Reimagining corporate affairs

The outside department. The palm greasers. The scam controllers. The ghost busters. These were some informal descriptions for any corporate public affairs department. Internally, it was a department for those who merely needed to be accommodated somewhere.

External hiring, if needed, was normally focused on short-listing an ex-lobbyist with a strong connection in the government and institutions. Corporate Affairs was considered a sidelined department for the core activity of companies. Touché, then the social media era arrived.

Come the millennials. Enter Generation Z. Companies are now being discussed, ripped and torn apart for every little action or reaction by the insta generation.

This has shaken companies into figuring out how to deal with people who can say anything, at any time, about anything with scant regard of the consequences. If you feel this is just another “preachy” write-up, just have look at what the biggies like McDonald’s, Starbucks, etc., are facing in terms of public affairs disasters.

The realisation that companies are no longer just responsible for their customers and their governments took some time to digest. Image building was an exercise that was addressed through marketing departments, HR employee branding and public affairs department. Corporate Affairs was considered to just be the press release releaser.

Corporate board meetings, annual reports and clarifications were the main dishes on their menu. The department was an afterthought that hardly figured in the main strategic thinking business. This “also have” sideline meetup approach to public affairs has and will continue to cost the companies huge bucks.

There are changes in the stakeholders’ list, their relative power and their reach have had a stunning effect in corporate boardrooms. They need to not just respond to the new players in the game but completely redesign the way the company thinks and behaves in regards to reputation management. Some “must do” steps are:

1. Integrate corporate affairs in the strategic planning— Strategic planning is all about ensuring growth and success. Corporate Affairs is all about reputation management.

This area, though verbally recognized as an important business driver, is hardly ever considered in performance priorities in boardrooms and executive meetings.

According to the World Economic Forum, on average more than 25 percent of a company’s market value is directly attributable to its reputation. This is a wakeup call.

If one-fourth of your business is all about managing the company repute, then how come it is relegated to a neglected department that is more of a crisis cell? Most case studies about the role of the corporate department focus on product failures.

The pharmaceutical industry is quoted as an example of corporate affairs. Drug companies sometimes hide fatal side-effects till a scandal breaks out. This example shows the failure of strategic planning at many levels.

Corporate Affairs needs to be the repute builder and monitor, through which the company is able to predict, plan and perform according to the desired reputation management plan.

2. Hire a top class professional— Very few companies really focus on hiring top talent for these roles. Usually, a senior employee who has company seniority but mediocre performance make him ineligible for front positions is awarded this pre-retirement role, or an ex bureaucrat/armed forces person is hired to work through government red tapes.

There needs to be a top-down rethink on the name of the department, the name of the designation and the role as well. It has to be a director level position to get a seat in most strategic meetings. The designation may be of CSO as the Chief Stakeholder Officer.

The role has to measure corporate reputation internally and externally. The real job to be done is an organization-wide system of ownership of contribution to the Corporate Growth that is 25% dependent on its reputation.

There has to be a three-step approach- having a system of identifying all stakeholders near and far who are likely to affect the business positively or negatively. Creating plans aligned to major strategic plans and to anticipate, preempt and counter unfavourable sentiment development in the stakeholders.

3. Develop a CommsTech system— Most companies are very agile in developing internal communication systems using WhatsApp, Facebook, Blogs, Intranets, etc.

However, the need today is to look out and connect far and wide. Corporate repute is a very complicated and sensitive matter that can affect a company even if it is producing the best quality products in the world.

In this fast changing digital world, corporations have to diagnose, detect and develop a due diligence system of the external environment. A sensitivity analysis of international/regional sentiments is required to keep alert to any changes.

CommsTech systems need to use “social listening” to keep a track of public sentiments. You can use social listening to take the pulse of public sentiment. This sentiment is generally expressed in a mix of positive, neutral, and negative terms.

The social listening tools can help you track chosen keywords (such as your brand name, CEO, or specific products) to find out what people are saying. CommsTech tools can include Google Alerts, TweetReach, BuzzSumo, Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer, etc.

4. Develop a value system beyond the corporate corridors— Companies previously accountable to its customers and communities are finding themselves being cornered in every corner of the world.

The war in Gaza has broken the myth that NGOs and activists create some hype but it dies down without any serious damage. This war has had such universal condemnation that many countries have been forced to reconsider their foreign policies.

Europe has refused to toe the US line on the Golan Heights. McDonald’s has openly admitted their sales are badly impacted by the public boycott. Their corporate repute has suffered a dent. Previously core values of a company were mostly an internal matter that were used to make lofty statements.

However, the public called out for their values of “integrity” that states “we do the right thing”. The visuals of children shot down by Israel bombing have enraged public all over the world. Thus, the corporate value system can become a big target if it is not adhered to in taking up professed stands.

Public opinion now is boundary-less. A slip of the tongue, a leaked video, a careless tweet, a thoughtless joke, a mindless text can blow away billions in just a click. The antennas of the modern corporate need to be extra sensory. There is no hiding place. There is no breathing space. Get set with not just artificial intelligence but use your emotional and spiritual intelligence to cope with the reactions of a disturbed and demanding global populace.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024