MovieChat Forums > Iron Man 2 (2010) Discussion > In what world does the CEO/Chair rank hi...

In what world does the CEO/Chair rank higher than the owner?

posted 11 years ago by eileenmari628
5 replies | jump to latest

Every time I watch Iron Man 2 & 3 it amazes me how every single Stark employee bows and scrapes when Pepper is present, and worse, how Pepper speaks to the owner of the company who appointed her! It doesn't work that way in the real world! So I don't understand why the writers thought it would be believable in these screenplays. I've worked for several publicly traded companies as well as private ones, and regardless, the CEO was given his/her due respect, but when the owner was around, the CEO may as well been dead. Can any Marvel fans or anyone else explain how/why they thought the treatment of Tony Stark was acceptable? THANK YOU!!!

[–] ScottM2753 10 years ago

In the world where it is a publicly traded company. Once it is "publicly traded" the CEO and Board of Directors is the end all be all of the company. The company must then follow the rules and laws of the SEC. A "Privately Owned Company" would be different, such as a Sole Proprietorship, etc.

[–] eileenmari628 10 years ago

NO, Scott--THANK YOU! I too have had a similar corporate background & thousands of clients. NEVER HAVE THE STARK DYNAMICS played out that way-- we can't be the only 2 fans with similar professional experiences! Hello--I am sure it doesn't happen @ Marvel either! It really drove me crazy in every scene that Tony was treated like the Invisible Man, NOT Iron Man, THE OWNER!

[–] ScottM2753 10 years ago

Eileen - if you don't hit the "reply" button, people may not be informed that you replied. As for your comment, even an owner/controlling stock owner can be voted out by a board legally if their decisions/actions are deemed to not be in the company's best interests. There is NO true "owner" in the corporate world.

You gotta admit that Tony's actions - his "self-destructive" behavior in this movie, brought on by his supposed imminent death was not in the company's best interests. Of course no one else seemed to know this as Tony kept it a secret, so many of the employees only saw him as abandoning them in his usual brash playboy manner.

[–] eileenmari628 10 years ago

Last time mentioned, he WAS controlling stockholder.

[–] Gmalkin 10 years ago

You have a corporate background, yet some how don't understand that just because he's the majority stockholder of the company, that he no longer has any authority outside of voting rights at shareholder meetings?