Epic Systems Corp. does not issue press releases often, so when it does, people tend to listen.
Last week's announcement that the Verona-based health care software giant would "try to work only with vendors that do not support" Wisconsin's largest and most powerful business lobbying association caused a big stir that perhaps is only just beginning.
And though it initially appeared to be a heavy-handed left-vs.-right salvo by CEO Judy Faulkner in a political war with Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, further investigation suggests a more democratic process with a bit less bite than has been portrayed.
Barb Hernandez, who has handled media relations for the few press releases Epic has issued over the past 10 years, said the release was issued only after the Wisconsin State Journal asked about rumors that "Epic was pulling out of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and taking people with them."
Thursday's release noted that Epic never has been a member of WMC and considers itself politically neutral, and the updated version Friday said the privately held company considers its somewhat vague statement "an ethical decision, not a political decision."
It said "multiple management teams" discussed the process of the 2008 Wisconsin Supreme Court race, in which WMC backed a successful challenge to an incumbent judge to the tune of $1.8 million. The race was called "nasty" by a variety of national publications and involved allegations of race-baiting and false and misleading ads appealing to the lowest common denominator.
Hernandez, public relations director and partner with Hiebing, a Madison marketing and communications company, is the only person Epic has authorized to speak with the media on this issue. The self-described "political guru" said "Epic Management" - the only way she's been allowed to have them quoted - researched the issue thoroughly but perhaps underestimated the political fallout.
"Initially, I think, they were just making a statement and hadn't fully looked at everything that might be involved in that," she said.
Hernandez said the discussions started in earnest about a month after Michael Gableman rode WMC's support to unseat sitting Justice Louis Butler, who had been appointed by Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle. Ads supporting Gableman included one that showed a mug shot of Butler, who is black, next to a photo a black criminal whose case he was assigned to a public defender, evoking memories of Willie Horton, a black murderer whose recidivism during a prison furlough contributed to Michael Dukakis' loss in the 1988 presidential election.
"There were multiple people that were upset about the process, and then it became, 'Do we need to do anything about this?'" Hernandez explained.
Epic is known for making decisions democratically, often in its monthly staff meetings in the 5,300-seat Epicenter. Such votes can be over the smallest of details, such as what sort of art might be in the hallways of a certain building or whether to have coffee or tea available in the cafeteria, but they also have helped produce such far-reaching verdicts as building its new campus in Verona rather than Fitchburg.
About three-dozen managers meet regularly as a group and in smaller committees.
"It sounded like it just became a topic at their weekly (managers) meetings over a period of weeks," Hernandez said of her discussions with company spokespeople. "And that's when they started this investigation."
The group researched media stories about the election - Hernandez produced more than 20 related articles that were reviewed - and conferred with "multiple leaders from various industries around Dane County," the press release said, and came to the conclusion that the reports were correct.
Friday's release said the decision was made by a group of people with political leanings both conservative and liberal and in between. Taking a cue from Edmund Burke, who opined more than 300 years ago that evil will triumph if good men fail to act, the group decided to favor "vendors" who do not support WMC's current management.
"Both sides believe that integrity is needed in the election of our Supreme Court justices and that it was absent in the recent election," the release said. "We believe that what we tolerate is what we stand for, and as corporate citizens, we stand for the preservation of the foundation of the judicial system."
Area media have noted Faulkner's and her husband's frequent political contributions to liberal causes and Democratic candidates. But the release stated that the process of the election, not the outcome, was the company's concern.
Epic declined to clarify upon further questioning whether "vendors" would include customers as well as contractors and service providers. The company also would not clarify whether discussions originated at the management level or the staff level.
Last week's releases were issued more than two weeks after J.P. Cullen, the general contractor for its office buildings, pulled its membership in WMC and its CEO resigned from the association's board of directors.
But Hernandez said Epic has no intention of dismantling long-held relationships with clients or customers who might have relationships with WMC.
"It's not a cut-and-dried thing. This is going to be an ongoing process," she said. "They're not out to hurt anyone."
Update This story has been corrected to reflect an earlier inaccuracy regarding an ad run by the Gableman campaign.
