YouSaid · the spoken record

Daniella Ballou-Aares

lines on the record: 31
first: 2021-03-25
most recent: 2021-03-25
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Do I seem stressed Yeah, I mean, sometimes I realized after the election that that had been a pretty stressful period. So I am kind of a keep com and carry on kind of person in many ways, but I think the last four years probably just had a degree of uncertainty about where we were headed. And then obviously with COVID on top of that, and then the weeks waiting for the election results, all of those things, I think, took a toll on me and took a toll on many of us. So I feel energized now to move to the next phase, but I think there have been some very challenging moments in the last few years.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Absolutely. And there's a lot of innovation to learn from in business and other countries. Estonia votes online. There's many. So I think that challenge of making it easy, accessible, and of course, secure and legitimate is one of the things we need to take up in the years ahead while at the same time making sure that these legal battles don't further erode the current system.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“There's no reason that we should not, all of us, be asking our local political leaders to make sure that our democracy is functioning well. So that's an entry point. It doesn't always have to be on a national scale. It doesn't need to be in Washington. You can start local and it can have a real impact.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“With the state by state laws being introduced, that are restrictive of voting rights, we're working with our local chapters and states in multiple states, whether it's in Texas or Georgia or Wisconsin, to have a real business voice. In the press and with other business groups to say, look, again, we really want to support voting, not only voting rights, but elections that are easy for people to participate in, that are transparent, et cetera. So I think for everyone who listens to this, getting involved in your local community and in your local political context to support strong elections. And that's not only in states that are the most contested in the election. I look at New York, Bob, you're sitting. I'm a Brooklyn Height originally. New York elections kind of a mess. New York has had some of the lowest primary participation rate in the country. They've historically made it quite difficult to vote.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Question of is the Voting Rights Act still necessary? Are voting laws too restrictive? Are they legitimate, et cetera? And so we came out with a very strong amicus brief with companies from PayPal to DShaw, hundreds of business academics that said, we know.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I feel like it's overdone to say we're an inflection point, and I probably have said it once or twice in this conversation already. But I think it's true, and it applies as much to our economic system as our political system, as to our business models. All of these things are kind of intersecting at once. So what are some of the specific things that business leaders can be doing right now or have been done? So, you know, obviously the election is done. Fortunately, the insurrection is done. So, okay, immediate reaction, rapid response on that is behind us, but how do we set this kind of new paradigm for engagement? When are some of the specific intervention points? So I just wanted to mention a couple of things that we've been doing and that we've seen real leadership on. Most recently, last month, we submitted with a group of over 300 business leaders and companies, an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of voting rights. There's currently a case in front of the Supreme Court that is asking the”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Based on exclusion of black Americans. And so there are fundamental flaws in American democracy, but we also have always aspired to something bigger and innovative in the way that we govern. And it's just a worrying moment when we can't be seen as leaders internationally in our political system. I think we can totally turn that corner and innovate and be a really extraordinary democracy and have amazing ideas and discussions and debates about where that goes. And that's part of what I'm trying to create is bring back an innovation engine to our democracy while also being very real about short-term threats that we need to address together.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“What's really at stake is our trust in each other and our trust in America to be a resilient, dynamic country where every voice is heard and counted and we're governed and led in a way that Americans are proud of. Concern or lack of faith in our system has been going on for some time. It's not just a product of the last four years, but it's been eroding for 20 years when you look at the data. And particularly with younger Americans, the lack of sense of real pride and trust in the system is worryingly low. So we all know that America's democracy was never perfect, our reckoning even over the last year on racial equities is a real reminder that when we were founded, it was”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So I wouldn't underestimate some of the risk factors and kind of blowback that companies face influencing their willingness to take a stand on some of these issues.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think it's both. There is a recognition that in American history, not now only, but always business has been such a driving force of innovation. So particularly in American society, the trust and expectations of business, I think, are significant. And that's only grown recently. It's only increasing the expectations that business takes a stand. When you look into the data of how Americans feel about business, it's a very mixed interesting set of data. They want CEOs to take a stand. They actually trust small businesses more than large businesses, but they really trust their CEOs. It's a mixed picture. Americans have a mixed feeling about where businesses stand right now. So I do also think that employees and customers are watching closely for companies to do the right thing. Companies are being scrutinized.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“There's a moment right now where we can be really thoughtful about defining what is indeed partisan and what does it mean to be a principled leader in America. I think for business leaders differentiating, and that's not purely among partisan lines, I would say there are many moderate Republicans that I engage with that are concerned that there's not a differentiation being made between groups that are really taking extreme stances right now in terms of suggesting that none of our election processes were legitimate, that the election was stolen, all of those kind of rhetoric, which frankly business stood against. And so I think because we're at this unfortunate moment where there are some genuine threats to democracy, the defining of what it means to be partisan has to be kind of reframed to some extent. So what are our core beliefs? What do we really believe in? And we'll support anyone. You know, we have a set of principles and we'll work with and support anyone of both parties who is committed to those principles. And I think that's something.