My Point of View/By Rolando Larraz
her and in business that is called an “error in judgment” that we all make sometimes.
I have written about entertainers or entertainment for many years, but I have to admit that I have never heard of Ellen DeGeneres and have never watched her show, “Ellen,” until now.
The situation that she is in now is what I have, as a small business owner, always been trying to avoid and yet has given others the impression that I am a control freak, but as I always tell everyone working with me, “If someone sneezes, I want to know”; “if someone complains about anything: the weather, the water, or an article they read, I want to know”; and “always keep in mind that I do not like surprises.”
It is not being a control freak, it is because I feel that as the captain of the ship I am responsible for whatever happens or occurs in my domain.
“No one is to talk to Ellen. So you don’t talk to her, you don’t approach her, you don’t look at her; she’ll come in, she’ll sit down, she’ll talk to the co-host Richard, and then Ellen will leave …” One employee cried out loud, but I ask, what is wrong with that? What is the difference between a famous talk show host and a city council member, a casino owner or even a high ranking casino executive?
“The truth is she knew what was going on — it’s her show; someone told the writer of the scoop. Just because she is the star of the show, maybe the owner of the show, it does not mean that she is aware of everything and that is what I mean when I say, “I do not like surprises.”
“The buck stops with her. She can blame every executive under the sun — but Ellen is ultimately the one to blame.” That is actually true if in fact the executives have kept her informed of all their wrongdoing.
“Not being able to stay on top of everything and relied on others to do their jobs as they knew I’d want them done.” “Clearly some didn’t,” DeGeneres wrote.
“That will now change and I’m committed to ensuring this does not happen again.” Well, that is the typical politician speaking; every time a drama occurs, a scandal is exposed or a tragedy happens; that is the favorite phrase of elected officials: “We are working to correct this to ensure that it does not happen again” they all say.
Locally, a good example of what I am saying is the Alpine Hotel where the Fire Department has not visited for three years—yes, thirty-six months, whichever sounds easier for the reader to accept.
Where was Code Enforcement all this time? If they can be missing in action for two years in a commercial area like Lilliput Lane, I assume that three years in a place where money can be a factor for incompetence is a great possibility.
I want to be very clear on this; I do not believe that our Fire Department or city employees can be manipulated or impressed by dirty money, but anything is possible and I’m just trying to make a point.
Ellen DeGeneres made one mistake; she trusted the people that work for her and in business that is called an “error in judgment” that we all make sometimes.
I had two people working for me for two years and I did not realize that they were taking money from the clients because I made the mistake of trusting them.
Chris Garcia (that is not his real name but is the name he is known by) and a very unpleasant woman in all possible ways by the name of C-Ann Bean who claimed to be his wife, but was not. They robbed me blind (money, equipment like computers, a copy machine, and two trucks) but the police never did anything because he is a snitch or a police informant and that is why they do not want to give me his real name.
His companion goes by the name of C-Ann Garcia, but her real name is C-Ann Bean. We found her name on our own; the police did not help and they were wondering how we learned of her real identity.
I don’t allow any doors in my office to be closed and I tell those using any office that if they want to talk privately they can go to the sidewalk and talk there.
Closed doors can be a path to wrong ideas or wrong accusations; closed doors can be an excuse to accuse or blame someone of a crime that never occurred.
Ellen DeGeneres needs to implement an open door policy in her organization and be accessible to the entire staff, and when someone comes to her with a complaint she should refer that employee to the right member of her executive team.
* * * * *
My name is Rolando Larraz, and as always, I approved this column. Rolando Larraz is Editor in Chief of the Las Vegas Tribune. His column appears weekly in this newspaper. To contact Rolando Larraz, email him at: Rlarraz@lasvegastribune.com or at 702-272-4634.
Follow