I met an old founder who allowed the media to desยญtroy him.
Many years ago, I got an email about a comยญpany in a severe crisis. The email was sent from a worยญried and conยญcerned famยญily memยญber to the founder and actยญing CEO.
I knew about the comยญpany since the crisis had been plastered all over the news for a few days. I rememยญber readยญing the newsยญpaยญpers, thinkยญing that โthis comยญpany is neck-deep in crap.โ
So, I called the old founder up. He was an older man who starยญted young and built the comยญpany from the ground up. He seemed very conยญfidยญent and not startled by the comยญmoยญtion around his comยญpany; howยญever, he felt he could use proยญfesยญsionยญal help to manยญage the media storm.
A PR colยญleague and I jumped on a plane.
I was feelยญing a bit uneasy about the whole thing. I help organยญisaยญtions comยญmuยญnicยญate betยญter for a livยญing, and thatโs a good reasยญon to get up in the morning โฆ
โฆ but would this be a case of helpยญing evil forces evade whatโs rightยญfully comยญing to them?
According to the media reports, peopleโs lives had been at risk to save money and increase profits. And the old founder seemed dirยญectly implicยญated. But the old founder hadยญnโt offered any comยญments, desยญpite being chased by numerยญous journalists.
I thought about all the defence attorยญneys of the world:
Everyone, even the bad guys, has the right to a solยญid legยญal defence. And weโre all betยญter off for it because it safeยญguards our legยญal sysยญtem and democracy.
Is everyยญone entitled to a rhetยญorยญicยญal defence in the spirยญit of free speech and openยญness? I thought of myself as a defence attorยญney not in the court of law but in the court of pubยญlic opinยญion. It was a romantic idea to make me feel a little bit easier.
Admittedly, I was also excited. Crisis comยญmuยญnicยญaยญtions as a PR pracยญtice can be thrillยญing and emoยญtionยญally powerful.
We arrived at the old founderยญโs home, and the famยญily memยญber who had sent me the email led us upstairs to a makeยญshift conยญferยญence room. The old founder was a no-nonยญsense man; he asked us to lay out our plan for manยญaging the crisis.
Perhaps I had hoped for a cofยญfee first, but as a seniยญor adviser, I know when to get down to busiยญness and disยญpense with small talk.
โFirst,โ I said, โwe must get the facts and estabยญlish trust in our small group.โ
The old founder seemed to appreยญciยญate my openยญer, so I kept going.
โThen, based on facts, we must develยญop a narยญratยญive that works for us. And withยญin that narยญratยญive, we must find a lead. Change the lead, change the story.โ
I conยญtinยญued: โWe will also bring onboard legยญal counยญsel. If thereโs any responsยญibยญilยญity to be taken, we must pubยญlicly get out in front of the issue. This will include speakยญing with the media as soon as posยญsible. Itโll likely be a good opporยญtunยญity to empathยญise and acknowยญledge any pain and sufยญferยญingโโโeven if we canยญnot acknowยญledge any legยญal responsยญibยญilยญity. In any case, we will make sure that you are prepared.โ
The old founder was still calm and colยญlecยญted. I added:
โWhen the silence is broken, weโll need to push for a parยญalยญlel internยญal proยญcess in which your comยญpany takes a series of actions. Breaking the silence and speakยญing with the media will be tough, but speakยญing alone wonโt be enough. We must demonยญstrate that your comยญpany is also doing someยญthing because of whatโs happened. Actions speak louder than words.โ
I felt that I had the floor, so I pressed forward:
โWith the silence broken and your comยญpany takยญing action, our focus will be to ride the wave and make solยญid tacยญticยญal decisions based on sound judgeยญment and conยญstant media monยญitยญorยญing. Itโll be tough, but youโll ride out the worst storm by being pubยญlicly availยญable and accomยญmodยญatยญing. Once out of the immeยญdiยญate storm, we begin restorยญing the brandโs trust.โ
The old founder gathered that I was about done, so he cleared his throat and got ready to say someยญthing, only to be interยญrupยญted by the parยญtiยญcipยญatยญing famยญily member:
She was upset.
And she went on to explain what had happened.
