Special Situations

October 26, 2022 by Greentarget

If you’re an executive leader whose organization is facing a current or potential lawsuit, it’s important to consider a very important question. How do you manage the tension between protecting your firm from liability and mitigating a hit to your reputation?

Navigating a litigious event is daunting — and there’s plenty to worry about just preparing for the legal battle that lies ahead. On top of that, a lawsuit can also pose a significant threat to your firm’s public image. And since even the perception of guilt can cause you to suffer losses in valuation and revenue, the reputational risk that accompanies litigation can ultimately cause more harm to your business than the litigation itself.

Complicating this further, your legal team will tell you to keep quiet and avoid saying anything that could damage you in court. But your PR firm should insist that it’s crucial to get ahead of negative blowback and proactively communicate with your audience.

Here’s why you should avoid adopting an overly conservative response — and five strategies to communicate effectively in the midst of a legal crisis.

Why You Need an Effective Comms Strategy When Facing Litigation

Whether your firm is innocent or guilty from a legal perspective, staying silent in response to an attack on your firm’s image is not a good option. Why? In the absence of an official statement from you, your audience is much more likely to accept someone else’s narrative — or create one of their own.

Academic research bears this out. According to William Benoit’s Image Restoration Theory, “The important point is not whether the business is in fact responsible for [an] offensive act, but whether the firm is thought to be responsible by the relevant audience” (emphasis added).

More simply put, perception is reality. So even if (or perhaps particularly if) you’ve done nothing wrong, it’s essential to communicate your side of the story to your audience.

How Good PR Enabled a Healthcare Company to Gain Market Share

I saw the importance of managing the narrative around litigation first-hand when I represented a healthcare company that had recently acquired a new technology. When they attempted to break into their competitor’s market, the competitor promptly sued them for patent infringement in several countries.

Initially, my client’s IP lawyer persuaded them to stay silent. But the competitor was relentless, releasing well-crafted statements after every milestone decision in court. It spun every decision in its favor. As a result, my client’s sales team encountered significant resistance in the field.

Further, the client was a publicly traded company, and its stock prices came under pressure as the competition persisted with its full-court press.

The tide turned when the client’s executive leader stepped in. He understood that even if his organization won the legal battle, it could still lose in the court of public opinion. That meant their business’s very viability was on the line — and he knew it was important to speak out.

So we set out to beat the competitor at its own game. We collaborated closely with the client’s legal team to create scenario plans for every lawsuit in each of the several countries where active litigation was underway. We charted out every possible outcome for each milestone in every jurisdiction. We drafted a press release for every outcome that would relay our point-of-view into the marketplace as soon as each milestone was achieved.

This proactive, well-timed strategy enabled the client to maintain its customer base and eventually preserve the market share it had taken from its competitor. Thanks to executive leadership who understood the need to balance legal and reputation risk, the comms and legal teams were able to work collaboratively. Together, they addressed the compelling issues facing the company beyond the courtroom.

5 Steps to Manage Your Firm’s Reputation During Litigation

Protecting or restoring your firm’s image as a result of litigation will take a serious concerted effort on the part of your internal team. And though a partner like Greentarget can do much of the heavy lifting to facilitate this process, your Executive Committee members, legal counsel, and other influential figures will need to come together to craft your PR response.

This will require you to take five crucial steps.

1. Conduct Scenario Planning to Plot Likely Outcomes

High-profile, complex litigation can last for months, if not years. Therefore, as we saw in the example above, one of the most important things you can do is put strategies in place to minimize the impact of ongoing negative press.

To think through every likely scenario, ask questions like:

What are all the possible outcomes we may need to address?
How severe is the reputational threat of each outcome?
How could each scenario potentially unfold?
How should we respond to each scenario?

Finally, you’ll need to gather any data or supporting information required to inform the appropriate course of action in response to each scenario.

2. Prioritize Your Audiences

The details of your litigation may not affect — or even interest — every segment within your audience. Knowing exactly who you’re talking to is crucial in getting the right message across at the right time. Therefore, it’s important to tailor your response to the audience members who truly need to hear it.

