derangers will have to fill out a form for travel to the US and if they lie about why they are visiting, they will be in significant trouble.
Even Canadians who wanted to attend protests got turned away from the border because if you aren’t American, the US Customs don’t have to let you in the country.
So the Uk woman talking about targeted harassment against American citizens is going to get in serious trouble. And if anyone has sent her online discussions to DHS, she’s toast and getting sent back home.
In think the Daily Beast’s coverage of the Sussexes is very pro-British monarchy, highly biased against the Sussexes, especially biased against Meghan, and bigoted.
Tom Sykes constantly describes Meghan in racist tropes, particularly “The Angry Black Woman” trope.
The Daily Beast’s Sussex coverage offends and aggravates me.
We need to remember that in the BM and tabloid world, they don’t even know how far away is Montecito from LA. They can’t even be bothered to look it up on Google Maps. So why would they know anything about how Better Up works and/or the business climate in the US? All they want to know is “Harry.”
I do feel sorry for the laid-off employees and I do understand their resentment. Who among us hasn’t pointed to some C-suite exec and wondered just what the hell they do all day? (I hope it’s not just me!)
In this instance, though, the employees are directing their ire at the wrong person. Harry’s not to blame for their troubles.
I had a feeling the company was going too fast like many fabulously successful start-ups, but it doesn’t look good for a company whose product is the mental health of a company to have HR problems, no matter how unfair or disgruntled former employees are toward their former employer.
I’ve worked at two Fortune 500 and the CIO was always part of strategy and was accountable for company results. I’m not understanding how that’s not the case here? If Harry’s a figurehead, give him a different title, if he’s not just a figurehead, then he and the entire C-suite ARE responsible for the health of the org.
I think people are going to believe what they believe. No one is going to change anyone’s mind here.
I do want to point out that according to a headline in the Daily Mail on March 8, 2022 that BetterUp would be laying off half of their workforce. I certainly didn’t hear anything about this in 2022? Also, BetterUp is one of MANY startups companies that are laying off. They expanded too fast. I assume they learned something as did the other startups. The information is out there if you’re interested enough to look. I’m not saying you need to be interested. It doesn’t appear that anyone is thinking BetterUp is going anywhere soon as far as failing.
When it comes to staff, I have to wonder about their HR Department. What did the company invest in for necessary resources? That’s something that management will need to look at if, in fact, the MAJORITY of the peoples who were part of the layoffs. Obviously, it it’s not a big percentage you have to consider that people are rightly upset about losing their jobs and may be pointing fingers. Or, there is a bigger issue. Something the company needs to discover.
AmandaS, I think although most companies have similar positions, that does not mean that everyone’s responsibilities are the same. I cannot imagine that the CIO would be involved in hiring, training, managing and supervising employees. I doubt that the CIO has that type of input for the employees.
Susan, I’m off to bed so this fun exercise in upside-down world where I’m defending the radical notion of expecting a C-level exec to play a role in the management of the company has unfortunately come to an end. Sassy’s comment was not the mic drop you seem to think it was, but I guess that sums up the logic underpinning this whole thread. In parting, I’ll refer you to Harry’s own words about his role when he joined BetterUp: Expanding BetterUp’s global community of thought leadership, coaches, customers, and members through outreach and strategic planning.
When Prince Harry joined this company, its valuation was below $1B, it now stands at $4.7B and has the problem of dealing with shareholders…
In this modern service economy, the problem is investors never-ending need for unsustainable growth, this has affected the lifespan of a corporation which is greatly reduced because of the worship of quarterly earnings, shareholder expectations and the impossible task for upward projection of economic growth to infinity….
Now, how in the world of macro economics would an employee, be responsible for modern day capitalism??
This is like the Spotify deal, $200M+ was earmarked for Joe Rogan podcast leaving the company with little or no room for the company to bargain…..
What was written from the non-financial media where accuracy is not considered a requirement…
The nonsense begins again…
This time Prince Harry…
With no recognition of the corporate hierarchical chart – which will state titles and responsibilities, its dependence on investors..
Nothing, just blame Prince Harry – due to the loathing and envy….