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I mean, I think it's a question if you take that to the logical extreme, the question is who are you willing to do business with and who are you willing to work with? So name your egregious autocrat in history. Would you be willing to work with them to get your business done? If you work with someone who's really not legitimate to their voters, it'll come back to bite you often. many times win the battle but lose the war so The war here is to create a great society and democracy and one that businesses can thrive in. And I think we have that common goal right now.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah. I think that's actually a great way to think about it. And we're asking them to make hard decisions whether it's responding to a pandemic or creating good economic legislation or dealing with climate change and healthcare. It's a big job. And the flip side of this is we need to have great talent going into politics who have the orientation to solving those problems and can be analytical decision makers. So that's the other thing we focus on as an organization is we've really looked at how do you identify and evaluate new leaders entering politics from other sectors, whether it's business or the military or nonprofits and what makes for a good leader shifting into politics who's going to be part of the solution.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Care about, and I'm just going to go and focus on that and engage with political leaders on that. That political leader you're interacting with may spend the rest of their time undermining the system and you've never asked that question or created a guardrail to make sure they're not doing that. So I think the transactional nature that many companies have taken to politics can be really detrimental. And actually, I think a lot of Americans have taken a transactional nature to politics. They've just said, hey, I care about one issue. And I'm just going to vote based on that issue. I care about one policy. If you just do that and you're not worrying about are these political leaders governing well for the totality of the citizens and the issues, you end up where we are today.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I think twofold. One thing we've talked about is this relevant to all business people. Is this just a question of kind of the big companies that are big lobbyists? And I think the role that an interaction that business has with government and politics is a lot broader. So let's think about startups, whether an Uber, an Airbnb whose business models depend on a lot of interaction with government in order to enable them to participate in the local business environment. I think a question that anyone who's interacting with government should be asking is, who am I working with and are they supporting the kind of health and functioning of the system? If the answer to that is yes, great, let's work with them. But if you take an approach to politics, which is very transactional and you say there's one regulation I care about or one tax I”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Be in this moment where we're trying to add new barriers to voting. I mean, there were 250 laws introduced in the last three months to restrict voting at a state level, which just seems crazy. Like we should actually be working on how do we make the voting experience and participation as smooth and easy as possible. So I think there's an interesting role for business play in that.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I think that's right. I mean, I would say business and government or democracy kind of the core functions, what is worrying is if we erode basic functions of democracy, faith and democracy. I think this is a really important moment to kind of shore up the system and for business to make a proactive stand and say, look, we want this system to work. And part of that is supporting voting rights and competitive elections. But also, I think we could be a lot more ambitious. This election, there was about a 62% turnout in the presidential election, the highest in memory, and even under COVID. So why can't we set a goal that 80 to 90 percent of Americans should be voting in every election and business is going to be part of that? I mean, business dipped its toe in the water this election cycle by doing a lot of messaging around voting. And maybe we can turn this around a bit and say we should.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“To show up at a fundraiser and mention to someone your regulatory interests, and I think there's plenty of room for rethinking that relationship in a way that's good for democracy and still enables business to be part of building a strong economy.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think both of those paths have merit. I think what's most important is that companies are setting a minimum bar criteria for who they're willing to work with and support and what they expect of our political leaders. I think companies have lots of criteria of who they'll support in terms of policy. Is that political leader supporting policies that are good for their business and their regulatory context? But I think we need to add to that is this a candidate who is supporting the fundamentals of democracy? Are they supporting everyone's right to vote? Are they making sure that they're not gerrymandering their own seats so they keep power as long as possible? I think those kind of criteria, very legitimate for business to set as minimum bars. Ultimately the way that business interacts in Washington and state capitals with politics has not evolved for 20 years. It's very old-fashioned. It's writing a challenge.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think there's a couple of ways that companies can go. If you have companies like Microsoft, for instance, who have come out and said we are not going to support any of the candidates who supported the insurrection in the federal government or at the state level for the next two years, no contributions to those elected officials. And they're also setting up a democracy initiative where when you support your corporate PAC, you don't need to support a candidate anymore necessarily. You can decide to support voting rights efforts to address gerrymandering or campaign finance, which I think is a very good shift because corporate PACs often employees are encouraged to contribute to them. And the only vehicle then is to give to candidates. So I think Microsoft's statement”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think that I continue to hear from many business leaders that they saw January 6th as an inflection point when the nature of the threat to democracy became so real that it is informing and shifting the way they're thinking about how they engage in the system. I would say for our members who'd been primed on these issues for quite some time, it was less of a surprise, though it was still a surprise to all of us that it actually happened. Like we knew the possibility was there, but it's still hard to imagine and it still is. I do think there's a real question around does that concern and shift in thinking sustain or do people move on? I think we need to move on, but we also need to move on with a different set of sensibilities. About what the risks are and also what our role can be in changing them.