Being Transparent Around Broken Windows

By Lisa Blankman, CPA
Senior Manager, Audit & Assurance Services
Email Lisa

The criminological theory of “broken windows” suggests that when people see a building with shattered glass, they may be tempted to destroy it entirely. As social scientists George L. Kelling and James Q. Wilson wrote: “If the windows are not repaired, the tendency is for vandals to break a few more windows. Eventually, they may even break into the building.”

So, how does this apply to you and your business? If you ignore your company’s flaws — its “broken windows” — more problems will spread throughout your entire operation. Your employees will be less confident in the company, and clients will take their business elsewhere — and they may trash you on their way out. This is why honesty is the best policy when giving your business a makeover. The windows are already shattered, so you might as well acknowledge why people threw bricks at them.

Before patching up its broken windows, Domino’s Pizza made its repair efforts more meaningful by validating its customers’ damaging complaints. The company launched the Pizza Turnaround campaign with a video featuring real customers criticizing the company’s “cardboard crust” and “ketchup-like sauce.” Domino’s took those comments into consideration and crafted better pizza with a new and improved recipe. By being transparent about its flaws and its efforts to win back customers, Domino’s shot to the top spot on the list of the most successful pizza chains in the world, where it remains to this day.

Another memorably public revamp was the redesign of Sonic the Hedgehog following the fan backlash after the video game character’s appearance in the first trailer for his big-screen debut. As this Wired article states, “Remaking computer-generated characters is an unprecedented step for any film studio,” but Paramount Pictures moved forward with the redesign. Despite adding on to the film’s budget and pushing back its release date, this work paid off, as Sonic fans flocked to theaters, making Sonic the Hedgehog one of the highest-grossing films of 2020. Filmmakers listened to moviegoers’ complaints and came out on top.

Like Paramount Pictures, Atlassian considers its customers’ feedback during the behind-the-scenes process of developing its project management tool, Trello. Atlassian’s public roadmap shows users which Trello features the company is working on, and its website publicly addresses common user concerns and issues.

As a user testing and research platform, Maze couldn’t really grow without transparency and open collaboration. It depends on users to contribute to its software development. As Maze’s VP of People, Culture and Experience April Hoffbauer said: “Transparency is central to how we work together at Maze. Since we are a fully distributed and remote team, over-communicating, documenting everything, approaching questions with humility, and remembering that we are human-first makes our asynchronous work possible. Sometimes a response of, ‘I don’t know, let’s figure it out together,’ is the best answer, and that honesty and internally-public discussion empowers folks across teams and time zones to join in the conversation any time.”

A vital part of successful transparency is embracing the humility Hoffbauer mentions in the statement above. While acknowledging customer complaints and admitting lack of knowledge may seem weak and risky, it’s also the best way for a company to truly grow. Businesses are fluid. When Domino’s fell down, it not only got back up, but it reached the top ranks of pizza chains. Your business can do the same!

If we can assist you further with achieving success in your business or personal affairs, please call us at (317) 608-6699 or email Lisa.