In the 80s and 90s, I was actively involved in the agribusiness arena, and ADM was a big name in the marketplace. They were respected and always, just a little bit mysterious. Their footprint was worldwide; everything from grain origination, to grain processing, to global merchandising activities. Plus, the Andreas family was powerful, with political connections around the globe. ADM was a powerhouse for a multitude of reasons.
One of the reasons they became so powerful was the way they played the game we refer to as business, which is the basis for the just released movie, “The Informant.” I have to admit, its a little scary to say I knew many of the participants in the movie. I met them at tradeshows and I helped sell their products into the marketplace, willingly. What a story and quite an education. Yes, ADM at the time was an organization built on silent problems.
Today, ADM has recovered from their silent problem missteps of 2-decades ago. And possibly more interesting, ADM was supportive in the making of the film, “The Informant.” Here is one of the answers ( FAQ )about the movie.
How does the Company feel about “The Informant!” movie?
When we learned that Steven Soderbergh would be making the film, we met with him and his team. We gave them tours of our facilities and allowed them to do some filming on our property. We understand that “The Informant!” is a movie, and while it isn’t pleasant to see ADM associated with past illegal activity — however much the events and people depicted may reflect only a very narrow part of the past — we are confident that our customers, colleagues and communities understand that ADM, then and today, is made up of ethical, hardworking people.
Due to their past, ADM understands and has lived inside the chaos and harm silent problems can create. They understand how silent problems can disrupt anything and everything. They know the impact silent problems have on everything from corporate culture to business performance. So what have they done about it? ADM has implemented a comprehensive plan to bring silent problems out into the open. And here it is”
We rely on you to help us by speaking up whenever any situation threatens our values and our reputation. When you do, you provide us with the information necessary to remedy the situation. Such situations may pertain to:
Ethics and compliance issues, such as financial reporting, insider trading or antitrust regulations.
- Employee relations and human resources, such as harassment, discrimination, scheduling/time abuse or disciplinary action.
- Loss prevention and asset protection, such as threats and violence, alcohol/drug abuse, workers’ compensation fraud or internal theft.
- Environmental, quality, health and safety, such as OSHA violations, hazardous waste disposal or product tampering.
When it comes to any of those issues, silence doesn’t help. It hurts. Select from below to submit a report, follow up on a report that has already been submitted or read our Business Code of Conduct and Ethics, “The ADM Way.” Be assured that you will never be retaliated against or punished in any way for reporting your concerns in good faith.
Bottom Line: Silent problems destroy companies! Read my book, Without Warning, it provides the critical overview of silent problems, and how they impact organizations. ADM’s missteps should be a lesson to everyone and what can happen if silent problems aren’t dealt with proactively, and eventually escape.
