Phoenix Suns’ Investigation: What Every Employer Needs to Know
I recently came across the following anonymous quote “Learning from your mistakes makes you smart. Learning from the mistakes of others makes you wise.” So true. Nowadays, employers’ mistakes sometimes end up on the proverbial “front page” for all to see. While embarrassing and often damaging to the organization, we have the opportunity to learn from these public missteps. One recent example is the information revealed during the NBA’s investigation of Phoenix Suns owner, Robert Sarver.
Last year, the Phoenix Suns underwent a massive workplace investigation on the heels of a November 4, 2021 ESPN article entitled, “Allegations of racism and misogyny within the Phoenix Suns: Inside Robert Sarver’s 18-year tenure as owner.” The article raised numerous allegations of Sarver using racially insensitive language, sexual comments, aggressive behavior, and mistreating female employees.
The NBA investigated the allegations using third-party attorney-investigators. The lengthy investigation covered 18 years of Sarver’s tenure. The investigators reviewed 80,000 documents and interviewed 320 individuals.[1] In the end, the investigators made the following findings:
“…Sarver made statements and engaged in conduct contrary to common workplace standards, as reflected in the Suns’ Workplace Policy and the NBA Constitution […] Sarver said the N-word in repeating or purporting to repeat a Black person on at least five occasions during his tenure, including after being advised not to do so; treated female employees in ways that violated applicable standards; made crude or sex-related comments in group workplace settings and on many occasions with individual employees; engaged in inappropriate physical conduct toward male employees on four occasions; and treated employees in demeaning and harsh ways, including by bullying.”
Sarver was fined $10 million by the NBA and is now in the process of selling the team.
What can we learn from this? In reviewing the information publicly available, we gleaned several key takeaways for employers:
Implement consistent and reliable avenues for employees to raise concerns and report misconduct. If you are unaware of problems, you cannot address them. The investigation uncovered the Suns lacked consistent protocols for recording, investigating, and fielding employee complaints. As a result, Sarver’s list of offenses spanned over 18 years and were reportedly witnessed by over 100 individuals without any meaningful and effective corrective action.
Ensure reports of workplace misconduct are promptly and impartially investigated, especially when the allegations involve the organization’s top leadership. Allegations against an organization’s top leadership creates a touchy situation. But failure to swiftly investigate causes a “pile-up” effect that increases liability, disrupts productivity, and negatively effects organizational culture and reputation. Utilizing independent investigators outside the chain of command allows for reliable findings that can withstand scrutiny.
Take corrective action to cultivate a workplace culture that retains talent and supports employee productivity. If an investigation identifies issues, make sure to course correct. In the Suns’ investigation, numerous witnesses and former executives told investigators that they believed Sarver’s conduct had a “trickle-down effect” in which his poor behavior negatively influenced others’ behavior. For example, the investigation found the Suns organization was a “difficult place for women to work, particularly if they have young children, and that Suns executives have on occasion treated female employees differently because of their gender or pregnancy.” Avoid a toxic workplace culture by proactively addressing problems.
