If I were ceo of basecamp
The basecamp People are bad at apologising. It’s not that hard. Here’s how I’d do it if I were Jason Fried.
We fucked up
Sometimes you do things that you think are ok, but it turns out they’re not. That was us last week. We were out of step with what is right, and we took a well-deserved beating for it.
First, to our former colleagues: we are sorry for letting you down, and for letting everyone down. You built this business, and we’re going to find it hard to replace what you brought to our company. You made a tough decision, and it’s our fault that you were put in that position.
Second, to our remaining staff: we put you through a traumatic experience and we are going to make it up to you. Some of you probably wanted to leave, but couldn’t afford to do so. We are going to change, and we’re going to act on what you tell us we need to do.
Third, to our customers: you have had faith in us, even through this. Even through cat dot jpg. Even when maybe you could have gone elsewhere. We are going to ensure that your staff never have to hate opening their project management tool because it’s owned by pricks with no social conscience. We hope you stay with us. We’re building migration tools to other platforms, so you’re not locked into our platform. If there are other things we should be doing, please let us know.
We’ve been in business for 22 years. What we learned last week is how little that matters. We fucked up. We take it on the chin. We’re going to fix this, and we’re going to report all the changes we make so that we can earn back your trust.
Our apology is real. The work won’t be easy. Thanks for helping us realise that.