RadioShack exec misstates academic record, board will seek legal action
“It is my belief that I received a ThG diploma, not a BS degree as I asserted,” he wrote. “I clearly misstated my academic record, and the responsibility for these misstatements is mine alone. I understand that I cannot now document the ThG diploma.”
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported last week that it uncovered discrepancies in Edmondson’s résumé while looking into three DWI charges. Most recently, Edmondson was arrested in Southlake in January of 2005 for suspicion of driving while intoxicated, and is scheduled to go to court in April. The daily paper reported that the résumé Edmondson used when hired at RadioShack in 1994 contained inaccurate information relating to his college degree. It stated that he earned degrees from Pacific Coast Baptist College in San Dimas, Calif., in theology and psychology. An official from the college, which moved to Oklahoma City in 1998 and changed its name to Heartland Baptist Bible College, was quoted in the article saying that he could find no record of Edmondson’s graduation, but that it was a possibility that the records could have been lost during the school’s move.
The official, Roger Howse, declined comment for this article, saying that “we just can’t get any more involved in this.”
A former official at the college was also quoted, saying that he thinks Edmondson graduated in 1980, based on his memories and the memories of other former employees.
RadioShack spokesperson Wendy Dominguez said the only comment the company would give is in the written statements, one from Edmondson and the board of directors on Feb. 15 and one from just the board on Feb. 14. The board’s first statement read: “The RadioShack board of directors is aware of the matters raised in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram article and has previously given due consideration to them. The Board of Directors reaffirms its support for David Edmondson in fulfilling his role as chief executive officer.”
However, the statement the board released after Edmondson admitted his flub read: “In light of David Edmondson’s statement today, the Board of Directors will retain independent legal counsel to investigate the facts surrounding this matter. Counsel will be assigned to advise the Board on the facts and on RadioShack’s employment policies.”
None of the members of the board of directors responded to phone calls or e-mails for comment.
Former CEO and current executive chairman of the board, Leonard Roberts, declined comment.
Daniel Short, dean of Texas Christian UniversityÂ’s M.J. Neeley School of Business, said in a Feb. 14 interview that an apologetic statement is just what Edmondson needed to release, or he would have risked undermining his leadership.
“He needs to get out in front of this and make a definitive statement, apologize, and get on with his leadership,” he said. “In situations where they [public figures] decide to tough it out, once the press gets interested it will just go on and on. If he doesn’t come out and apologize, it will live on longer than it needs to. At some point, you just have to accept responsibility and close the door.”
Short said he thinks the inaccuracy was from carelessness and is not necessarily a firing offense.
“In my judgment, it’s not necessarily a firing offense, it’s a credibility issue,” he said. “If he was a chief surgeon at a hospital and he lied about a medical degree, it’s a firing offense. If he lied about a key factor to him being hired, it’s a firing offense. But a theology degree wasn’t a key factor to them hiring him. The fact that he was careless does call into question some of his judgment, though.”
Short also said that a college degree isnÂ’t always necessary to a successful career.
“At some point in a career, a college degree is unimportant,” he said. “If he lied, it’s wrong, but at some point let’s judge a man over what he’s done in his career, not whether he’s gotten a degree. There are lots of very successful people who run very successful companies and did not complete college.”
Edmondson and his wife, Debra, live in Southlake with their three children. According to Tarrant County Family Court records, both of them filed for divorce earlier this month. Neither returned calls for comment.
Contact McClellan-Brandt at smcclellan@bizpress.net.
