Dennis M. MULLEN

Chairman, President, and CEO of Birds Eye Foods, Inc.

An associate whose wisdom and advice I value greatly provided me with the one phrase that’s helped me most in my twenty-five years in the food industry. Although it’s not a new or complex philosophy, I’m grateful to Kent Roberts, Vice President of Organizational Effectiveness for Birds Eye Foods, for leading me to the mantra I now embrace:

“Don’t judge me by my words alone, judge me by my actions.”

I want our associates, and any stakeholder of Birds Eye Foods, to understand that what I say, I am committed to do. This honesty in communications is a commitment we have made. It’s part of an overall Birds Eye Foods communications strategy to explain to our audiences, internal and external, why we do what we do. And, while what we say may not always be what people want to hear, we’ve created an expectation that what we say is what we will do. In other words, we only make promises we can keep—and we keep the promises we make. Many is the time when I’ve met with employee groups to explain why their facility may be reducing its production—or even closing down entirely. These are tough audiences hearing tough news. It’s uncomfortable news to hear and, believe me, even more uncomfortable to say. But a leader cannot just say things because they’re what the audience wants to hear. Or because they will make that particular group feel good at that particular moment. We must weigh our words carefully and speak the truth. We make tough decisions every day, and the reality is that they’re not going to make everyone happy. That’s business. The true measure of a leader, however, is the willingness to say the unpopular thing. To sometimes report the bad news. To speak the truth.

Judge not by words alone