Consider:

What audiences have the potential to be impacted?
Which audiences will be most affected?
What is the chain of influence within the audience environment?
How large is the gap between current and desired perceptions within each audience segment?

Then, develop concise, quotable, factual messages based on each audience’s needs. Use supporting details, analogies, metaphors, and other storytelling devices to capture their attention and foster empathy for your message.

3. Determine Which Communication Platforms to Use

Good communication plans are customized based on your audience’s needs. In the same way, it’s important to deliver your message using the mechanisms they are familiar with or accustomed to.

For example, you might choose to email your current clients because that’s how you normally communicate with them. Employees might expect to hear from you in an interactive town hall setting. But your investors or other key stakeholders might need to meet with you one-on-one.

Managing your firm’s reputation is too important to simply issue a one-size-fits-all message using your largest platform. Personalization is the name of the game.

4. Identify and Prepare Appropriate Spokespeople to Deliver the Message

It’s also important to consider who should communicate your message to each segment of your audience. As an executive leader, you might be the best person to talk to the media or communicate with your board or other influential stakeholders. But there may be other spokespeople in your organization who would be more effective at reaching certain audiences.

No matter who you choose to speak on your organization’s behalf, make sure they are prepared to master high-pressure environments. Greentarget can provide coaching to ensure each spokesperson knows how to:

Deliver key takeaways first
Distill important points into memorable soundbites
Block unwanted questions and maneuver the conversation back to your desired talking points
Stay calm and poised when fielding difficult questions

Just remember: Your choice of spokesperson is also a message. Carefully think through how each audience segment will feel about hearing your message from your chosen representative.

5. Put a Rapid Response Team in Place to Fill In Any Gaps

There are natural news events built into any litigation (e.g. filing of the complaint; subsequent motions; the verdict). In the scenario planning phase, you created a planned response for each one.

Still, unforeseen situations are bound to arise. And when they do, it’s vital to have a team in place that’s equipped to respond quickly.

Your rapid response team should actively listen and monitor the situation at all times. By having an ear to the ground, you can stay ahead of any curve balls potentially coming your way.

Bring PR and Legal Counsel Together When Facing Litigation

Although PR and legal counsel approach the challenges of litigation from opposite sides, they ultimately want the same thing: to protect your firm from harm. Since lawsuits typically stem from — or result in — a reputational crisis, your PR strategy and your legal strategy must be linked.

Staying silent in the midst of a crisis is rarely the best option, but you also don’t want to say the wrong thing. To that end, crafting an effective communications strategy in response to high-profile litigation undoubtedly requires expert guidance and support.

That’s why it’s essential to surround yourself with experts who’ve navigated these challenging circumstances before. Greentarget has helped numerous clients direct a smarter conversation throughout the course of litigation. We’d love to help you, too. Just reach out.

September 28, 2022 by Greentarget

Moments after the Supreme Court announced its landmark Dobbs v. Jackson decision, Ropes & Gray’s chairwoman Julie Jones released a heartfelt statement. In it, she shared her personal and professional reaction to the seismic shift the decision represents.

Jones acknowledged the differences of opinion her internal stakeholders held on the decision while openly articulating her dismay regarding the reversal of Roe v. Wade. She also made her firm’s position clear, saying, “There will be many opportunities for those interested to contribute on a pro bono basis to the protection of health care rights for women, a cause which Ropes & Gray will continue to champion.”

Jones’ full statement is powerful and authoritative. But from a PR perspective, it’s not so much what she said that’s particularly noteworthy. It’s the fact that she was poised to respond in a meaningful way that sets her apart from the majority of her peers.

More than ever, the professional service firm’s executive committee is called upon to make decisions regarding issues that don’t directly impact their business, or participate in narratives that have not required their participation in the past. Many of these issues and narratives are fraught with emotional risk for certain stakeholder groups, requiring abundant empathy and a strong understanding of their audience. For these reasons, executive committees should consider engaging directly with a PR firm that can provide objective guidance in this new landscape. Here are five ways engaging a strong PR resource can help an executive committee navigate the special situations that are heading its way with greater frequency.

