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Count the headlines earned by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and Merck when they announced their CEO succession plans – turnover at the most senior levels gets attention. It may be one of the few “all eyes on you” moments a firm can count on.

As such, these moments present valuable opportunities for a firm to articulate strategy and communicate a fresh vision for the future. However, recent research has found that most organizations are unprepared for the opportunities –and challenges –that a turnover will bring. 

In a new report we worked with History Factory to develop, 90% of the 160 c-suite respondents surveyed agreed with the statement, “in today’s unpredictable environment, succession planning is more important than ever.” Yet the report also showed that less than half of corporations have taken the time to develop a succession plan. This is particularly remarkable considering that CEO changeover reached 20-year highs in 2019 — and after a brief pandemic-induced pause, now continues to rise. 

Greentarget has helped many clients manage leadership transitions at the c-level. Given these experiences and the market research we conducted with History Factory, we recommend that leaders consider the following when facing turnover in the c-suite.

1.  Tell a Compelling Institutional Narrative

An executive transition is one of the few occasions where your firm will garner earned media attention and public interest, whether you’re actively seeking it out or not. What’s more, the passing of the baton gives you a rare strategic opportunity to refresh your firm’s market position, either by affirming your unique value proposition, previewing a strong new direction, or underscoring your commitment to serving clients and stakeholders.

Keep in mind, though, that most people view CEO transitions with some level of suspicion. For example, a company’s stock price almost always takes a hit when a new CEO is announced. This happens even when a company rolls out thoughtful transition communications. “What’s really going on over there?” is bound to cross the minds of more than a few stakeholders. 

Your audience will want to know the why behind a high-profile change. So seize this moment by telling them a compelling story you want them to remember. Share your outgoing leader’s accomplishments. Lay out the meaningful strides your company made during her tenure. Then paint a picture of what your firm is capable based on this strong foundation.

2. Capture the Intellectual Capital of Your Outgoing CEO

Recent research published by Harvard Business Review quantifies a startling truth: the amount of market value wiped out by badly managed CEO and C-suite transitions in the S&P 1500 is close to $1 trillion a year.  That’s trillion with a T. Among the primary reasons for this, the researchers argue, is the loss of the outgoing CEO’s intellectual capital. 

Don’t let a veritable wealth of information walk out the door with your departing leader. You need to thoughtfully gather that institutional memory so it can be transferred to your incoming CEO.  

Your incoming leader needs to demonstrate an awareness of:

  • Company timelines and achievements
  • Market position and competitive analysis
  • Industry challenges and trends
  • Past and current strategic priorities
  • Organizational ethos and values
  • High-profile client accounts, past and present
  • Employee culture, including talent-related strengths and opportunities 

History Factory’s report offers thoughtful guidance and examples on how to draw institutional memory out of your departing CEO and use it to prepare the new leader. Reflect this transfer of institutional memory in your communications plan to convey stability and momentum. Your audience and stakeholders need to be confident your organization won’t take a step backward as a result of the transition. They need to know your incoming leader is sufficiently aware of the past to be ready for the challenges that lie ahead.

3. Communicate the Value Your Incoming CEO Brings (But Don’t Rush to Herald a New Vision)

Introducing your incoming CEO can be tricky. You want that person to lead, but you also want your employees and clients to confidently follow. While you may be eager to signal a new direction, vision, and momentum, resist the urge to move too quickly. After all, CEOs who introduce a bold new direction right away run the risk of alienating employees, clients, and stakeholders in the process. It’s more important for the new leader to affirm your firm’s organizational culture and demonstrate genuine excitement about becoming part of it.

Rather than introducing the specific priorities your CEO will tackle, focus on communicating the value your new executive brings to the table. (For example, are you one of the increasing number of companies appointing its first woman or person of color as CEO?) Share why they are best suited to lead the organization into the future, and give them adequate time to formulate their compelling new vision. 

Are you promoting a leader from within? Tell the story of that person’s journey at your firm. How has your outgoing CEO offered valuable mentorship and leadership along the way? In what ways will the new leader build on and enhance the strategic direction your firm has taken to this point?

