Ex-Facebook DEI Manager Imprisoned — A Word From Someone Who Admired Her
I met Barbara Furlow-Smiles years ago. I was shocked to see her go viral, and it wasn’t for a reason I could have ever imagined — she had just been sentenced to prison.
“BREAKING: Former DEI manager for Facebook and Nike sentenced to over 5 years in prison for stealing over $5 *million* from the two companies.”
Blared the headline of a tweet with a whopping 2.4M views.
I read on and eventually read the name “Barbara Furlow-Smiles” along with a video clip featuring her speaking about her passion in life. I had no words.
A split second later I saw my face and our entire interaction came back to me in a flash.
I then went straight to skimming the comment section and had a moment of “this can not be real.”
How could someone I once held in such high regard end up like this?
Five years ago, I, along with two other brilliant individuals, Jordane & Alicia, interviewed Barbara for the televised docu-series Venture Forward.
The show’s premise was to send three bright young individuals with a passion for technology across the country to interview leaders in the tech industry.
I vividly recall navigating our massive, bright green RV around Menlo Park, my stomach in knots, as we drove toward the Facebook campus. As someone relatively new to the tech industry, setting foot on that campus felt like a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Initially, I was gobsmacked by the sheer amount of free food available to Facebook employees. However, that bright-eyed & bushy-tailed feeling gradually transformed into a sense of embodying “dumbfounded.”
After touring the Facebook offices, Facebook art studio, Facebook barbershop, Facebook apartments, etc. I realized I had entered in a completely different dystopian reality. I entered Facebook world.
Nevertheless, the show must go on, I stomached the feeling.
Our film crew was toured around by lovely Facebook individuals who loved talking about Facebook. We eventually made our way to the conference room where we were to hold our interview.
Now mind you, our interview was with the DEI person to talk to. I was sweating. Wrong day to wear a white shirt.
I had a once-lifetime opportunity to meet someone in an innovative position meant to make real change. I could ask them anything I wanted. I couldn’t fumble this opportunity.
Minutes passed but then finally, Barbara entered the room. She had an absolute radiant energy. Her smile lit up the room. She was almost larger than life and I couldn’t wait to learn from her.
The interview, brief and to the point, wound up an excellent conversation.
I remember thinking how she demonstrated such an inspiring and hard-working persona. Someone who worked their way up. Someone I wanted to model myself after.
We packed up our stuff and started to leave the campus. However, with every step I took, that initial pit in my stomach came roaring back — and it turned into a profound sense of unease.
Visiting Facebook was an overwhelming experience in and of itself. All of which magnified the ungodly amount of power and wealth surrounding me.
Now, I can’t help but imagine that Barbara felt the same thing.
On paper, Facebook had an exceptional individual in a position of power to make significant changes at one of the most influential companies in the world. However, she was not capable of handling the responsibility of her role.
What defined her role, to begin with? Was it hers to define or Facebook’s? How was her performance and success measured? Another conversation, surely, however, either way, critical oversight was missing.
Back to the moral of the story.
I do not condone Barbara’s actions, but I would give my right arm to interview her again. Not to rip her a new one or get up on a soapbox, but to genuinely understand what drove her decision-making.
Did Barbara believe she was entitled to the money? If so, why?
What led her to believe she could get away with stealing from Facebook the first time around? Where exactly did Facebook fail to implement oversight?
Why did she believe she needed “a luxury lifestyle in California, Georgia, and Oregon” to begin with? To “keep up” with her colleagues?
The first principle root of this situation involves belief. Belief drove all of Barbara’s seemingly tiny decisions that snowballed into her imprisonment.
This is what happens when a lack of oversight, whether in DEI or not, meets someone poised, by their belief system, to exploit opportunity out of greed.
The silver lining? We are more than capable of preventing unfortunate situations like this moving forward. But only if we are willing to ask the right questions and quit our blaming. (Save it for the judge.)
I am truly devastated for Barbara and hope this moment in time transforms into a positive inflection point for both her and Meta.
