"I Win Trust Of All Employees...": Kristin Cabot's Old LinkedIn Remark Goes Viral Amid "Coldplaygate"

Kristin Cabot, the HR head at Astronomer, is making headlines after she was spotted with the CEO of the company, Andy Byron, at Coldplay's Boston concert Wednesday night. A video showed the pair embracing each other at the concert, but as soon as the "kiss cam" turned to them, they shielded their faces and ducked down to avoid being seen. This awkward moment quickly went viral on social media, triggering various reactions. Internet users also started digging into their personal lives, and what they found on Ms Cabot's LinkedIn only added fuel to the fire. 

According to Ms Cabot's LinkedIn profile, she once bragged about winning everyone's trust at a company. "I lead by example and win trust with employees of all levels, from CEOs to managers to assistants," she proudly wrote. 

Another resurfaced post from when she joined Astronomer as Chief People Officer reads: "I have been energized in my conversations with Andy Byron and the Astronomer leadership team about the opportunities that exist here, including aiding our employees' career development."

"I prefer to think of my role as people strategy versus traditional human resources, as the real magic happens when you align the people strategy with the business strategy," she continued.

In a statement, Byron also praised Ms Cabot, saying, "She is a proven leader at multiple growth-stage companies, and her passion for fostering diverse, collaborative workplaces makes her a perfect fit for Astronomer."

The resurfaced statements are perfectly professional. However, against the backdrop of the recent scandal, many found the phrasing ironic. 

What is 'Coldplaygate'? 

As Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot's video went viral on social media, many started calling the scandal "Coldplaygate". 

In the clip, the pair was seen cuddling during the concert. But the moment the camera focused on them, the Astronomer CEO ducked away from the frame, while Ms Cabot quickly hid her face with her hands and turned her back to the camera. The frantic manner in which the couple hid made Coldplay's Chris Martin joke that they were either having an affair or they were very shy. 

Also read | All About Astronomer CEO Andy Byron And Recent Controversy At Coldplay Concert

As of now, neither Astronomer nor Andy Byron has issued an official statement regarding the incident. According to his LinkedIn profile, Byron held senior positions at companies like Lacework, Cybereason, Fuze, BMC Software, BladeLogic and VeriCenter before becoming the CEO. He is married to Megan Kerrigan Byron, an Associate Director at Bancroft School. They reportedly live in New York with their two children.

Kristin Cabot is the Chief People Officer at Astronomer, the company behind Astro, the data orchestration and observability platform powered by Apache Airflow.