Only after your new CEO has had a chance to get the lay of the land should you really hand over the microphone. It’s time to broadcast his vision for the future while continuing to value the good work you’ve already accomplished.

A Positive CEO Transition Requires Thoughtful Succession Planning

To navigate the challenging dynamics of an executive transition, you need a solid and thoughtful communication plan. This is your firm’s newsworthy moment. Make the most of it by telling a compelling institutional story, capturing and transferring your outgoing CEO’s intellectual capital, and introducing your incoming CEO’s vision thoughtfully. 

You don’t have to go it alone. We’ve been down this road before. We’re well-positioned to help your organization seize the strategic opportunity an executive transition offers.

Want to talk it through? Just reach out — we’d love to hear from you.

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Cries of “fake news” have become a favored weapon of bad actors looking to cast doubt on credible reporting. But news that is actually fake is a clear threat to our very democracy — and it’s found a prominent breeding ground on increasingly powerful social media platforms.

Last year, our Fake News 2020 report found that 80 percent of journalists strongly believe misinformation has negatively impacted journalism. Furthermore, 56 percent said social media is the single greatest fake news distribution threat. So when we release our second Fake News report later this fall, we’re going to zero in on social media’s role.

And what, if anything, journalists think should be done about it.

Social Media Both Supports and Undermines Credible Journalism

Journalists rely on social media to do their jobs. Many comb social media for story ideas or leads, use it to obtain and verify sources, and share their stories to boost engagement. 

But social media can be a double-edged sword, even if you look past the effects Facebook and other platforms have had on the advertising models of traditional news outlets. Journalists use social media to get reality-based news in front of a broader readership, but propagators of disinformation use it too. From there, audiences can indiscriminately share and disseminate stories (real or fake) quickly and easily. In turn, social media becomes an echo chamber, making it easy for audiences to attack and discredit those same stories.

Social media, obviously, isn’t going away. And because it is one of the main fronts in the fight against fake news, it’s time to sound a battle cry. Whether or not the government ultimately intervenes, we as PR professionals need to do our part to support journalists, amplify truthful news stories, call out fake news when we see it, and commit ourselves to high levels of transparency and ethical behavior. 

2021 Fake News Report: A Preview

In our report last year, journalists overwhelmingly felt it was their responsibility to fight fake news. But they were split on whether the government should get involved. They didn’t agree about whether the U.S. should impose anti-fake news laws to combat misleading information. More than a third (39 percent) supported or strongly supported anti-fake news laws, while nearly as many (35 percent) did not support such laws. About a quarter – 26 percent – said they were neutral toward the potential laws.

But that was before a contentious campaign season, disputed election results, and an unprecedented insurrection at the nation’s capitol — spurred in large part by groups using social media to get their message across. 

And as we face continued vaccination hesitancy and a resurgence of Delta variant-related positive COVID-19 cases, we can’t help but wonder: Have we finally reached a critical turning point in the fight against fake news? 

Evaluating the Communications Decency Act, Section 230

We wanted to know specifically what journalists think about calls to reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act — which grants internet platforms legal immunity for most content posted by their users. Do journalists feel this act currently grants social media platforms too much leniency? Especially when we factor in alternative, far-right platforms like Parlor, Gab, and MeWe?

The White House has initiated conversations to hold social media platforms more accountable for their content. Is this appropriate? Will this assure journalists more that their credible news stories might have a chance of breaking through the fake news maelstrom? Will such reforms go far enough?

Weighing Additional Governmental Interventions to Combat Fake News

Reforming Section 230 is just one commonly discussed approach aimed at limiting the flow of fake news on social media platforms. Do journalists think the Biden administration should generally prioritize combating fake news – and, if so, how should do they think it be done? Here are some other options:

  • Regulating and enforcing antitrust laws
  • Revising libel and slander laws
  • Revising the “fair use” doctrine 

We’ll also ask journalists for their thoughts on a variety of other issues related to fake news including how the term has evolved in the last year.

How PR Can Help Journalists Fight Fake News

While we may not be on the front lines, PR professionals can and need to support their colleagues in battling the dissemination of fake news. As part of our 2020 report, we vowed to take the following steps. And we encourage your organization to do the same.

