CRISIS: SHOULD YOUR LEADERS TALK ABOUT THAT ONLINE?
It really is heart-breaking.
One week on, and it’s hard to imagine how those on the ground are coping after the devastating earthquake in Syria and Turkey.
While response teams continue to do their best amid the compounding grief and chaos, around the world, crises like these always lead to challenging conversations between leaders and comms advisers about the best form of response.
Every leader ultimately faces the same question:
What do I say? How should I respond?
And, in the context of this newsletter, what do I say online?
What can we learn from other leaders’ past actions?
When war first broke out in Ukraine, Phil Szomszor from Brightside Digital Engagement (UK) did some fascinating research into exactly this: How leaders responded online to the news of the crisis.
I got in touch. I wanted to find out more about his findings, which led to a great podcast conversation.
After reviewing the LinkedIn profiles of 50 active CEOs* of large businesses, here’s what Phil found:
✦ 84% continued to post after the invasion began;
✦ 42% posted specifically about the invasion;
✦ 36% published action-oriented posts – i.e. what they were doing as a business in response.
(* Survey of 50 CEOs of cross-sector businesses with turnovers greater than $100m, mostly drawn from Fortune500 and FTSE100 and compiled using Sales Navigator. “Active” meant leaders were publishing more than once a month over the past year.)
A lot of CEOs were publicly called out for being too slow.
Some were praised for their empathy.
Some slammed for a lack of authenticity.
We honed in on bp CEO, Bernard Looney, during our chat as an example of best practice.
A CEO who responded with speed, purpose, authenticity and empathy online. Check out the post below which highlights his original response, but also his ongoing commitment to the issue based on an awareness of stakeholder sentiment.
Our world will always be issues rich.
And leaders will always be sought for their views.
Not for generic ‘thoughts and prayers’ messages, but to model empathy and back up words with authentic action.
Leaders are expected to be visible in tough times. They are expected to lead.
Yet Propel’s own Digital Reputation Report shows only 6% of ASX200 CEOs are very active on LinkedIn, and therefore well placed to do so online.
If your CEO is in this elite minority, you are greatly increasing your ability to build trust and connection with communities when they need you. And you’re reducing your risk exposure by being plugged into conversations about the issues that matter to them.
But, if your CEO is one of the other ‘94%’, start preparing today to ensure you aren’t caught out when the next crisis or disaster comes along – hindsight is always more uncomfortable when the digital masses are reminding you of your mistakes.
Someone I consider an expert in this space, Brunswick’s Craig Mullaney, shared some really practical advice on this recently at the Corporate Director’s Forum in the US.
Here’s my take on his guidance, and what you can do next:
For me, this quote from Dr Kirstin Ferguson AM – taken from our recent podcast conversation – ties it all together perfectly:
“Leadership is a series of moments.”
Every moment counts. Even in dark times, leaders should still lead.
In fact, it is in those moments we need our leaders most.
I know crisis preparation is top of mind for many of you, so if you would like to keep chatting about how best to respond online when it matters most, please drop me a note.
Thanks,
Roge
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