Last Friday I discussed the story about the Humane Society's Board standing by the CEO (accused of sexual harassment) despite evidence and seven of their board members resigning after the vote. Some donors even promised not to continue their support.
Well, the story has a new ending: the CEO resigned stating he didn't want to be a "distraction" to the future of the Society. In reality, he already was and would continue to be but that's neither here nor there. He's gone now but will the resigned board members return? Likely not as the relational component of of what comprises a board is now broken and it would seem unlikely that these resigned members can or should be so forgiven. And lost donors: again, their own trust has been betrayed as the board that did (in my opinion) the less than prudent action, remain.
With the CEO out of the way it may be possible to rebuild the board but that is not the only activity that will need to be taken. This is a long road to crawl down given the lack of enlightenment shown by those who remain.
Here's a story describing the CEO's departure (from TIME):
Humane Society CEO Wayne Pacelle Resigns Following Sexual Harassment Allegations
Humane Society CEO Wayne Pacelle resigned Friday following allegations of sexual harassment.
Pacelle quit after the Humane Society voted Thursday to keep him in his job after an internal investigation found three complaints of sexual harassment against him. Seven board members resigned in protest after the Humane Society decided to keep Pacelle on and close the investigation, The Washington Post reports.
Pacelle on Friday emailed Humane Society staff, saying he was leaving the company because “our mission depends on unity,” according to The New York Times.
The Humane Society said it accepted his resignation and that it had named Kitty Block as acting president and CEO in a statement. Block currently serves as the president of Humane Society International, the organization’s global affiliate.