  • Support the work of reporters and editors. We value the work that journalists do every day, and we appreciate the privilege of collaborating with them. We pledge to continue to support journalists and amplify reality-based news sources.
  • Stress ethics and transparency. We strongly discourage lying to journalists or putting forth non-credible sources, and we pledge to always fact-check our work. Because we embrace transparent relationships with journalists (and the public), we will always be responsive to journalists’ questions and endeavor to help them solve problems when we can.
  • Put the audience first. Many PR practitioners hone their craft by developing the perfect pitch to get a reporter’s attention. That is, of course, important. But we believe in only offering insights that a journalist’s audience cares about. 
  • Advocate against fake news. We believe it is our responsibility to help others understand the difference between real and fake news, thereby hindering the spread of fake news. Since we believe this starts with educating the next generation of active news consumers, we pledge to take a leadership role for future PR practitioners today, tomorrow, and always.

We’ve followed through on this pledge by devoting podcast episodes to the topic, participating in webinars, lending our voice to roundtables with future PR leaders such as PRSA Voices 4 Everyone, and raising awareness through articles like this one. And we’ll continue to advocate as a voice for truth and transparency in journalism especially while fake news remains a threat. 

We’re excited to share our findings in our 2021 Fake News report this fall. Connect with Greentarget to receive the report right to your inbox. 

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Toyota recently made headlines when social justice watchdogs called them out for making $55,000 in donations to 37 politicians who objected to certifying the 2020 election. The backlash was fast and fierce. Consumers called for boycotts and it wasn’t long before the hashtag #ToyotaHatesDemocracy began trending on Twitter. 

As it so often happens, Toyota’s official response only made things worse. Their statement was vague and included familiar corporate PR speak, saying, “Toyota supports candidates based on their position on issues that are important to the auto industry and the company.” This led many in the Twitterverse to retort that democracy must not have been one of the “issues” factored in. Though Toyota has since tried to walk back and amend its response, the general consensus is too little, too late.

If you think that because you’re not in a consumer-facing industry this kind of blowback can’t happen to you, think again. Professional services firms are increasingly expected to treat social issues as business issues. Whether it’s answering for how diverse your firm is (or isn’t) or explaining why you’ve chosen to do business with a controversial figure, there will come a time when you’re forced to respond to criticism.

What should you say if you have no idea what to say? Or if, like Toyota, the answer you do have isn’t good enough?

Our advice? Get real. Lead with vulnerability and humility. Listen and learn from the people around you in order to develop authentic communications that demonstrate a positive commitment to change. 

Throughout this piece, we’ll look at the benefits of vulnerable communication as it relates to an emerging, salient example. Many businesses have recently added Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) metrics to their RFPs in an effort to hire firms who align with their values. The challenge? Most professional services firms are not diverse. So you will need to do some hard work to demonstrate you are truly committed to meaningful change and improvement.

With Vulnerability, Communications Can Be A Tool –Not a Shield

Transparency was the leadership theme throughout the 2010s. But today’s expectation goes even further. Leadership now requires a new level of vulnerability, openness, and skilled participation. Hiding behind your marketing messages or simple lip service is easier than ever to recognize. Your stakeholders, employees, and the public will see right through it.

With vulnerability, your communications can be a tool – not a shield. Vulnerability strengthens your position, increases your likelihood of winning over your prospective clients, and engages your employees in living up to your organizational values.

That doesn’t mean it’s easy. Many organizations use corporate speak not because they think it’s the best way to go, but to mitigate legal risk. There’s a balance here, though. You can still admit your firm isn’t perfect or that you don’t have all the answers to sensitive social issues without making statements that could pose legal risk. In the meantime, doing so will reduce skepticism and buy goodwill while you develop the meaningful messages and actions you ultimately want to deliver.  

In the DE&I context, responding vulnerably and authentically to this kind of scrutiny might mean owning up to the fact that your firm has a long way to go. If your workforce is not diverse, don’t pretend it is. Instead, be sincere and admit you need to make improvements, and then, when you’re ready, lay out your plan to do just that. 

