JetBlue’s Joel Peterson is going ballistic.
The chairman of the nation’s fifth-largest airline has some thoughts on the nation’s huge crisis of trust in its politicians and institutions.
And for those dismayed by the presumed White House matchup between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in November, he has revealed his own deepest concerns.
Peterson, a professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, successful entrepreneur and now JetBlue’s outspoken chairman, says a record number of Americans have lost trust in the current candidates for the highest office in the land. He makes no secret of his own misgivings.
“I have been encouraging friends of mine to run,” Peterson, 69, told The Post last week.
Peterson didn’t identify what friends he directly approached. It’s likely one was 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
Romney is a personal friend of fellow millionaire Peterson, having grown up together in Michigan and united by their Mormon faith and conservative values.
Peterson sees a trust deficit across the aboard — from business to politics — that hurts the economy by undermining productivity as well as profitability.
Peterson lays out his theories in his new book, “The 10 Laws of Trust: Building the Bonds That Make a Business Great,” published in May by the American Management Association.
‘I have been encouraging friends of mine to run.’
- Joel Peterson
“Millennials, for example, have been told all these things — go to college, get a job, buy a home — and then they look around and see what is really happening,” Peterson told The Post.
“Houses foreclosed, $35,000 in average student debt, a tough job market with the economy creating lots of part-time and low-wage jobs. You will be laid off and have 11 jobs in your lifetime. It’s challenging for everybody.
“People are wary, angry and frustrated,” Peterson added. “We have candidates appealing to all this anger, yet two-thirds of the public doesn’t trust the leading candidates. So it is understandable where this mistrust is coming from.”
In his book, Peterson writes, “Trust — well grounded — depends on three conditions.
“To safely and reliably allow others to act on our behalf, which is what we mean by trusting them, we must be able to count on three underpinnings: Character, Competence, and Authority.”
Clearly, Peterson sees these underpinnings lacking today in American business and politics.
The companies that get it “right” are often on the cutting edge of innovation, with generous benefits and compensation, he said.
For example, at Virgin, Peterson notes, employees have “unlimited vacation” once they get the job done.
On the economy, Peterson regrets the lack of solid, middle-class jobs to replace the work being shipped overseas, or transferred to lower-cost regions of America through outsourcing.
In the long run, however, the best prescription is stronger US economic growth, asserts Peterson — that is, at least 3 percent annually, rather than the subpar growth of recent years, would repair much of the damage to the economy’s balance sheet.
“Fundamentally, it is about productivity,” he added. “And technology is a key factor in harnessing our economic growth.”
Meanwhile, Peterson is optimistic about the future of JetBlue.
The low-cost airline that vows to bring “humanity back to air travel” is enjoying accolades for superior customer service, friendliness, on-time arrival and positive brand recognition, having returned to profitability in recent times.
Peterson says it is speculation on his part, but he sees possible room for a reduction in overall airline ticket prices, if fuel prices and the economy stay on course.
“I think if you have more capacity in there, you will see more pressure on [ticket] pricing,” he said.
JetBlue, based out of Long Island City, is the largest domestic carrier at JFK Airport.