I vividly remember the moment when I realized how the killing of George Floyd would impact me professionally, rather than just emotionally and personally.
I had joined a team meeting, in which many of my Comms colleagues were reporting that employees across the globe were asking what the company response was to the Black Lives Matter protests. What followed was a challenging discussion about what accountability or platform we had within the discussion, what we should say and how.
As a team, we were depleted already, from running 24/7 Covid comms to our employees and then this issue arose, an issue that posed big questions both for the organization, but also for us personally. I don’t think we got it right, but I don’t think we were on our own. Because the world had changed…
I’ve spent years responding to issues across the globe: a company has made a mistake, an organization misjudges a public sentiment, or a narrative has been created about how a company reacted and now the story has run away with that ‘truth’. In the years leading up to the pandemic we already lived in a VUCA world, where polarization tore countries in half, spontaneous protests shook continents, and the impact of global warming was already making inequalities starkly visible.
But the pandemic took us from a complex environment, into chaos. Amidst the loo roll battles, the pandemic took us back to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and reminded us how many people already exist at the bottom of that triangle, of the inequalities that pervade our society, leading to important questions being asked about what we’re getting wrong – and many organisations got caught in the crossfire.
The pandemic both united and divided us. We had a shared moment (many moments) of shared pain and fear that transcended geographical boundaries, which provided the opportunity to explore shared values; but our differing experiences also highlighted our differences. Patience ran out on issues that have been causing segments of society pain for years.
Even as we emerge (slowly, somewhat painfully) from the lockdowns that disrupted all of our lives, many argue that we have arrived at a state of BANI: brittle, anxious, non-linear and incomprehensible. And how do leaders navigate this environment? How do public relations professionals advise those leaders when you can’t anticipate the way an issue will turn next?
For the record, I’m glad that we’re having to navigate these societal questions and complexities. For too long, organisations have been able to ‘talk-the-talk’, slap a rainbow flag on their logo and hope for the best. A new, more accountable future for companies across the globe means more effort will go into slowing climate change, solving historical inequalities and forging a better future for humanity.
If you’re interested in learning more about this topic and how you, as a communicator, can you’re your leaders and organisations navigate this environment, sign up to my course: Crisis management in a complex global environment.
Secure your place and enjoy a 15% discount by using the code SUMMERSALE23 on this upcoming course here.