By Howard Fencl, Hennes Communications – Blame your mom and dad. From day #1, we’re all taught that it’s polite to answer questions when we’re asked. Answer your parents’ questions. Answer your teacher’s questions. Answer your boss. So, our knee-jerk reflex when we wind up doing an interview with a reporter? Dutifully answer the questions. […]
By Thom Fladung, Managing Partner, Hennes Communications, and Terry R. Derden, Chief Legal Advisor, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Idaho One of the worst phone calls for any sheriff or chief is learning they have an officer down or that an officer took someone’s life. Most law enforcement executives have a solid plan for the immediate […]
By Bill George for Harvard Business School – The cover of last January’s Harvard Business Review featured the subhead, “When it’s OK to fake it till you make it.” “Faking it” is the antithesis of authentic leadership. Following this advice is the most likely path to failure as a leader. You cannot act like a leader […]
By Edward Segal for Forbes – News that England’s National Health Service said that it will establish war rooms to help prepare for and respond to the impact of the coming winter underscores the important role the command centers can play in managing crises. “These centers will be expected to manage demand and capacity across the entire country by […]
From our friend and colleague, Richard Levick, CEO of Levick, a thoughtful piece that we hope you’ll find worthy of a read and a pass-along to friends. If you don’t stick to your values when they’re being tested, they’re not values — they’re hobbies.” – Jon Stewart The Corporate Social Compact If we have learned […]
By Tiffany Pham for the ASA Institute for Risk and Innovation American citizens in the Vietnam war era first witnessed–via journalism and televised news–the realities of war, much to their horror. But in the context of modern warfare, social media now competes with these “filtered” mediums. Rather than being used solely to relay news and […]
By Arthur Solomon for PRNEWS Books about mishandling PR crises often include sagas about Boeing, Wells Fargo, Volkswagen, the tobacco industry and BP. An accompanying chapter should include how sports mishandles PR crises. The National Football League (concussion denial, players and owners involved in abusive behavior with little punishment) should get the longest segment. It has had enough crises to enlarge the […]
By Seth Arenstein for PRNEWS Give props to Page (Arthur W. Page Society) for its just-released report “Stakeholder Capitalism and ESG: A Guide for Communication Leaders.” It’s transparent. “This is meant to be a study guide, not a white paper,” the 58-page vehicle begins. Just in time for Roe v. Wade and a slew of other socio-political issues […]
By Severin Carrell and Jim Waterson for The Guardian The BBC has prepared secret scripts that could be read on air if energy shortages cause blackouts or the loss of gas supplies this winter. The scripts, seen by the Guardian, set out how the corporation would reassure the public in the event that a “major loss of […]
By Howard Fencl, Hennes Communications Uh-oh. You’re plummeting down a rabbit hole. You agreed to give a reporter an interview. You know your topic inside and out. How tough can it be answering a few questions? But the reporter’s line of questioning is coming at you fast and starting to feel…uncomfortable. You stammer over an […]