Vulnerability Opens the Door to Collaborative Communication

Let’s be honest about this — if your leadership team lacks diversity, you shouldn’t be working on solving your DE&I shortcomings in a vacuum. Ask for help from people who have insights you don’t. Invite employees, stakeholders, clients, and even community members to weigh in on how to make measurable changes that will move your firm forward. 

To go beyond the performative and gather strategic input that will help you make authentic improvements, you might need to take a hard look at your current state. Ask questions about what your workplace is like right now for members of underrepresented groups. Really listen to their experiences. For instance, question:

  • Is your firm’s culture accessible and inclusive for women, Black, Latinx, AAPI, indigenous, disabled, LGBTQ+ and other marginalized groups? 
  • Do underrepresented groups have access to high value projects, clients and other work that affords them advancement opportunities?
  • Are all members of underrepresented groups safe from harassment? Do they receive equal pay for equal work?
  • What will it take to fill more seats at your leadership tables with people who represent a broad spectrum of diversity?

Resist the urge to ignore these uncomfortable or sensitive issues. Explore, debate, research, question, and reflect on these important topics with the people around you. Then, work together to formulate communications that convey the tangible improvements you plan to make. 

Vulnerability Invites Greater Accountability to Your Values

Your organizational values should act as your guardrails and guiding principles in all the areas you strive for change. So when you’ve developed the communications about how your organization is working toward improving your DE&I metrics, you also need to be vulnerable enough to invite your employees and stakeholders to call you out if you don’t follow through on your good intentions. 

Your employees, clients, and stakeholders may have better insight into your firm’s shortcomings than you do. Accountability gives them the freedom to speak up and tell you if they feel you aren’t making the positive changes you committed to. The best way to ensure they feel comfortable holding you accountable is to give them direct access to you and other leaders who have authority and power. Vulnerability and accessibility lead to accountability.

Need Help Harnessing the Power of Vulnerable Communications?

Responding to a DE&I metric on an RFP is just one example of how professional services firms are wrestling with how to communicate when they don’t know what to say. It can be challenging to drop the protective cloak of marketing language in favor of vulnerable communications — especially in conversations that make us uncomfortable or when legal risk is involved. But doing so will enable you to build stronger relationships with the employees, stakeholders, and clients whose buy-in and trust are essential in allowing you to reach your business objectives.

Whatever you do, don’t rely on tone-deaf marketing statements like Toyota did. Using communication as a tool instead of a shield — whether it’s responding to an RFP or releasing a public statement about a hot-button issue — shows empathy and will help you attract new clients and talented employees who are just as committed to social concerns as you are. 

If you realize you need help harnessing the power of vulnerability in your communications strategies, just reach out. We’d love to hear from you.

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We’ve all seen unprepared leaders lose control of difficult media conversations. Reporters delight in putting interviewees on the spot, tripping them up, and delving into topics respondents would rather avoid. But if as a leader you can’t skillfully and adeptly navigate these interactions, you risk undermining your own authority and harming your organization’s reputation.

Reporters aren’t the only people who will ask you pointed questions. In today’s world, control is disseminated more and more. And that means employees, stakeholders, and community members are free to challenge, test, and iterate on your ideas at any time. That’s a good thing. Because every media interview, town hall meeting, and hallway chat is another opportunity for you to strengthen your position, increase your influence, and solidify your message.

However, to effectively navigate these uncontrolled situations, you need to master the principles of positive, productive engagement within the original, uncontrolled environment executives have worked for decades to master – the news media.

The key is skilled participation, which can be accomplished by applying these tried and true techniques to every area of your professional life as your pathway to authentic, true authority.

Complete the Prerequisites of Skilled Participation

Skilled participation affords you an element of control in an uncontrolled environment. And the more uncontrolled the environment, the more credibility you earn by participating. But before you can master the techniques involved, start by doing some foundational thought work.

Shift Your Leadership Mindset

What it means to be an effective leader has changed dramatically. In the ’80’s, ’90’s and early aughts, leaders (especially CEOs) were high-powered executives who projected a carefully crafted image based on command and control. Confident, assured, possessing all the answers — but also unapproachable, inaccessible, and often inauthentic.

