Gadfly

Here at Wafflebutt Organic Produce, it’s almost time for our annual shareholders’ meeting. We always view this time of year with a little bit of trepidation, because we know that Kevin is going to show up and ask us a bunch of questions we won’t like, such as, “Why did the stock price drop so much this year?” or, “When are we going to fire that VP who sent nudes to all of our suppliers?” or, “Why does this company have such a stupid name?”

Kevin is Wafflebutt Organic Produce’s very own gadfly; his whole purpose is to bring up shareholder concerns in an effort to make the company’s management address them. Gadflies will often broach topics senior management would rather avoid—like the shady behavior of the aforementioned VP—and force a shareholder vote on the issue. While gadflies are often seen as annoying by corporations, much like the bugs this slang term comes from, they can also serve an important purpose. Not everyone wants to be the Kevin in the room, but oftentimes the things gadflies bring up are things that need to be dealt with. Gadflies offer to act as the squeaky wheel in hopes that they’ll bring some grease to shareholders’ worries.

And really, let’s be honest: Wafflebutt is a pretty stupid name for a produce company.