more about Better-Up & Harold's role ie minimal if anything at all
"Daily Beast: How Prince Harryās $5 Billion Startup Went South. Some staff say he has used his celebrity to help close business deals. Others say he contributes little and him being a tabloid fixture is a distraction.
Excerpts:
Last valued at $4.7 billion, BetterUp is perhaps best known for its chief impact officer: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, who joined the corporate team in 2021. But even with a former royal among its ranks, the startup has struggled to maintain its footing. Last year, its vast roster of contractor coaches staged a revolt after the company modified their pay; the relationship remains fraught, several coaches told The Daily Beast.
And this week, BetterUp laid off 16 percent of its staff, the culmination of what multiple workers described as months of turbulence, filled with outbursts from executives, mysterious staff departures, and declining morale.
āWeāre all there because of the same bullshit story they keep telling us: āWeāre mission driven, and the mission is going to change the world,āā a recent employee said. But inside the business, he added, āthey treat us like
tit.ā
Amid the tumult, Prince Harry has become an easy target for aggrieved staffers as well. One former employee, mirroring statements by several peers, assessed the Dukeās day-to-day responsibilities: āIām going to go with zero things.ā Other staffers were more charitable, suggesting that he has helped the company increase its reach in Europe and has lended his celebrity to help close major deals.
Indisputably, though, Prince Harry has become a fixture of tabloids on both sides of the Atlantic, creating the risk that BetterUpās reputation will be linked with the drama. āAt first I was like, āThis is cool,āā a recent staffer said of the Dukeās corporate position, but increasingly āitās been more of a distraction."
āEvery article mentions his role at BetterUp, then goes on to roast [him and Meghan Markle].ā At some point, the employee argued, āthe juice isnāt worth the squeeze.ā