By contrast, the defining traits of effective leaders today are vulnerability and authenticity. You aren’t shielded by handlers and tucked away in your corner office on the top floor. Instead, you’re expected to be out on the playing field. Weighing in. Actively engaging. Opening yourself up to scrutiny. 

To do this well, you need to demonstrate a personal commitment to growth and continuous learning. This might involve moving forward with incomplete information, allowing yourself to be questioned, welcoming honest feedback, and admitting when you’re wrong.

Vulnerability and authenticity can be humbling, but these are the characteristics that invite others to connect with you, respect you, relate to you, and ultimately follow you. There’s no leadership authority without vulnerability. And if this sounds uncomfortable, it’s because it is. But more often than not, the credibility it fosters is worth the effort.

(Much like sitting down with a reporter.)

Refine Your Point of View

Skilled participation requires you to have a well-thought-out point of view on a variety of salient topics. That doesn’t mean you have answers for everything, but it does mean you’ve taken the time to carefully consider the issues that matter most to your stakeholders.

Polite society doesn’t exist anymore, which means you never know what topic might be thrown at you. At any moment, your employees and stakeholders can ask you hard questions about your business decisions, strategic vision, financial outlook, operational plan, and organizational values.

Furthermore, social issues are now business issues, too. From critical race theory to voting rights, you’ll need to be prepared to enter into authentic conversation about the ideas that matter — and not just to your business specifically, but to society at large. Because, what’s good for society is good for business. And there are new expectations for leaders as a result.  

Master These Proven Media Interview Techniques to Prepare for Skilled Participation

After you’ve completed the soft-skill prerequisites, it’s time to practice the media interview techniques that allow you to communicate your messaging effectively, no matter the arena you’re in. 

Deliver a Crisp, Compelling Message

Skilled participants excel at getting to the heart of a message quickly and distilling their agenda into digestible viewpoints. 

To craft an authoritative message, use these tactics:

  • Concreteness. Your audience should be able to visualize exactly what you’re saying. If you can’t draw it, it’s not concrete. Abstract, squishy language flatlines empathy and gives listeners permission to check out.
  • Emotion. Behavioral science tells us that humans are “feeling machines that think.” Reason and emotion are inseparable, and emotion is always more effective than cold, hard facts. If you want to propel people toward a decision or influence an outcome, strategic use of emotion is key.
  • Narrative. Stories are the transporters of persuasion. The more immersed we become in a compelling story, the more open we become to changing or challenging our beliefs. Peppering your messaging with “micro-narratives” is an excellent way to use the power of story while maintaining crisp message delivery.

Need an example of how to employ these techniques? Steve Jobs used these three elements perfectly when he introduced the iPhone during a transformative CNBC interview. He used concreteness to describe the iPhone as a computer you can fit in your pocket. Drawing on the emotion of frustration, he then talked about how easy the iPhone is to use compared to other technologies that were harder for users to learn. And finally, he told stories about how his team conceived the iPhone and how they approached the design and development process. 

Jobs’ discomfort with media interviews is well known, but he took himself out of his comfort zone and mastered the art of skilled participation. To become a true authority, you’ll need to do the same.

Build Your Argument Backwards

When building your argument, start at the end. Our natural tendency is to start at the beginning and build a strong argument systematically. But in a media setting — and in other uncontrolled settings — the longer you talk, the more you risk being interrupted before you can make your point. Don’t give your audience the opportunity to flip your script before you deliver the key takeaway.

Start with your headline. Then make your supporting points. Conclude with a summary to reemphasize the message and solidify it in your audience’s mind. Use repetition liberally. As organizational health consultant Patrick Lencioni says, your ultimate role is to be the “chief reminding officer.”

Expertly Maneuver Back to Your Agenda

In uncontrolled settings, you can’t follow a script word for word. But you can and should become proficient at maneuvering the conversation back to the ultimate message you want to convey. 

Blocking and bridging is the most common approach. This two-pronged strategy involves acknowledging the question and bridging the conversation back to a related topic that aligns with the message you want to share. 