1. Know When and How to Speak Out on Social Issues

We’ve said it before. In today’s world, social concerns are business concerns. And that means your firm can’t afford to sidestep the hot-button topics your audience cares about.

That doesn’t mean you need to speak out about everything that’s happening in the world. But it does mean you should carefully examine your values and develop unique points of view on the issues that matter most to your firm and your stakeholders.

For Julie Jones, that meant crafting a statement about Dobbs even before the decision was final. For other firms, it might mean developing positions of authority about tax reform, ESG principles, or climate change.

Whatever the case may be, a good PR firm can help your executive committee anticipate what’s approaching on the horizon. That way you won’t be left scrambling to respond after another firm has beat you to the punch.

2. Protect Your Firm’s Reputation in Times of Crisis

It can be difficult for any leader, no matter how experienced, to know the best way to handle a crisis. That’s especially true if the crisis in question poses a threat to the firm’s reputation.

Some accept an unwarranted ding to their firm’s public image for fear of making the situation worse. Others try to curtail the damage by minimizing or downplaying their firm’s wrongdoing or missteps. Neither end of this spectrum demonstrates the authenticity and vulnerability that a difficult PR scenario requires.

That’s why PR counsel is so important in the heat of the moment. We advise clients on how to respond to difficult situations with empathy for their audience. Keeping your audience’s concerns, questions, and needs at the forefront of your crisis communication plan is the crucial first step toward moving beyond the eye of the storm.

3. Communicate Effectively During Leadership Transitions

Executive transitions — particularly at the most senior level — are news events that are certain to attract the public’s attention. As such, it’s critically important to communicate clearly with clients, stakeholders, and the public before, during, and after key executive changes.

But many executive committees don’t take time to plan for transitions before they happen. And without clear succession plans in place and solid communication plans to back them up, executive committees can miss valuable opportunities to properly leverage the moment when the time comes to announce a transition.

Working with a PR firm before leadership transitions are even on the table enables your executive committee to:

Craft compelling institutional narratives about where the firm has been and where it’s headed in the future.
Define and articulate your firm’s unique value proposition, which can become the common thread that connects an outgoing leader to an incoming one.
Capture and preserve the institutional memory and knowledge of key leaders before they depart.

Successful leadership changes are carefully planned and expertly communicated. And the best way to ensure your firm experiences a seamless transition is to consider how your audience will view the relationship between the past and the future well in advance.

4. Make Informed Decisions About Client Representation

Your executive committee should engage in healthy debate regarding which clients to represent and which to pass over. That’s particularly vital in the age of cancel culture. It’s become increasingly common for individuals and community advocacy groups to access client lists and pressure firms to reconsider their affiliation with controversial individuals or businesses.

A PR partner can help executive committees consider questions like:

Will representing this client contradict — and therefore undermine — our stated values?
Is this engagement likely to invite threats to our reputation? And if so, are the short-term gains worth the risk?

By engaging a PR firm to help you consider these and other questions, your executive committee can shape a smarter, more strategic process around client selection.

5. Communicate Transparently, Especially With Internal Stakeholders

Two decades ago, the Sarbanes Oxley Act was passed to increase transparency related to corporate governance practices. As a result, corporate boards sought out PR representation to help them manage accurate, transparent disclosures that their public shareholders and other stakeholders could understand and accept.

Executive committees at professional services firms should take a page from this playbook as they develop internal communication strategies.

Why? During the pandemic, your employees became accustomed to receiving frequent, transparent, and open communications. They felt they were kept in the loop about rapidly changing scenarios and circumstances. They saw a different side of executive leaders when children, pets, and spouses made unexpected cameo experiences during even the most important meetings and calls. And they continue to crave — and yes, expect — transparency about the decisions you make on behalf of the firm.

A good PR firm knows how to help leaders demonstrate transparency, openness, and authenticity when communicating to (and eliciting feedback from) their employees.

Don’t Neglect Your Executive Committee’s Unique PR Needs

The executive committee is responsible for stewarding the firm’s wellbeing while simultaneously charting its course for the future. This important work shouldn’t be done in a vacuum, or an echo chamber. A strong PR resource can provide insight into the audience that is necessary to craft a thoughtful and authentic response to any number of newly urgent and risky issues.