As it turned out, the old founder wasยญnโt guilty of malice. It was an employยญee who had broken the rules by misยญtake. Not for perยญsonยญal profit or gain, just a misยญtake. It could be easยญily proven, too. The employยญee had been loyยญal for decยญades, with only months to retire.
However, the news media had already gone two- or even three full circles, ripยญping the brand and the old founder to shreds. In the eyes of everyยญone readยญing a newsยญpaยญper, the old founder was guilty.
I quickly glanced over at my PR colยญleague, and Iโm sure her thoughts were roughly the same as mine. In my head, it sounยญded someยญthing like this:
โSo, we present evidยญence of the misยญtake and disยญproof any allegยญaยญtions of malice or undue profยญitยญeerยญing; thatโs our new lead. We apoยญloยญgise and comยญpensate those affected, and we fire the employยญee. We estabยญlish new proยญtoยญcols to ensure the same misยญtake can nevยญer hapยญpen again. And then we take it from there.โ
But the old founder, almost as if he was able to read my mind, finally spoke:
โNo,โ he said.
The employยญee who had made a misยญtake was one of the comยญpanyโs first employยญees. The old founder refused to hang this loyยญal coworkยญer out to dry, espeยญcially with only a few months to retirement.
โThe negยญatยญive media would crush him and his famยญily,โ he said.
โBut Iโฆ I can take it.โ
And take it, he did. New securยญity proยญtoยญcols were impleยญmenยญted to ensure that such misยญtakes could nevยญer hapยญpen again. Affected parties were handยญsomely comยญpensated. And durยญing all this, the old founder took full responsยญibยญilยญity, apoยญloยญgised, and retired. He left his comยญpany to youngยญer famยญily members.
And the employยญee who made a misยญtake got to retire with a large celยญebยญraยญtion and a happy family.
The incidยญent was disยญcussed in the news media for quite some time afterยญwards. And everyยญone was sure that the ownยญer was an evil older manโโโeven later when the old founder was freed from legยญal charges.
Maybe the old founder made the right decision. Maybe he didยญnโt. Who knows? It was his decision, not anyยญone elseโs. Ultimately, he took the blame and shame into retireยญment and allowed a new genยญerยญaยญtion to start anew.
For a couple of months, my PR colยญleague and I did what we could to accomยญmodยญate the old founderยญโs dirยญecยญtions. And thatโs that.
So, why am I telling you this story?
When a media story is based on what people have told journยญalยญists, you can nevยญer be 100% sure that what youโre being told is what truly happened. Some accounts are nevยญer challenged.
We would all beneยญfit from rememยญberยญing that thereโs a realยญity behind and beyยญond the reporยญted media narยญratยญive. Not all those porยญtrayed as devยญils are evil. And not all those porยญtrayed as saints are good.
Thank you. Please supยญport my blog by sharยญing artยญicles with othยญer comยญmuยญnicยญaยญtions- and marยญketยญing proยญfesยญsionยญals. Please also conยญsider my PR serยญvices or speakยญing engageยญments.
PR Resource: The Public Apology
The Public Apology
A pubยญlic apoยญlogy is, by nature, an ambiguยญous stateยญment; it ranges from subยญmissive remorse to a cheยญvaยญlierยญโs trope of humbly expressยญing that the outยญcome was all that one could musterโโโdesยญpite best efforts.
โPublic apoยญloยญgies funcยญtion as rituยญalยญistยญic pubยญlic punยญishยญment and humiยญliยญation, rather than forยญgiveยญness, to enforce ethยญicยญal standยญards for pubยญlic speech.โ
Source: Rhetoric Society Quarterly 1Ellwanger, A. (2012). Apology as Metanoic Performance: Punitive Rhetoric and Public Speech. Rhetoric Society Quarterly, 42, 307โโโ329. https://โdoiโ.org/โ1โ0โ.โ1โ0โ8โ0โ/โ0โ2โ7โ7โ3โ9โ4โ5โ.โ2โ0โ1โ2โ.โ7โ0โ4โ118
The audiยญence will not conยญsider anyยญoneโs pubยญlic apoยญlogy until they underยญstand why someone did what they did and how they feel about doing it. This ambiยญguยญity is why sayยญing, โI apoยญloยญgiseโ is nevยญer enoughโโโyou must also express regret and explain yourself.