For example, say an employee asks what you think about critical race theory. Perhaps you haven’t delved into this subject and aren’t familiar enough with the theory to provide a thoughtful point of view. You might respond by saying, “I don’t know much about critical race theory and I’ll need to do some research to make sure I understand it fully before I weigh in. But what I have thought about at great length is how our organization can do a better job of recruiting and retaining people of color. May I tell you about some of our recent diversity and inclusion efforts and ask for your feedback?”

This response shows you care about the overarching racial injustice issues that critical race theory seeks to address, signals that you are open to learning more about it, and invites honest conversation about the related issues your firm is actively working on. In short, responding this way demonstrates your authority. 

Preparation + Improv = Skilled Participation

Your final requirement for perfecting the art of skilled participation is to embrace and develop your improvisational mindset. Improvisation is the ability to think on your feet, adjust your messaging based on how it’s landing, and successfully navigate uncharted terrain. This comes back to relinquishing control. We live in a rapidly changing world and, as a leader, you’ll need to make decisions with incomplete information and answer questions you don’t necessarily see coming. 

But hear this. We aren’t advising you to fake it. Rather, we’re saying that — once you’ve prepared your messaging and mastered the art of engaging in media interviews — improvising comes down to trusting yourself. You are equipped to navigate the hard conversations that will come your way. You possess a reservoir of experience to help you improvise well.

At the end of the day, every conversation is improvisational because no authentic interaction is scripted. So suit up. You’ve refined your position and sharpened your skills. It’s time to skillfully participate to prove your authority.

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When your organization is in the midst of some bad press or a scandal, your CEO might reflexively respond by circling the wagons and asking you to kill the story. That’s understandable. No one wants bad press to mar their public image and draw attention away from the otherwise excellent services their firm provides.

But if a reporter uncovers something newsworthy about your organization, or if an offensive interaction is filmed on a cell phone and goes viral, it will be quite difficult — if not impossible — to kill or even muffle that story. News travels fast, especially when it’s salacious.

Reporters might seem like the enemy when you’re battling a PR nightmare, but they fulfill a critical function in keeping the public informed and speaking truth to power. It’s their job to hold you accountable — and we believe outside accountability is broadly a good thing, even if it doesn’t feel that way in the throes of a crisis. This stance might sound atypical for a PR firm, but we look at challenging, special PR situations as an opportunity for your firm to strengthen your position as an industry leader.

Facing the storm head on is the only way to ensure your organization emerges stronger — or at least, smarter — than you were before. Here’s how to respond effectively to a PR crisis so you can get to work regaining the trust and confidence of your stakeholders, employees, and the general public. 

How Honesty and Transparency can Influence the PR Narrative

If you know there’s trouble brewing internally, it can be incredibly tempting to try to bury the story. After all, no one knows about the situation yet. Or your leadership team may hope the problem will go away on its own, allowing you to avoid negative press. That’s human nature, but it’s simply not going to work.

Trying to bury a story or hoping it will peter out aren’t great strategies because the truth almost always comes out. And when it does, your company will be much worse off if there’s evidence you tried to hide the story — or failed to reveal something time sensitive or illegal. For the sake of this discussion, we’ll put aside situations that can still be internally remedied, without PR techniques, and discussion situations where a problem is real and about to blow.

Let’s look at an example straight from the headlines. In 2017, consumer reporting giant Equifax became aware of a data breach that affected 143 million Americans. Social security numbers, birth dates, and addresses were among the data points stolen in this grand-scale cyberattack. 

That in of itself is bad news. But what made it even worse? Equifax concealed the breach for an incredible six weeks — robbing their customers’ ability to take time-sensitive steps to protect themselves from identity theft.

We don’t know exactly what happened internally when Equifax first learned of this breach. But we do know they should have assembled a team, quickly gotten up to speed on all salient details, and communicated transparently and honestly about the breach to all customers affected. Yes, the story would have broken sooner. However, the narrative would have been drastically different had Equifax been open and honest about what transpired, outlined concrete steps they planned to take to protect the millions of Americans affected, and introduced new security measures to reduce the risk of that kind of breach happening again.

Equifax’s lack of transparency resulted in a congressional inquiry into the matter and led to a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission of up to $425 million to help protect impacted consumers.

Replace a Generic PR Statement with an Authentic Apology

Have you ever had someone apologize to you by saying “I’m sorry you feel that way?” That kind of apology makes it clear the person issuing the supposed apology actually thinks the offended party might be the problem.