Of course, the best time to engage a PR firm is before you need one. So even if the skies are currently clear at your firm, let’s talk.

August 11, 2022 by Greentarget

Amidst the Great Resignation, companies increasingly face disruption from the mass exodus and acquisition of employees. The departure of public relations and marketing leadership can prove especially difficult, given their handle of your company’s communication strategy – involving both publicity and reputation management.

Though this period of staffing transitions is poised to persist, it doesn’t require the derailment of your company’s marketing and communications plans. Involving your external PR firm during the off/onboarding process is a great way to keep your communications momentum going.

August 1, 2022 by Greentarget

If your firm is facing a crisis that’s about to make headlines, your first instinct is probably to try to make the story go away. That’s understandable. No one wants bad press or to see her or his firm’s name dragged through the mud.

But you can’t stop reporters from doing their jobs. They are going to tell your story regardless of your feelings about it. And if you try to kill the narrative, your efforts could cause more reputational harm for you and your firm than the bad news itself.

As a senior leader, it is up to you to calmly guide your firm through the crisis with honesty, transparency and humility. There may be no way out, but there is a way through. And in our experience, the way through is eased by mindful appreciation of certain things that aren’t commonly found in your typical crisis playbook.

Here are the seven truths you should remember when the next crisis hits.

1. The Press Coverage Is Going to Be Bad. You Can Only Make It Less Bad.

If a reporter asks you to provide a comment for a story about a crisis at your firm, you can’t make the story go away, turn it from negative to positive, or avoid the likely ding to your reputation. The coverage is going to be bad. But you may be able to exert control over how bad it is by:

Giving the reporter an interview. As counterintuitive as it may feel, now is not the time to shy away from the spotlight. Instead, engage skillfully with valid arguments and counterpoints that provide context for your side of the story.
Helping reporters get it right. Credible journalists want to be fair and accurate. Give them context and information that will enable them to separate fact from fiction.
Communicating directly with your audience. No matter how many people hear the bad news that’s about to break, remember: The world is not your audience. Spend the lion’s share of your energy communicating directly with your employees and clients and other stakeholders who matter most.

2. You’re Going to Feel Differently About This Crisis in Three Months.

So the press coverage was bad. You’re embarrassed and morale at your organization is low. When facing such a scenario, it may feel like the stigma will last forever. But Wells Fargo is still making loans. United Airlines is still flying planes. And you can still pick up a Whole30 Lifestyle Bowl, with double protein at Chipotle in your brand new Volkswagen. These companies worked through significant threats to their reputation and you will too. The way you respond to the crisis will influence how long it takes for you to rebound. You need an authentic mitigation strategy and effective communication plan to regroup and redirect.

3. Your Default Corporate Statement Will Cause Eyes to Roll. This Is the Time to Be Authentic and Vulnerable.

In response to bad press, your lawyers and advisors will want you to release a statement that shields your firm from liability. Chances are it will sound overly formal and stilted, not address the underlying issue, and sound nothing like anything a human being would actually say. If you want to repair the reputational damage a PR crisis can cause, resist the urge to hide behind the pat holding statement.

Moments of crisis require executive leaders to respond with transparency and accountability. Your employees, clients, and other stakeholders want to know you genuinely care about addressing the underlying problems that brought your firm to this situation.

If you need to dispute certain details in the press coverage or the degree to which the organization is responsible, you can do that. (See no. 6, below.) But do so while expressing sincere regret for any missteps that occurred on your watch. Above all, communicate empathy and concern for anyone who was harmed or affected by the events in question.

4. Set Your Ego Aside. You May Be Embarrassed, but This Is Not About You.

Sharing statements that dodge accountability is not the only way to undermine effective communication. Your own ego and the desire to avoid personal embarrassment can also get in your way. A reporter’s questions are rarely ad hominem attacks. Even if they are, taking them personally risks clouding your judgment. To address the issues at hand, your vulnerability and willingness to listen are more effective because they are disarming.

