Managing big reputations

Recently I had an interesting experience. I was invited to come and talk about filling an interim position at KLM. They wanted to start a reputation management program and were looking for someone to help them implement it. The conversation was fun and interesting and focused on one of the three main ingredients of the program: corporate social responsibility.

KLM did not offer me the interim position. I was knowledgable, asked the right questions, I was the almost ideal candidate. I possess one flaw however. I am overweight and KLM felt that this would undermine my effectiveness within their organization in establishing a corporate social responsibility program.

When I heard this I just shrugged as it is a fact that I am overweight. I cannot dispute it. I find it hard to believe however that people in general or KLM in particular are this shallow, narrow minded and disrespectful of people.

As a professional I wonder how this practice of discrimination based on appearances fits in with reputation management and corporate social responsibility. For the latter you have to have some sense of morality and discrimination is definitely not a sign of ethical behavior. As to a corporate communication department rejecting someone based on body size, I wonder if the management of the reputation of KLM is in good hands with them.

Comments

[Lisa C]

I was horrified to hear of your experience. Sadly, size discrimination goes mostly unchallenged in our society. In certain countries you would have grounds for a discrimation lawsuit. Just as pathetic is how some misguided KLM executive can justify that kind of thought. Sadly there are many who ARE that shallow, narrow minded and disrespectful of people, whether they are overweight, of a different race or gender. It would appear that KLM has a group such as this at the helm of their reputation management program. Clearly not an organization a professional of your caliber would want to be associated with. SHAME ON KLM!

[Pepita]

@Lisa: It was a strange experience which I thought said a lot about KLM.

This weekend I was reading on Socrates and apparently he was a very unatractive man; short, overweight, bald, bulging eyes. When I read that I started laughing because I realized that KLM would not have hired Socrates either. Can you imagine anyone wanting to miss out on one of the greatest thinkers that ever lived because he was overweight?