Generic PR statements often operate in the same way. When you avoid taking responsibility or fail to own your company’s mistake, you risk alienating your customers or stakeholders even more. If you’ve misstepped in some way, first take time to listen to what those affected are trying to tell you. Then, issue an authentic apology. Don’t hide behind a bland PR statement or a problematic corporate policy.

You probably remember the viral video of a passenger being dragged from an overbooked United flight. The passenger had a ticket and was there lawfully, but United was overbooked and asked the passenger and his family to give up their seats for United employees who needed to fly. The passenger refused, and he was forcefully dragged from the flight while nearby passengers protested (and filmed the whole thing) in horror. 

United’s initial statement on Twitter was tone deaf at best: “Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville was overbooked. After our team looked for volunteers [to give up their seats], one customer refused to leave. We apologize for the overbook situation. Further details on the removed customer should be directed to authorities.”

This response takes zero responsibility for a policy that led to chronic overbooking. But even worse, United didn’t apologize for the violent altercation or acknowledge its cruel enforcement of a bad policy.

United issued a number of subsequent statements, each one becoming progressively more apologetic. But once you respond without any hint of remorse, people won’t believe you’re sincere when you try to walk that back. It’s crucial to get it right the first time, even if that means buying time by saying you need to look at the situation before responding. But don’t wait too long, or your silence could be taken as avoiding the issue, or worse, ignoring it altogether.

Make Meaningful Amends to People or Groups You’ve Harmed

Your response to a bad story should obviously vary based on its severity, how many people are impacted, and whether the problem is evidence of a systemic issue. If it’s a one-time, self-contained mistake, a simple apology may be all that’s warranted. But if your company is responsible for a larger-scale issue — or if a group of people have been harmed by bad players in your organization — you’ll need to offer meaningful amends.

As a communications professional, your job is to convey the details of the plan to the media, your stakeholders, and the public. But the communication itself is not the plan. Therefore, be sure to bring key players into the room to determine an appropriate course of action. Delve into the problem, ask thoughtful questions, address the full scope of the challenge, and make sure that behind the message is real substance.

Just as your response will vary based on the details of what happened, so should the actions your organization takes. Perhaps you discover a hidden culture of harassment that has affected a large number of women or people from marginalized groups. In that situation, making amends might mean overhauling your HR department, dismissing guilty parties, and bringing in coaches or therapists to work with those harmed. A single apologetic press release, no matter how well crafted and sincere, certainly isn’t going to cut it.

In Equifax’s scenario, making meaningful amends involved offering protection and compensation to customers, while also taking decisive steps to shore up cybersecurity. Had they done this from the get-go, without sitting on the story for six weeks, they would have at least mitigated the damage to their company’s reputation.

Likewise, had United accepted full responsibility for their abysmal treatment of a passenger, apologized, and asked that passenger how they could make amends, it would have gone a long way to diffuse the public outcry. Instead, their initially indifferent response fanned the flames of social media outrage.

One last thought here: when communicating the steps you plan to take, it’s crucial to strike the right tone. You’re righting wrongs. Don’t try to sound like a hero for doing the right thing. Instead, show contrition and communicate the action you plan to take.

After the PR Storm Take Stock Internally

Bad press will fade away eventually. But if you want an unfortunate chapter to stay behind you, put internal accountability measures in place to make sure you’ve done everything you’ve promised. 

PR professionals might not be responsible for writing and enforcing policy, but you are the one to communicate your organization’s message to stakeholders and the public. Therefore, you have a vested interest in making sure your organization follows through. Invite stakeholders, employees, and even the general public to hold you accountable, too. Approach the situation honestly, own your mistake, and make good on your promises.

By doing so, you’ll not only guide your organization through the storm, but potentially become smarter and stronger because of it. 

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Twenty-first century leaders that refuse to recognize the social needs and interests of key actors will fail to capture market share. CMOs can help CEOs understand and act on emerging opportunities honestly, openly, and strategically.

Old norms die hard.

Nowhere is that more true than in corporate America, where executives are struggling to understand and accept, let alone keep up with, the expectations and demands of a new reality: what’s good for society is good for business.

