Don Pearson
Encyclopedia
Don Pearson is a management consultant and executive for a Folsom, California
firm, e.Republic, engaged in publishing and staging 'government technology' conventions. (see EGovernment
) Pearson is perhaps best known for his role in training Allstate Insurance Company
managers and salesmen in the tenets of L. Ron Hubbard's
'management by statistics' during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
, a media
and event management enterprise primarily serving the government information technology
market, including the Government Technology and Converge magazines (GovTech.net), which McKenna founded in 1983. Another e.Republic offshoot, the Center for Digital Government, provides research and consulting to state and local governments.
e.Republic is widely considered a trusted resource for government officials and business leaders. Many managers at e.Republic, which has become a principal information source for government agencies for their adoption of technology, Scientologists
.
New hires at e.Republic are given a copy of Speaking From Experience, a management training book by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. New hires are required not only to read the book, but also to take a course based on its contents. For those who do not ascribe to the Hubbard training, the prevalence of all things Hubbard at e.Republic can be disconcerting. "It fosters a level of paranoia
because you feel like if you speak out against how much Hubbard stuff is in the training you think they’ll come after you," said one worker, adding "They pressure every employee to take Hubbard-based training."
Critics assert the training and education techniques used by e.Republic are simply an attempt to get Scientology Ethics
and beliefs established in business and government. Although company executives deny proselytizing Scientology, the use of L. Ron Hubbard materials as "secular" is cited, which makes the practice of Scientology a fact.
area. His primary client was Allstate Insurance
, for whom Pearson taught Hubbard's 'management by statistics'. The training fostered the idea that workers who had low statistics should be penalized for low productivity, or for crossing a favored employee with 'up-statistics'. Some Allstate managers took such ideas too far, resulting in charges of "management by intimidation."
Pearson also pushed other Hubbard books and tapes while a consultant to Allstate. After a lengthy February, 1995 front page story ran in the Wall Street Journal, describing training that included use of Scientology's 'Tone scale
', Allstate banned and repudiated the courses. According to the article, more than 3,500 Allstate supervisors and agents participated in nearly 200 seminars conducted by Pearson's firm. Some agents who worked under managers who took the training courses eventually filed religious-discrimination and harassment charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
.
Folsom, California
Folsom is a city in Sacramento County, California, United States. Folsom is most commonly known for its famous Folsom Prison. The population was 72,203 at the 2010 census....
firm, e.Republic, engaged in publishing and staging 'government technology' conventions. (see EGovernment
EGovernment
E-Government is digital interactions between a government and citizens , government and businesses/Commerce , government and employees , and also between government and governments /agencies...
) Pearson is perhaps best known for his role in training Allstate Insurance Company
Allstate
The Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
managers and salesmen in the tenets of L. Ron Hubbard's
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
'management by statistics' during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
e.Republic
Together with fellow Scientologist Dennis McKenna, Pearson currently operates e.RepublicE.Republic Incorporated
e.Republic, Inc. is a Folsom, California-based media company. It publishes Government Technology Magazine, a publication covering the role of information technology in state and local government, along with three other publications. The company is closely linked with the Church of Scientology....
, a media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
and event management enterprise primarily serving the government information technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
market, including the Government Technology and Converge magazines (GovTech.net), which McKenna founded in 1983. Another e.Republic offshoot, the Center for Digital Government, provides research and consulting to state and local governments.
e.Republic is widely considered a trusted resource for government officials and business leaders. Many managers at e.Republic, which has become a principal information source for government agencies for their adoption of technology, Scientologists
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
.
New hires at e.Republic are given a copy of Speaking From Experience, a management training book by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. New hires are required not only to read the book, but also to take a course based on its contents. For those who do not ascribe to the Hubbard training, the prevalence of all things Hubbard at e.Republic can be disconcerting. "It fosters a level of paranoia
Paranoia
Paranoia [] is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself...
because you feel like if you speak out against how much Hubbard stuff is in the training you think they’ll come after you," said one worker, adding "They pressure every employee to take Hubbard-based training."
Critics assert the training and education techniques used by e.Republic are simply an attempt to get Scientology Ethics
Ethics (Scientology)
According to the Church of Scientology, "Ethics may be defined as the actions an individual takes on himself to ensure his continued survival across the dynamics. It is a personal thing. When one is ethical, it is something he does himself by his own choice."...
and beliefs established in business and government. Although company executives deny proselytizing Scientology, the use of L. Ron Hubbard materials as "secular" is cited, which makes the practice of Scientology a fact.
Management by Statistics
Before joining e.Republic, Pearson worked as a management consultant in the SacramentoSacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
area. His primary client was Allstate Insurance
Allstate
The Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
, for whom Pearson taught Hubbard's 'management by statistics'. The training fostered the idea that workers who had low statistics should be penalized for low productivity, or for crossing a favored employee with 'up-statistics'. Some Allstate managers took such ideas too far, resulting in charges of "management by intimidation."
Pearson also pushed other Hubbard books and tapes while a consultant to Allstate. After a lengthy February, 1995 front page story ran in the Wall Street Journal, describing training that included use of Scientology's 'Tone scale
Tone scale
In Scientology, the tone scale or emotional tone scale is a characterization of human behavior. It is based on the idea that some people appear to be more lively and alive than other people. Author L. Ron Hubbard spelled the idea out saying, "just draw a horizontal line on the page...
', Allstate banned and repudiated the courses. According to the article, more than 3,500 Allstate supervisors and agents participated in nearly 200 seminars conducted by Pearson's firm. Some agents who worked under managers who took the training courses eventually filed religious-discrimination and harassment charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is an independent federal law enforcement agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, perceived intelligence,...
.
External links
- OurSites.org - 'About Myself', Don Pearson