A task force at Houston’s Falco Financial, first organized in 2018, has conditionally recommended that CEO Marianne Willikin participate in the GDS Sludge Bath, where participants spend ten minutes fully clothed in a tub full of sludge to raise awareness for Gatson-Drake Syndrome.
“We consider it an extremely worthy cause,” the task force wrote. “So we have concluded that participation by the CEO is in alignment with the core mission of Falco.” An official recommendation is expected following a review process, which is expected to take five months.
The challenge to the CEO was issued on August 22, 2018 by accounts payable clerk Janice McSpillane, via a social media video. Within 20 minutes of its posting, all vice presidents and HR Director Sylvia Talmadge were meeting in the CEO’s office to discuss a response. Talmadge, along with six representatives from finance and operations, were asked to convene a task force to analyze the pros and cons and make a recommendation.
“Over a period of 36 months we surveyed 2300 companies whose CEOs had participated in the challenge,” says Talmadge. “We wanted to look at how it impacted the bottom line, employee retention and other factors.”
The task force also reviewed over 150 options pertaining to where the bath should take place, what the CEO should wear, etc. In addition, Ms. McSpillane was interviewed on 12 different occasions to ensure there weren’t any ulterior motives to her issuing the challenge.
After another three years spent compiling the data – involving 88 employees and over 10,000 hours – the task force issued its conditional recommendation. Pending a positive review process, the actual bath has been tentatively scheduled for March 5, 2025.
“If red flags come up during the review,” says Talmadge, “we will reschedule for sometime in 2026.”
