In the wake of a tumultuous week of twists and turns for Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Planned Parenthood, today’s resignation of Karen Handel, Komen’s vice president for public policy, comes as little surprise. In her resignation letter, which The Associated Press obtained, Handel states that her objective from the beginning was advancing a policy that would seek to pull financial funding from Planned Parenthood and “distance Komen from controversy.”
While inoculating an organization from attack is certainly a worthy goal it cannot be done without understanding the attitudes and values of key stakeholders. Organizations must understand that goals are shaped by the external environment.
In the end, Handel and other leaders did not consider who really owns the Komen brand.
