When You're on the Hot Seat

All you Formula 1 fans out there raise your hands. Yeah, I’m not one either. I mean I like a good car race (who doesn’t?) but I am not going to follow it week in and week out to see which drivers are doing what where. However, a colleague recently shared a story with me about Formula 1 Racing and the drama surrounding allegations of inappropriate behavior by the team principal and CEO of Red Bull Racing.

I am not going to focus on that controversy in this piece. However, I do want to highlight how another principal at another team handled being asked about it because he did a masterful job at responding.

Appearing in a conversation with Bloomberg’s Dani Burger, James Vowles, principal of Williams Racing, was asked about the controversy. Now we all can debate the appropriateness of asking the principal of a rival team a speculative question but the bottom line is, Vowles was asked a question designed to solicit a hot take. He didn’t take the bait.

Here’s what he did say when asked about the controversy:

“The sport itself, if you wind back 20 years ago (has been) male-dominated, without question. If you had to ask me then, ‘What makes up a team?’ it would be white, more than likely male, more than likely 40 years old or something in the ballpark. That’s changing. And it’s only a positive that’s changing that result. I can only control what happens within Williams. And what I can do with that environment is open up everyone’s eyes to ‘This is how we have to be,’ because the best ideas don’t come from being a closed group of individuals, it comes from diversity.”

“These allegations are allegations and I’m afraid I don’t have any understanding of what is behind them and the significance of what has happened. All I can say is—should this ever have happened in our guard—we’d be entirely supportive of fixing it and making sure we have a culture that is accepting of everyone. And as you say, these are allegations he’s denied. But if the net result of them—and again, whatever the result is—were to be (Red Bull’s CEO) leaving the sport, you have here the man who built up Red Bull, the most successful team principal arguably right now. What would that mean? I think it means we will have to look each other in the mirror and make sure we are posing the right questions internally and acting in a way we can be proud of not only today, but in the next 10 years.”

His response was thoughtful and succinct, giving the reporter what she needed without getting into the weeds. Here’s what else he did right and why.

1.?????? He acknowledges the problem right up front with his opening statement.

“The sport itself, if you wind back 20 years ago (has been) male-dominated, without question. If you had to ask me then, ‘What makes up a team?’ it would be white, more than likely male, more than likely 40 years old or something in the ballpark.”

Instead of trying to address alleged behavior or pretend that Formula 1 is something it’s not, Vowles went right to the heart of the matter. He owned up to the fact that Formula 1 leadership was (and likely still is) dominated by older, white men with a culture that many times matches the demographic. He goes on to say that this is changing and that development is better for the sport as a whole.

2.?????? He does not veer out of his lane.

“I can only control what happens within Williams.”

Because he was asked to comment on something happening on another team – and we can debate whether he should have even been asked that question another time – he sought to give a measured response. While he could have simply said, “I’m not going to comment on that,” he instead said that he isn’t responsible for what happens on other teams. He is only responsible for what happens on his team. That is 100% fair and there is no way to argue his position. By pointing that out, he completely shuts down the reporter from going deeper with that particular line of questioning.

?3.?????? He doesn’t speculate or give air to unproven allegations.

“These allegations are allegations and I’m afraid I don’t have any understanding of what is behind them and the significance of what has happened.”

Speculation and commenting based upon unconfirmed suspicions should never happen. If you aren’t directly involved in an issue but are asked to comment on it, you must be clear that you are not in a position to do so. Vowles does this by saying 1) he doesn’t know if the allegations are true and 2) he has no way to know what will happen even if they are determined to be true. Again, he draws boundaries around what he is responsible for and what he is not. Once the boundaries are drawn, he refuses to be dragged into the controversy by staying on his side of the line.

4.?????? He shifts the focus back to his own team where he can confidently offer a perspective.

“All I can say is—should this ever have happened in our guard—we’d be entirely supportive of fixing it and making sure we have a culture that is accepting of everyone.”

This is a terrific example of moving the interview from speculation to reality and from an area in which he can’t comment into one where he can. Vowles basically tells the reporter that he has no idea what the other team will do but he does know what his team would – and has to – do to move Formula 1 away from the “good old boys club” way of thinking and acting.

In summing up, Vowles says, “I think it means we will have to look each other in the mirror and make sure we are posing the right questions internally and acting in a way we can be proud of not only today, but in the next 10 years.”

What a great way to wrap up the interview! Vowles makes his intentions known by closing with a very powerful statement that positions both him and his team well with the racing audience and perhaps even with the general public. So, while race results will be determined out on the Formula 1 race course, Vowles, and by extension Williams Racing, have won the battle for a positive image with the racing community and others thanks to his smart response to a reporter’s query.

?

Ou