Can a company succeed with a toxic reputation? 一個擁有壞名聲的公司有可能成功嗎？
(CNN)Uber's route to the top has been pockmarked with
scandal, from its acrobatic approach to transport
regulations to the alleged misogyny of CEO Travis
Kalanick.
從遊走在交通法規邊緣的特殊叫車方法到被人說有「厭女」症狀的執行長特拉維斯・卡拉尼克，Uber通往頂尖的路已經被醜聞弄得坑坑疤疤。
But fresh claims that the company puts journalists and users
under surveillance,
and appropriates their data, could pose an existential threat.
但最新的聲明是該公司監控著記者和用戶們，並盜用他們的資料，這可能會讓他們暴露於現存的威脅之下。
The taxi-disrupting service has faced a severe backlash,
with analysts and bloggers excoriating the company culture, and the viral campaign
#deleteuber thriving across social platforms.
這擾亂計程車市場的服務業面臨激烈的負面反應，分析師和部落客們強烈譴責該公司的文化，而＃刪除uber的病毒活動正在各個社群平台中持續擴大。
In response to the battering, the "most arrogant
startup in Silicon Valley" has been forced onto the defensive.
Representatives are emphasizing customer care and community values at the heart
of their mission, breaking with their ruthless image.
對於這一連串強烈打擊，「矽谷最傲慢的初創公司」被迫處於防守狀態，公司代表強調他們任務的重心將會擺在顧客關懷和社群價值，突破他們冷血的形象。
But if bad publicity has darkened Uber's name it has not
damaged its performance. After its latest round of funding, the company is
valued at around $40 billion,
and the service has expanded its availability from 60 cities in 2013 to over
200 today.
但如果不好的報導破壞了Uber的名聲，它的表現卻沒有因此受到負面影響，在其最新一次的募資，估計公司的價值大約在400億美元，而且有提供服務的地點已經從2013年的60個城市擴展到今天的200個。
"At this point it's a reputation crisis but is not
specific to the job they are doing," says Dr. Audra Diers-Lawson, a
specialist in crisis management at the University of Manchester. "The
reason Uber is still growing is that people still view them as a good service.
If there was a problem with the rides we would see a much more immediate
effect."
「這個時候這已經是名聲危機了但這危機並不只與他們所做的工作有關。」一名曼徹斯特大學危機管理的專家Audra
Diers-Lawson博士表示，「Uber還在持續成長的原因是因為人們仍然覺得他們提供的服務是好的，如果是交通工具出了問題，我們就會看見更彰顯的立即影響」
Audra compares the situation with BP's plummeting stock in
the wake of the Gulf of Mexico spill -- "a material crisis, related to
their primary function" -- that is still depressing the company's
performance several years later.
Audra把狀況與繼墨西哥灣漏油事故（Gulf of Mexico spill）(註一)後隨之而來的世界英國石油（BP,
British Petroleum）股票下跌做比較--「一個原料危機，和他們主要的業務有關」--數年之後那個事故還是持續對那間公司的表現產生負面影響。
Uber's crisis is far from unique. In a digital age,
reputation has never been harder to safeguard. "Social media has made the
world more transparent so bad news travels faster and spreads further,"
says Jonathan Hemus, founder of reputation management company Insignia
Communications. "I would say reputation risk is higher than ever
before."
Uber的危機已經不是獨特可以形容的，在數位時代，名聲比以往都還要更難捍衛。「社群媒體已經讓這個世界變得太過透明，讓壞新聞散播的更快也更遠」名聲管理公司Insignia
Communications 創辦人Jonathan Hemus表示，「我認為名聲的風險從來沒有這麼高過。」
Given the volume of online opinion, much of it from
anonymous critics that could be trolls or competitors in disguise, companies
need not always take heed of it.
假設線上評論大多是來自匿名的批評者，而他們可能是留一些挑性的言論或者是競爭者所偽裝的，那麼公司不需要一直去注意它。
"Sometimes its better to let it go away," says
Justin Fox, executive editor of the Harvard Business Review. "Large,
established organizations can ignore petty complaints but must decide who to
pay attention to. Every company checks the Klout of its critics." In some
cases, companies have chosen to court controversy and prospered, such as with
Ryanair and its combative Chief Executive Michael O' Leary who has often seemed
to relish
confrontation but posted record profits
nonetheless.