5. If Something Is Broken in Your Firm, Fix It.

Good things can come out of even the worst situations — but only if you’re willing to do the hard work of repairing what’s broken. To that end, don’t waste the opportunity this crisis affords. As an executive, you have the power and responsibility to get to the bottom of what’s wrong.

Some problems are easier to fix than others. But even if you discover systemic issues, don’t give up until you unravel them. Ask your employees, stakeholders, and investors to help you identify and name your organizational shortcomings. And empower these same people to help you solve them.

Once you’ve done everything you can to address and repair the situation, communicate the steps you’ve taken with the press and with your internal and external stakeholders.

6. You’re Allowed to Punch Back if It’s Warranted.

You should do everything in your power to remedy situations for which your firm is responsible. But if a reporter assigns blame to you for things out of your control — or treats you with blatant unfairness — you should absolutely address it.

Do your due diligence first. Make sure you fully understand the situation and that you have your own facts straight. But then feel free to go on the record and dismantle the opposition’s arguments using clear, to-the-point communication. Don’t accept an unmerited hit to your reputation. And enjoy the warm feeling of satisfaction that this will deliver!

7. You Need to Take Care of Yourself.

Leading an organization through a reputational crisis is not easy. The potential for overwhelming stress and exhaustion can’t be overstated. You need to take care of yourself in order to handle the situation in the best way possible.

Think about the fundamentals that you need in order to stay focused and productive on a normal day. Do you typically run a few miles every morning? Write in your journal to keep yourself accountable to your goals? Eat a healthy diet full of fresh fruits and veggies?

It’s tempting to forgo selfcare and other wellness routines during stressful situations. The “all hands on deck” mentality can even make you feel guilty for spending time on yourself. But all the added pressure and stress make it more important than ever to double down on the fundamentals so you can continue to function at peak performance.

Your organization needs you to be at your sharpest to see it through to the other side of the crisis. So give yourself opportunities to take a break from the unrelenting news cycle and focus on the people, places, and pursuits that bring you joy. Doing so will help you carry the heavy burden of leading a firm through a high-stress season.

The good news is you don’t have to navigate this crisis alone. Greentarget has developed effective PR strategies for clients facing a variety of special situations. We’d be happy to help you, too — just reach out.

April 27, 2022 by Diana Dixon

Employee turnover is a disruptive force that can quickly upend your communications department’s best-laid plans. This was true even in pre-pandemic times when it was normal for marketing and communications professionals to seek out new opportunities every two to five years.

But in the midst of the Great Resignation, the reality is even starker. According to a report from PwC, 65 percent of workers say they’re looking for a new job, and 88 percent of executives are noticing a higher level of turnover than usual. Chances are your team will be impacted, too.

You can’t afford to let employee departures slow your company’s momentum when it comes to marketing and communications, especially in this era of rampant noise. The last thing you want is for your executive team to experience a disruption in the normal level of service you provide or for your company’s brand to take a reputational hit.

Leaning on your external public relations firm just might be the best move you can make to keep your communication strategy moving forward in the midst of employee transitions. To that end, here are four things a strong PR partner can do to help you weather the offboarding/onboarding process.

1. Handle the Day-to-Day Details of Your Communications Program

As you’re well aware, communications departments juggle myriad details every day. Press releases, media outreach, internal comms, website updates, award submissions, media mentions, etc. — there’s always something in the works. And when the people who typically handle these tasks depart from your company, one of two things will happen.

You’ll get bogged down by the “tyranny of the urgent” and neglect the big picture communication needs of the business. Or you’ll focus on high-level strategy while the day-to-day details fall through the cracks. Neither situation is tenable.

As a communications leader, it’s crucial that you attend to the strategic business needs of your company.

So, delegating the day-to-day tasks to a PR partner frees you up to do the work only you can do. We saw this play out recently when a client’s entire comms team turned over at the same time. Greentarget stepped in and kept every plate spinning until the new team was in place and up to speed. Meanwhile, we kept the CMO unencumbered so she could continue moving the marketing and business development strategy forward at the executive level.

2. Retain and Impart Your Company’s Historical Knowledge

Every time an employee leaves, they take institutional knowledge and memory with them. And no matter how competent and skilled your new hires are, they simply don’t know what they don’t know. It will take them a minimum of 90 days to get the lay of the land and begin executing those tasks their predecessor left behind. But in truth it can take much longer than that to figure out the nuances of your particular culture.

That’s time you don’t have. When working with executives,reporters, and other important stakeholders in your business, your company needs your team to communicate effectively on its behalf — with no gaffes or missteps along the way — from day one. And to navigate industry and office dynamics without a hitch, your new hires need access to the written and unwritten information about your company.

Preserving this valuable institutional knowledge is one of the most important reasons to consider developing a long standing relationship with a trusted PR partner. A PR firm makes it their business to know who your key players are, which clients require special consideration, and what types of sensitive situations you’ve handled in the past, among other things.

To that end, your PR firm can help your team understand:

Your company’s historic impact on (and current standing in) your industry
Sensitive information about your company and/or its client base
Brand standards and messaging guidelines to ensure every press release, media brief, and internal memo reads consistent
Approval processes and conflict-check procedures that should be followed before releasing any external communication
Company preferences regarding certain media outlets or particular reporters
Ongoing sensitive situations, litigation, deals, or other important announcements that might garner media attention

Without insight into the inner workings of your company, your new employees will feel like they’re operating in the dark. Give them a head start and set them up for success by being intentional about imparting institutional knowledge from the outset.

3. Bring Fresh Perspective and Expertise to Your Comms Strategy

Although you want to win the war for talent and avoid employee turnover whenever possible, it’s important to remember that every change is ultimately an opportunity to grow.

Yes, your departing employees undoubtedly contributed valuable skills and insight to your program. But perhaps they also became complacent in certain areas or were resistant to new ideas. That’s normal. Sometimes the only way to move your program forward is to tap into an external perspective that can help you identify the gaps you can’t see on your own.

For example, your PR firm might:

Help you expand your roster of spokespeople to showcase more diverse perspectives or up-and-coming leaders
Spotlight your company’s work in new industries or innovative service offerings
Offer media training to your executive leaders to help them prepare for high-profile interviews
Suggest a new approach to annual happenings like signature events or financial reporting
Head up a salient market research project to establish your company’s authority and intelligence in a particular area
Launch a content audit to determine what is resonating with your key audiences and where it might be time to interject novelty, utility, urgency, and relevance.
Assist in developing a more consistent owned media program to underscore your company’s expertise in your industry

The lesson here is this. Employee turnover doesn’t have to halt your momentum. Don’t put initiatives on hold or abandon them altogether while you focus on hiring. Rely on your PR partner’s expertise to advance and evolve your organization’s communications capabilities.

4. Counsel Your New Comms Team Through Crisis Situations

Communicating effectively in times of crisis is always challenging. It’s even more difficult when you don’t have a trusted PR partner to help you navigate internal and external communication needs. If you’re experiencing turnover while also handling a sensitive PR situation, you need an ally in your corner.

This is particularly true if you’ve recently hired a new leader to take up the mantle of your company’s crisis communications strategy. They will need support to help them manage the situation skillfully, and consistently with how the company has handled similar situations in the past.

Greentarget has helped several new PR leaders onboard while facing difficult scenarios at the very start of their tenure. Without a steady guiding hand and historical and cultural context, they may have struggled to effectively and efficiently devise the right strategic communications plan for the company at that time.

There are also two important relationship-building opportunities that may arise from times of crisis. First, this is a meaningful opportunity to lean on the PR firm to help your new, in-house communicators build relationships with key decision makers within the company. And second, with a good PR partner, navigating a crisis situation can set the stage for a strong and lasting partnership.

Communications Team Transitions are Inevitable. Are You Ready?

As a marketing and communications leader, there’s no escaping it. Your team will eventually face staffing transitions.

The good news is you can be ready. By viewing a PR firm as a steadfast partner, you can prepare for the likelihood of natural attrition, manage offboarding and onboarding smoothly, and level up your communication program’s effectiveness along the way.

Interested in learning more about the ways Greentarget can help your team succeed? We’d love to hear from you.