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NWSL and Honest Company CEOs on Rebuilding Trust After Crisis
When a leader inherits a business in crisis, the path forward is less a corporate playbook and more a test of human spirit, a marathon of trust-building where every decision carries the weight of legacy and future promise. This was the daunting reality for both Carla Vernón, CEO of The Honest Company, and Jessica Berman, Commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), who stepped into their roles amid roaring fires of public scandal and internal turmoil.For Berman, the challenge was visceral; the league, a beacon for women's athletics, was engulfed in a toxic culture crisis, with sexual misconduct accusations staining its reputation and iconic players like Megan Rapinoe publicly declaring, 'Let it burn. ' This wasn't just a business problem; it was a profound breach of faith with the very athletes who were the league's soul.Berman, a labor lawyer by training, understood that the foundation of any professional sports enterprise isn't the marketing or the broadcast deals, but the sacred, productive relationship between management and labor. Her first move wasn't a strategic pivot or a financial restructuring, but an act of radical vulnerability.She sat with the players, not as a distant executive, but as a partner in their lived experience, asking the fundamental question: 'Can you see a world where you trust this institution?' The answer, forged in that shared humility, became the bedrock for a historic collective bargaining agreement that reset the entire power dynamic, giving players a genuine stake and transforming the NWSL from an institution on the brink of becoming the fourth failed women's soccer league in U. S.history into a thriving, resilient model of athlete-centric governance. Parallel to this athletic redemption story, Carla Vernón faced her own corporate crucible at The Honest Company.Arriving from the vast, disciplined machinery of Amazon, she encountered a purpose-driven brand under siege—scrutinized for its products, its cash reserves dwindling, and its employee base, predominantly millennials and Gen Z, emotionally adrift. Vernón recognized that the traditional corporate change management scripts from her tenure at a 150-year-old giant like General Mills would fall on deaf ears.Instead, she reached for a universal language of emotion, invoking the animated characters from Pixar's 'Inside Out' to help her team navigate the complex feelings of fear, excitement, and uncertainty. This wasn't a gimmick; it was a profound acknowledgment that rebuilding trust requires meeting people where they are, emotionally and generationally.While steadying the financial ship by applying Amazon's ruthless discipline to focus on core, profitable products—embracing the 'less is more' philosophy with surgical precision—she simultaneously nurtured an internal culture where vulnerability was not a weakness but a strategic asset. The journeys of Berman and Vernón, though in different arenas, are powerful testaments to the same core truth: leadership in crisis is not about having all the answers, but about asking the right questions, listening with genuine intent, and having the courage to lead with heart and humility. It’s about understanding that before you can rebuild a balance sheet or a league table, you must first rebuild the human connections that form the bedrock of any enduring enterprise, turning a moment of existential threat into a catalyst for a deeper, more authentic, and ultimately more successful transformation.
#lead focus news
#NWSL
#Jessica Berman
#leadership
#crisis management
#trust
#labor relations
#collective bargaining agreement
