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Investment Advisor Echoes NLPC’s Call for Accountability at Microsoft Over Reid Hoffman’s Rhetoric

Following our repeated call for Microsoft to jettison political activist Reid Hoffman (pictured above) from its board, after he told billionaire friends that he wished he made former President Donald Trump an “actual martyr” right before the attempt on his life earlier this month, another shareholder is demanding the tech giant to address the LinkedIn co-founder’s excesses.

Bowyer Research, an investment and proxy consulting firm, filed a report with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday that called upon the company to take action to protect its shareholders against the unnecessary risk created by Hoffman’s presence on the board:

Hoffman’s remarks are a case-in-point of the danger of nakedly partisan speech from a company’s board members. Hoffman, like all of Microsoft’s Board, is accountable to shareholders not only to protect the financial well-being of the company, but also to comport himself in a manner that does not create unnecessary reputational risk for the company. His remarks regarding former president Trump, while likely intended in jest, have created a PR nightmare for the company and threaten to alienate the two most important groups in Microsoft’s corporate universe: its shareholders and its customers. Furthermore, the controversy surrounding Hoffman has drawn increased scrutiny to the Microsoft board member and Democratic Party megadonor’s political ties, including to Democratic strategist Dmitri Mehlhorn who recently generated controversy for sending journalists an email suggesting that the Butler shooting was a false flag. By becoming attached to such controversies, Reid Hoffman is creating reputational hazards for Microsoft that threaten to affect both brand performance and shareholder return.

Bowyer’s filing followed NLPC’s own submission to the SEC on Friday, which called upon the board to seek Hoffman’s resignation or forced removal. As shareholders in Microsoft, NLPC first sought Hoffman’s dismissal from the board in October. We are grateful for Bowyer Research’s voice on the matter.

 

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Tags: Big Tech, Donald Trump, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reid Hoffman