As Fortune reported recently, more than a few CEOs are now “more willing to speak out on controversial social and political issues;” some leaders at the helm of progressive brands like PayPal, Intel, and Lyft have in recent years not only taken stands on selective social issues but changed company policy to connect company values with to shifting opinions and beliefs.

Still, many leaders cannot or simply will not waver from old business norms—specifically, the expectations that government, not companies, should address and tackle social issues. Not necessarily because they’re blind to complex issues like diversity, equity and inclusion, and voting rights but because they haven’t been able to reconcile both the philosophy and logic of capitalist economics, as Milton Friedman explained it in the last century. And do so with genuine, not performative, expressions of social responsibility.

For an elevated CMO, the C-suite’s “new utility player” as we reported in the first of our series of articles on the new norms of executive leadership, this moment presents a unique opportunity to serve and support his/her/their CEO and other members of executive leadership by designing new ways of connecting the social to business in this still-uncharted reality.

And before said reality leaves present-gen leaders behind.

Words followed by deeds

Once upon a time, a CEOs’ greatest tool was the language of obfuscation. Secrecy and privacy of a company’s top leader created an aura of control and power; decisions were made almost exclusively and unilaterally on the golf course or at the dinner table

Before the digital age, a CEO had limited inputs – and a certain degree of control over – predictable outcomes. Now, information and inputs to consider in decision-making at the C-suite level are seemingly infinite.  As such, sticking one’s digital head in the digital sand on everything from climate change to voting rights, whether through avoidance, obfuscation or silence, bespeaks of indifference or ignorance (or both) at a company’s highest levels.

On the other hand, if a company assumes a hastily conceived position that smacks of the performative, then it’s “let fly the rotten tomatoes!”

But the days of lip service and “let’s not and say we did” are over; the pandemic and technology made sure of it.

Part of the challenge – a big part – is understanding how, when, why, and where to have the conversation. Rare is there alignment between what is communicated one-on-one and in confidence over an almond milk latte at the nearest coffee bar, and what is expressed publicly in the conference room in the presence of executive and senior leadership, and peers.

The same goes for external comms – maybe the most effective press release isn’t a press release at all. It’s a proclamation AND a manifestation through deeds. 

Or, said another way, its words with acts.

Whatever a company does, whatever public position it takes or doesn’t take on a social issue, it must be willing to face and accept the fact that it’s going to make some group or groups of actors unhappy. That’s actually OK, if a CEO means exactly what he/she/they declare publicly; backs it up with swift, decisive action; and is willing to explain to clients and employees the reasons for the company’s behavior.

Most rationale actors in a corporate setting can live with said unhappiness; but no one likes to be left in the dark.

Or worse, deceived.

At such moments, the CMO can step in and help the CEO connect a social position to a company’s strategy and long-term goals; and in a way that makes sense for existing and future employees. He/she/they can use data and insights through a marketing lens to inform and influence discretionary behavior of employees; motivate them through new sets of expectations, and imaginative performance goals, thereby being a friend to the CHRO, too.

Why? Any CHRO worth his/her/their salt knows that talent is an asset on the balance sheet; and companies do well when said asset trades at a higher value.

Working together, the CMO and CHRO can, for example, design incentives for brand ambassadorship for all organization talent; confronting social issues and framing them in ways that make employees believe that they’re about something bigger than the product or service; bigger than even the company itself. (Think of a famous business school case study of a hot dog company that proclaimed its mission was to head-off a protein shortage in the future.)

Even if it’s simply an invitation to be a part of a larger conversation about the issue—in fact, corporations that convoke assemblies to discuss issues openly and honestly with actors of all ilks may find themselves in the best possible position of all if there is one in such highly charged times: the convener.

Such initiatives can have a direct, positive impact on employee efficiency and effectiveness, which are absolutely critical to a company’s growth, and, as important, to raising the value of the talent asset. These assets are  welcomed, not shunned, from the table in a corporate-sanctioned forum and encouraged to discuss the most important, meaningful, and complex social challenges of our time.

Coming up next in our executive leadership series: The Virtue of Accountability

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