AirAsia Chief Executive Officer Tony Fernandes stirred up quite a buzz when he praised the unique work culture of AirAsia that allows for a combination of management meetings and massages. The post, shared on October 16, quickly garnered attention and more than 735 likes, but it also triggered a wave of criticism regarding its appropriateness.
Fernandes, who is known for his unconventional leadership style, shared his experiences from a rather "stressful week." In the post, he mentioned that Veranita Yosephine, CEO of Indonesia AirAsia, suggested a massage to help relieve the stress. He expressed his admiration for the Indonesian and AirAsia culture, where one can comfortably engage in a massage session while conducting a management meeting.
While Fernandes' post initially seemed to be a positive endorsement of AirAsia's unique workplace culture, it was overshadowed by a picture that accompanied the post, in which he is seen chairing a management meeting without a shirt. This unexpected visual element immediately sparked criticism from various LinkedIn users.
Commenters were quick to voice their concerns about the appropriateness of conducting a high-level corporate meeting without wearing a shirt. One user wrote, "A grown man, who is the chief executive of a publicly listed company, conducts a management meeting with his shirt off as he gets a massage. Remove 'who is the chief executive of a publicly listed company,' and it is still inappropriate."
This sentiment was shared by many others who felt that maintaining professionalism during business meetings should be a priority.
Another concerned person noted, "I'm going to assume that this meeting took place long after the workday was over and most of the office was empty (except a few C-level), but at least put on a shirt for the photo."
In a more sarcastic tone, a third user wrote, "I took my shirt off during a management meeting and got fired."
"My favourite post on LinkedIn. Looking forward to you posting more of your day to day office life," one user commented perhaps sardonicaly.
Another user said, "indeed has the most Employee friendly 'Work Culture’. Cheers."
