Dave Ramsey is sick of online bullies.
The bestselling Christian finance adviser and radio host recently confronted former employees over slamming his empire via social media.
Reporting for The Daily Beast, Christian blogger Matthew Paul Turner writes that Ramsey, frustrated by his many Twitter critics and a private Facebook group for former Lampo employees, allegedly fired two employees and confronted former ones over the negative publicity on social media.
Ramsey reportedly emailed one of the former employees operating the now-deleted Twitter account @FormerCultis writing, "We had left you alone until the hate boiled over onto Twitter, LinkedIn, and threats of bringing Lampo and Dave down arose. That hate also included some of our own current team trying to bring harm from the inside. At that point we were required to react."
Ramsey agreed to stop monitoring the Facebook group in exchange for the shutting down of a number of the public Twitter accounts criticizing his leadership, reports Turner. "Of the crop of parody Twitter accounts, only @LampoLeadership survived the truce between Ramsey and the Facebook group."
Ramsey, a self-proclaimed born-again Christian, is known for his popular theory of "financial peace" and his "Biblically based, common sense" wisdom on debt, investing, and retirement. Once a small-time financial adviser, Ramsey now owns a business holding over 400 employees.
In addition, the finance guru hosts a popular radio show listened to by eight million people worldwide, and runs a "Dave Says" column published in numerous newspapers. According to Ramsey, his Lampo Group sells "hope," and that business has given him an estimated net worth of $55 million
Despite his success, Ramsey, who is known for encouraging his employees to resolve problems within the company, understands the ramifications of negative publicity via social media.
"Social media is a powerful tool. The government even knows it-they have attempted to use social media to topple the authoritarian government in Cuba, so of course Dave knows it, too" says Gary Wheiss, professor of Business and Marketing. "Negative comments on Facebook and Twitter potentially have the power to completely destroy a business with very little problem."
However, despite his concern, Ramsey is using social media in return to resolve conflict in accordance with his confessed Biblical values.
"The Bible clearly says that when we have a problem with our brother we are to go to them and try to resolve the situation," he wrote in an email to his critics, "I have the courage and I will take the time to sit with you in person and try to find resolution. My hope is you have the courage as well."