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“But a conservative group, you also had groups like the Small Business Associations and others. So it was extraordinary to see, you know, we quickly came together with others and we issued a statement encouraging businesses to withdraw contributions from those who had refused to endorse the electoral college vote and supported the insurrection.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I was actually sitting right here where I am right now, which is six blocks from the capital. Was on a call and started to hear some sirens. I was getting texts from people across the country making sure I was okay. Because of course I wasn't right there. I was in my home. But it was a scary moment. Our friends, all of our neighbors, we had children in our home playing and we all wanted to make sure we kept them inside. We didn't know where things were going to go. So there was a very personal moment for me around just the safety of my family. And of course, the safety of our nation and how that was going to play out. But then it was also, of course, it was like we'd been watching this for months and months that this was a possibility of how things could turn out. So we also quickly saw to issue a statement. We came together the next morning with a group of other business groups, actually the first business group to issue a statement was the National Association of Manufacturers, not known as anything.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Absolutely. Yes, I think as business school alums and entrepreneurs, an entrepreneur myself and others, I can't help but think about how do we drive that scale. And especially because there's so much urgency. We don't have time to wait five, ten years. We want to tap into the existing networks. We've tapped into the alumni networks of schools. We work with business school academics who are really helping to rewrite curriculum to inform students about the role of business in democracy. We now have really deliberately sought to work with industry groups like the chamber, like business roundtable, like local chambers of commerce to be a source for information about the state of our system, how business can play a proactive and positive role. We want our ideas to be currency here far beyond just for our membership base. We see our members as like the first movers, the ones that push the envelope and open.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Absolutely. The past couple of years since we formed, we're actively learning about the challenges and also supporting efforts to ensure voting. And so we worked with a variety of our members who are executives in major companies and beyond leaders like Reid Hoffman and Seth Tarman signed on to the Selection Integrity Statement with hundreds of others to say, look, we just need to make sure the basics of this election are carried out properly, that every vote is counted, that the media is responsible and patient while the votes are counted, and that elected officials do their job. And that statement became a really important anchor, I think, as the election unfolded in the months ahead, and other business groups like the Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtable and individual business leaders subsequently started to step out and reinforce that message.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Business lobbying is the largest by far of any sector, the Chamber of Commerce, the business roundtable, and companies are weighing in in politics on tax and regulatory issues. They're giving political support to candidates, et cetera. So business is our actors. They've always been actors to some extent. And I think that means that if you play a role in the system already, you have a particular responsibility to be part of making it work.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think it's a great question. Edelman just came out with their most recent trust barometer. Business came out as the most trusted segment of society. CEOs in particular were looked to buy employees, buy society to take a stand on social issues, the trust and faith in government to be able to address those challenges alone is relatively low. Our markets have changed so dramatically. Technology has changed the way that we interact. And government has really struggled to keep up with all of those changes. So I think we're at this moment where we don't really have a choice but to for every segment of society to be part of figuring out how we navigate these uncertain times. And I do think that the apolitical nature of business is somewhat overstated in that while companies are concerned about not being seen as partisan in certain circumstances, the reality is that business has a very large footprint in Washington.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So, both of those issues were on our mind in 2017 when we sought to build something different than your typical political organization or nonprofit.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“When we founded leadership now in 2017, we saw a political system that really wasn't working and where trust in government was at historic lows. 17% of Americans really trust in government to do the right thing. The typical way of responding to concerns about the state of government and politics is to donate to a candidate or vigorously like things on Facebook. And we really believed we needed a smarter way to engage and fix the underlying problems. We also knew that when you look historically at societies that face threats to democracy, that business plays a really pivotal role. If business stands up for democracy, if it's part of fixing the system, then democracies can thrive. If it doesn't, if it is an enabler or silent with autocrats, then democracy can fail.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Business has been such a driving force of innovation. So, particularly in American society, the trust and expectations of business, I think, are significant and it's only increasing the expectations that business takes a stand.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You look historically at societies that face threats to democracy, business plays a really pivotal role. If business stands up for democracy, if it's part of fixing the system, then democracies can thrive. If it doesn't, then democracies can fail. The apolitical nature of business is somewhat overstated. While companies are concerned about not being seen as partisan in certain circumstances, the reality is that business has a very large footprint in Washington. Companies are weighing in in politics on tax and regulatory issues. They're giving political support to candidates, et cetera. So if you play a role in the system already, you have a particular responsibility to be part of making it work.”
2021-03-25 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: The business of democracy, w/Leadership Now's Daniella Ballou-Aares · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT