On November 18, 2015
One weekend, not long after I started out in public relations, I went to watch a good friend go skydiving. There was a storm brewing but the company took a risk and decided to go ahead with the jump. While I waited for my friend to land on the beach, the panicked owner of the...
On November 16, 2015
When all sense of humanity seems lost, a hashtag emerges and from a moment of fear and vulnerability, comes an infinite supply of solidarity and support. It is amazing that a simple keyboard key- two sets of parallel lines, perpendicular to one another- has such immense power in such a power hungry world. The devastating...
On November 10, 2015
As I sat in the meeting, I heard the words ‘This is an important issue to our members. We need to adopt an innovative approach to achieve the best possible outcomes for them.’ So we drafted an innovative strategy, based on and tested through focus group research with the stakeholders that we needed to influence....
On September 29, 2015
Every crisis team needs a good leader but sometimes this is the person you least expect. A crisis simulation begins and like clockwork the group turns to the most senior staff member – their CEO – for direction and control. Without question, the CEO adopts the position of crisis team leader. There is no discussion...
On September 15, 2015
‘We need a style of leadership that explains the challenges and opportunities. A style of leadership that respects people’s intelligence and explains the issues. We need advocacy, not slogans’, said Malcolm Turnbull as he announced his leadership challenge. And so the gauntlet has been laid down. Will the communication skills of Malcolm Turnbull be able...
On September 8, 2015
What do you do when the rats start to abandon ship? Is this a sign the ship is sinking or has it sprung a repairable leak? We are currently working on an interesting incident that has demonstrated the fragility of the organisation. Having done the wrong thing, and then been discovered, the small organisation went...
On August 27, 2015
A CEO did a bad, bad thing. The board immediately investigated and found that there was enough evidence to dismiss him. The chair confronted the CEO and he offered his resignation. The board accepted and the job was done. Or maybe not. What is the message for staff, clients, regulators, funders and others? Perhaps it’s...
On August 19, 2015
I just don’t get where we have gone wrong. What motivates people to kill and injure hundreds of people? Thailand, Syria, Iraq, Kenya, America and the list could go on. I am no expert in foreign politics but it seems to me that our society is degenerating. We seem to have lost our connectedness, our...
On August 10, 2015
The day after I wrote a blog about a feeble apology from Jon Faine (after his interview with the lawyer of a bullying victim) a letter from Scotch College came across my desk. It was a stark comparison. I wanted to congratulate the school for what I think is a genuine and heartfelt apology. Why...
On August 3, 2015
To state the obvious; effective and efficient communication during a crisis is an absolute imperative. It is essentially what underpins the safety of people, the ability to protect the strength of your stakeholder relationships and the difference between coming out of a crisis with your reputation intact, or not. Crisis teams need to be able...