「有時候最好還是等它漸漸淡去。」哈佛商業評論的責任編輯Justin Fox表示，「已經受到認可的大型機構可以忽視瑣碎的投訴，但必須要決定應該要去注意誰提出的，每一個公司都會查看Klout(註二)上面對該公司提出批評的人（所提出的言論）。」在某些情況下，有些公司曾選擇公開辯論，然後成功，就像是瑞安航空（Ryanair）和其常常看似享受著面臨的挑戰，但仍能宣告創紀錄的立論的好戰執行長Michael O' Leary。
"It seems negative but is consistent with the image
they want," says Fox. Even spats over charging customers for water or
toilet use is "still spreading the message 'we are really cheap'."
「它看似負面但對他們想要（塑造）的形象始終如一」Fox表示，就算因為水和廁所的使用要和顧客收費引發小爭議，但他們仍然散播「我們非常的便宜」的訊息。
A bad reputation can be a blessing says Noel Biderman, CEO
of Ashley Madison, a matchmaking service for married people that is thriving
despite more opprobrium than Uber has yet faced. The self-styled "King of Infidelity" empathizes with
their situation.
Ashley Madison 的執行長Noel
Biderman表示壞名聲可能是好事，對於已婚人士提供的做媒服務正在興盛，就算這比Uber已經面臨的一切受到更多抨擊，自稱是無信仰國王（King of Infidelity）對他們的情況表示同情。
"If you're a disruptive business shaking up an existing
paradigm you know you will get flak, and you need to have your story straight.
Ours is about shifting values in society and in people's behavior."
「如果你是一個動搖現有的模式、製造混亂的企業，你知道你會受到抨擊，而你需要理解你的故事，我們的是關於改變社會和人們行為的價值。」
"Actors from mainstream TV shows are often told 'go and
create controversy, let people see your flaws.' It gives them an edge. It can
be the same for a company."
「主流電視節目的演員常常說『去創造爭議，讓人們看看你的缺點』這會讓他們創造優勢，這對公司來說也是同樣的道理。」
A pristine reputation may also be of lesser importance to
larger brands, that are better insulated against reputation damage. Department
stores such as Wal-Mart and
Asda have been regular targets for consumer campaigns, but have
continued to thrive through their ability to undercut competitors with lower
priced goods. Monsanto have also shown that a dominant position in the market
can compensate for negative impressions.
對名聲比較不容易被破壞的較大品牌而言純潔的名聲並沒有那麼重要，百貨商店像是沃瑪爾（Wal-Ｍart）和阿斯達（Asda）一直把目標瞄準在客戶活動，但持續靠著較低價格的商品打敗競爭者成功，孟山都（Monsanto）在市場中擁有優勢地位可以補足其負面的形象。
But such respite is only temporary, says Jonathan Hemus.
Eventually a bad reputation will catch up with any business.
Jonathan Hemus表示但這樣的救急之計只是暫時的，最終壞的名聲將會讓任何企業嘗到苦果。
"In the longer term, no business can afford to maintain
a negative reputation. Most successful businesses combine a fantastic product
and service with strong, positive reputations and relationships."
「長遠來看，沒有企業能夠承受得了壞名聲的代價，成功的企業大多都結合了很棒的產品和服務與堅固、正面的名聲和關係。」
"It's possible to recover a reputation, which depends
on rebuilding trust and confidence...you have to address the root cause of a
problem, and prove you're taking action to stop it happening."
是有可能恢復名聲的，這要看他們如何重建信任和自信心…你必須要處理問題的根源，並且證明你正在採取行動阻止一切的發生。
For Uber, there are numerous threats on the horizon that
could make an image problem into a wholesale crisis, including tightened
regulations, disgruntled drivers, and competitors such as Lyft that
can trade off a comparatively friendly reputation.
So can they turn it around?
對Uber而言，在他們的眼前有很多的威脅，而這些威脅可能會讓他們的形象問題演變成為大規模的危機，包括更加嚴格的法規、不滿的駕駛和競爭者像是Lyft
擁有相較之下友善的名聲。
"Not with this leadership," says Audra
Diers-Lawson. "The first thing they need is a new CEO."
「擁有這樣的領導者是無法達成這些事情的。」Audra
Diers-Lawson表示，「他們需要的第一個東西就是一個新的執行長。」
(註一)墨西哥灣漏油事故，是2010年4月20日發生的一起墨西哥灣外海油污外漏事件。[1]起因是英國石油公司所屬一個名為「深水地平線」（Deepwater Horizon）的外海鑽油平臺故障並爆炸，導致了此次漏油事故。
(註二)Klout，有在使用Facebook或Twitter的人能上到Klout的網站察看自己的社群網路影響力指數，這個指數係根據每個人在社群網站上所發表的訊息，連結來評分。評分標準是看使用者所產生的內容影響了多少人，以及使用者社群網路的大小，還有使用者間互動的頻率。
原文網址：http://edition.cnn.com/2014/12/01/business/success-toxic-rep/
