• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Before Header

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

The Social Media Hat

Always On Top Of Social

  • Coaching & Consulting
  • Become An Influencer
  • Speaking
  • Articles
    • Digital Marketing
      • Influencer Marketing
    • Social Media Articles
      • Facebook
      • Instagram
      • LinkedIn
      • Pinterest
      • Twitter
      • YouTube
    • Social Media Tools
    • Virtual Events
  • Podcast
  • Newsletter
  • Search
  • Coaching & Consulting
  • Become An Influencer
  • Speaking
  • Articles
    • Digital Marketing
      • Influencer Marketing
    • Social Media Articles
      • Facebook
      • Instagram
      • LinkedIn
      • Pinterest
      • Twitter
      • YouTube
    • Social Media Tools
    • Virtual Events
  • Podcast
  • Newsletter
  • Search

Brand Advocate Fired Over Tweet

You are here: Home / Social Media Articles / Brand Advocate Fired Over Tweet

March 21, 2013 //  by Mike Allton

Reading Time: 2 minutes

What happens when you are the evangelist for a brand and you ignite an Internet controversy while representing that brand? You get fired.

Adria Richards was a brand advocate for SendGrid. She was attending a Python conference, one of many she had attended on behalf of her company, and according to her blog post, had heard more than her fair share of sexual jokes. At one point during a presentation, she decided to take action in the form of a Tweet that she knew would be seen by conference organizers.

Not cool.Jokes about forking repo’s in a sexual way and “big” dongles.Right behind me #pycon twitter.com/adriarichards/…

— Adria Richards (@adriarichards) March 17, 2013

Conference organizers did indeed see the tweet, and escorted the identified developers out of the conference. One of the pictured developers was ultimately fired from his position at PlayHaven.

Adria maintains her own website and that’s where she shared the details of her story and this incident, but Adria’s Twitter bio specifically states that she is the “Developer Evangelist for @SendGrid.” The developer who was fired also published a story on Hacker News.

As news of this spread, Adria and SendGrid began to receive a lot of backlash. Adria was threatened for having outed these guys on Twitter, and SendGrid’s website became the target of a massive DDoS attack that’s left the site, and their email distribution service, inoperable. In the midst of the attack, SendGrid fired Adria and posted that annoucnement to Twitter.

Effective immediately, @adriarichards has been terminated from @sendgrid. For more details, please see ow.ly/jhW0y

— SendGrid (@SendGrid) March 21, 2013

PyCon is also revising their Code of Conduct to specifically state that reports should be submitted in writing, not in public.

Dino Dogan from Triberr, tech-startup founder and SendGrid customer, suggests that “both PlayHaven and SendGrid have made the same mistake. They fired their employees, when in fact they should have stuck with them. Not only is it the right thing to do, but now they are suffering the consequences of not putting people first.”

There is no question that Adria had a right to be offended and had a right to complain. The question’s are, did she make the right choice when she decided to use Twitter, and include a picture, to communicate that complaint? And while Adria’s employment would not appear to be protected under the National Labor Relations Act, do you think SendGrid was right to fire an employee making that kind of statement online?

Image courtesy of MDGovpics, Flickr.

Related

Category: Social Media ArticlesTag: Twitter

About Mike Allton

Mike is an international keynote speaker, an award-winning blogger & author at The Social Media Hat, and Head of Strategic Partnerships at Agorapulse where he strengthens relationships with social media educators, influencers and partner brands. He has spent over a decade in digital marketing and brings an unparalleled level of experience and excitement to the fore, whether he's delivering a presentation or leading a workshop.

Join The Community!

34,720 savvy marketers have signed up to get the latest social media insights and ideas. Will you?


Previous Post: « Can Google+ run your Business Blog? Not if you want sales.
Next Post: Obtaining Critical Social Media ROI on Facebook »

Primary Sidebar

Work With Mike

Work with Mike Allton in a consulting capacity, or to speak at your next event.

Meet Mike

Mike Allton is an international keynote speaker & consultant, and an award-winning blogger and author at The Social Media Hat, where he has been educating businesses and organizations on the best use of content marketing for reaching and converting target audiences. Mike is proud to serve as the Head of Strategic Partnerships at Agorapulse, where he builds relationships with influencers and brands around the world.

Since 2012, Mike has worked with over a hundred brands and executives to help them identify and implement successful strategies. As a certified NLP Coach & Practitioner, he helps YOU achieve excellence. Work With Mike

Partnership Unpacked

Featured Posts

How To Grow Internationally As A Creator w/ Victoria Blinova

October 2, 2023 //  by Mike Allton

Partnership Unpacked, Episode 41, with Victoria Blinova

How Strategic Partnerships Can Rescue Your Revenue Team w/ Allan Adler

September 25, 2023 //  by Mike Allton

Partnership Unpacked, Episode 40, with Allan Adler

How To Develop A Strategic Partnership Into A Cornerstone w/ Sam Yarborough

September 18, 2023 //  by Mike Allton

Partnership Unpacked, Episode 39, with Sam Yarborough

More Like This

  • How CMOs and Partnership Leaders Should Approach New Technologies Like AI w/ Mitch Joel
  • How Brands Can Maximize Influencer Marketing Partnerships w/ Adam Rossow
  • The Rise of Micro-Influencers: Why You Should Partner With Them

Footer

Recent Posts

  • How To Grow Internationally As A Creator w/ Victoria Blinova
  • How Strategic Partnerships Can Rescue Your Revenue Team w/ Allan Adler
  • How To Develop A Strategic Partnership Into A Cornerstone w/ Sam Yarborough
  • How CMOs and Partnership Leaders Should Approach New Technologies Like AI w/ Mitch Joel
  • How Brands Can Maximize Influencer Marketing Partnerships w/ Adam Rossow
  • The Rise of Micro-Influencers: Why You Should Partner With Them
  • Tech Superheroes: Women Shaping the Digital Landscape
  • The Latest Developments In Influencer Marketing w/ Krishna Subramanian

Marketing Resources

  • Partnership Unpacked Podcast
  • The Ultimate Guide to the Perfect LinkedIn Profile
  • How To Craft Your Marketing Plan
  • Social Media Spring Cleaning
  • Social Media Planner
  • Get The Newsletter
  • Home
  • Virtual Event Strategy
  • Mike Allton, Your Next Keynote Speaker
  • Mike Allton’s Newsletter
  • Work With Mike
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure

Site Footer

Partnership Unpacked Podcast

  • Listen on Amazon
  • Listen on Apple
  • Listen on Google
  • Listen on Spotify
  • Listen on Stitcher
  • Social Media Articles
  • Digital Marketing Articles
  • Social Media Tools & Resources
  • Virtual Events Articles
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2011–2023 The Social Media Hat · All Rights Reserved