Anatomy of an Apology
Types of Public Apologies
There are sevยญerยญal difยญferยญent types of apoยญloยญgies to avoid. Unfortunately, as far as pubยญlic apoยญloยญgies go, these types of pubยญlic apoยญloยญgies are widely usedโโโoften with devยญastยญatยญing PR consequences.
From a PR perยญspectยญive, I recomยญmend only one type of apology:
Moving Into the Next Stage
Apart from an honยญest delivยญery, this is what a wrongยญdoยญer must underยญstand about the straยญtegic use of a pubยญlic apoยญlogy as a straยญtegic tool:
Public apoยญloยญgies are not a methยญod of obtainยญing absoยญluยญtion or mitยญigยญatยญing the loss of pubยญlic trust. Forgiveness and trust must be earned sepยญarยญately and in the long term.
A pubยญlic apoยญlogy is a tool to allow the media narยญratยญive to move into the next stage soonยญer rather than laterโโโwhatever that stage might hold in store for the wrongdoer.
Learn more: The Public Apology
PR Resource: Perception Management
Walter Lippmann: Public Opinion and Perception Management
No one bases their attiยญtudes and behaยญviours on realยญity; we base them on our perยญcepยญtions of realยญity.
Walter Lippmann (1889โโโ1974) proยญposed that our perยญcepยญtions of realยญity difยญfer from the actuยญal realยญity. The realยญity is too vast and too comยญplex for anyยญone to proยญcess. 2Lippmann, Walter. 1960. Public Opinion (1922). New York: Macmillan.
The research on perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment is focused on how organยญisaยญtions can creยญate a desired reputation:
โThe OPM [Organizational Perception Management] field focuses on the range of activยญitยญies that help organยญisaยญtions estabยญlish and/โor mainยญtain a desired repuยญtaยญtion (Staw et al., 1983). More speยญcificยญally, OPM research has primarยญily focused on two interยญreยญlated factors: (1) the timยญing and goals of perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment activยญitยญies and (2) speยญcifยญic perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment tacยญtics (Elsbach, 2006).โ
Source: Organization Development Journal 3Hargis, M. & Watt, John. (2010). Organizational perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment: A frameยญwork to overยญcome crisis events. Organization Development Journal. 28. 73โโโ87. โฆ Continue readยญing
Today, our perยญcepยญtions are heavยญily influยญenced by news media, influยญenยญcers, algorithms, and social graphs. Therefore, perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment is more critยญicยญal than ever.
โWe are all capยญtives of the picยญture in our headโโโour belief that the world we have experยญiยญenced is the world that really exists.โ
โ Walter Lippmann (1889โโโ1974)
Learn more: Walter Lippmann: Public Opinion and Perception Management
Annotations
1 | Ellwanger, A. (2012). Apology as Metanoic Performance: Punitive Rhetoric and Public Speech. Rhetoric Society Quarterly, 42, 307โโโ329. https://โdoiโ.org/โ1โ0โ.โ1โ0โ8โ0โ/โ0โ2โ7โ7โ3โ9โ4โ5โ.โ2โ0โ1โ2โ.โ7โ0โ4โ118 |
---|---|
2 | Lippmann, Walter. 1960. Public Opinion (1922). New York: Macmillan. |
3 | Hargis, M. & Watt, John. (2010). Organizational perยญcepยญtion manยญageยญment: A frameยญwork to overยญcome crisis events. Organization Development Journal. 28. 73โโโ87. https://โwwwโ.researchgโateโ.net/โpโuโbโlโiโcโaโtโiโoโnโ/โ2โ8โ8โ2โ9โ2โ5โ9โ6โ_โOโrโgโaโnโiโzโaโtโiโoโnโaโlโ_โpโeโrโcโeโpโtโiโoโnโ_โmโaโnโaโgโeโmโeโnโtโ_โAโ_โfโrโaโmโeโwโoโrโkโ_โtโoโ_โoโvโeโrโcโoโmโeโ_โcโrโiโsโiโsโ_โeโvโeโnts |