News & views

I was intrigued to see today’s BBC news story about claims of “fear and alienation” and a “toxic culture” at the top of The Co-Op.

The story is based on the leak of a letter sent two weeks ago to the grocery giant’s board. This apparently blows the whistle on a culture of intimidation which applies even to senior managers, who “feel scared to raise concerns about the direction of the business in front of the ...

I’m glad the BBC has apologised to President Trump today about the editing of footage of Trump’s 6 January 2021 speech by its Panorama programme – rightly saying it gave "the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action".

I’m equally glad the Corporation is resisting calls to shell out compensation. With threats of $1 billion in damages, we know who’d have to foot the bill – and Trump doesn’t need our money.

But despite the editorial failing ...

We’ve provided an English local authority with the first phase of communications support for a contentious land project.

The southwest-based borough council is exploring the idea of disposing of a large area of open land. Its plan is to sell the land to a developer which would create hundreds of new homes as well as community facilities, roads and commercial premises. While providing homes for many local people, the proposals are also likely to provoke controversy, with some ...

“I thought I'd just ignore it,” he told me. There are many cases where I’m sure this is absolutely the best policy. Junk mail. A minor insect bite. An insult from someone you don’t care about. But an approach from an investigative BBC journalist isn’t one of them. I was a bit surprised the other day when I first got the call the other day to ...

An interesting study has revealed that too many CEOs feel unprepared to handle a crisis.

The poll of 1,000 global company directors found they recognise the turbulent times facing their business in 2023, but few feel well-placed to handle disruption. Sixty-one percent said they feel unprepared to deal with ...

I'm happy to be cited in a feature out in HR Magazine today about what HR directors should do to help manage a corporate crisis. The article says: "The problem, of course, is no two crises are the same. This is something that some admit ....

I just saw the BBC's interview with Dorset & Wiltshire fire chief Ben Ansell about allegations of a toxic culture in the service. It's clear Ansell had prepared - but it's an instructive example of preparation misapplied!

The BBC's Dan Johnson asked Ansell about an email from a former employee blowing the whistle on ...

I'm pleased to have been quoted by Fortune magazine today on how companies should manage their reputations in the face of attacks from former employees - an article sparked by Prince Harry's allegations against the Royal Family in his new autobiography, Spare!

The Fortune piece says: "Workers often feel too afraid of repercussions to speak out while ...

I took part in a discussion the other day about how companies should manage their reputation in times of crisis. Here's a summarised version of the three questions posed and the answers I gave.

1. How can a company mitigate its reputational risks? When it comes to business crises, there are three phases of reputation management: preparation, response and recovery. The adage that prevention is better than cure applies well to corporate reputation. But, in my experience, too few ...

The latest developments in the Prince Andrew saga have been dramatic. The Palace has stripped him of his Royal titles and says he’ll have to contest the legal case against him as a ‘private citizen’. But two important reputation management points have been largely overlooked. Firstly, many have praised the Queen's decisiveness. Her actions were certainly swift, but ...