Jan 25 by Virgil Scudder
Barack Obama is running for president. Mitch Daniels isn’t. It’s too bad. Last night’s State of the Union address by the president, and Daniels’ response on behalf of the Republicans, was the most intelligent exchange of political views we’ve heard in a long time.
For starters, both are good speakers. Obama projects energy and passion; Daniels conveys seriousness and sincerity. As a result, each enjoys a high level of credibility.
President Obama was at his best last night. He focused on the key issues of our time—economic disparity, joblessness, and the need to come together as a nation. He used all of the techniques of a good public speaker—voice rising and falling, changes of pace and volume, and effective pauses at the right times. He both criticized and challenged the Republican-dominated Congress, often saying “send me a bill that does (fill in blank) and I will sign it immediately.” In other words, stop blaming the president for everything and take some positive action as a Congress. (more…)
Jan 25 by Virgil Scudder
The most challenging role of the night had to be that of John Boehner.
As speaker of the House, Republican Boehner had to sit behind the president, in constant view of the cameras, and look interested in what the chief executive was saying. Since Boehner and Obama agree on very few things and have been unable to work out a satisfactory relationship, Boehner essentially needed to put on a non-committal poker face for the more than one hour that the talk lasted. Results were mixed.
At times he carried off the part well. But, he too often was seen with a sour look or a grimace that seemed to say, “When, oh when, can we get out of here?”
Take comfort, John. Even an Oscar-winner actor would be challenged by the role you had last night.
Jan 19 by Ken Scudder
For years clients, colleagues, friends, family members, and employees have been telling Virgil “you should write a book!”
Well, he is.
Virgil Scudder & Associates is happy to announce that Virgil has signed a contract with John Wiley & Sons for a book on CEO communication. Titled World Class Communication: How great CEO’s win with the public, shareholders, employees, and the media, it will be published this fall.
Virgil signs the contract with John Wiley & Sons for his book
Virgil says “I’m writing World Class Communication for several purposes: to help sitting CEO’s improve their performance, to provide useful information for executives who aspire to the top spot, and to aid such professionals as heads of public relations and investor relations as they guide their bosses to greater success.”
We’ll keep you posted as his writing continues and the publication date nears.
Jan 12 by Virgil Scudder
If you claim that BP badly handled its public relations in the wake of the fatal Gulf of Mexico explosion and oil spill in 2010, you’ll get little attention and probably no argument. What is less known, however, and more worthy of current discussion, is the new tack BP is taking.
I was recently struck by a series of excellent television ads promoting tourism in the Gulf states that was underwritten by BP. They featured local tourism officials on location in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana saying the beaches are in great shape and it’s the perfect time to “come on down.” There was no BP-touting; just a simple mention at the end of each commercial saying that BP had paid for it. The ads were both appealing and persuasive. They should produce some real value for the industry and region that BP’s actions, or inactions, damaged.
This is in stark contrast to the self-serving and, in my view, somewhat cynical commercials the company ran in the immediate aftermath of the accident. They featured blue collar BP employees talking about how great and responsible the company was and how important it was to the region. I could hardly bear to watch. (more…)
Jan 10 by Ken Scudder
A few months ago we had the privilege of preparing Bernard Ferrari, chairman and founder of Ferrari Consultancy, for interviews he was going to give promoting his book Power Listening: Mastering the Most Critical Business Skill of All. We learned a lot, to the point that Virgil devoted his “In the C-Suite” column in this quarter’s Public Relations Strategist to Ferrari’s ideas and lessons.
Along with giving management tips on listening, Virgil also analyzes how MF Global, Netflix, Bank of America, and Penn State University did not properly listen, and the disastrous results it had for each. The online version includes a short video of Virgil interviewing Ferrari and discussing listening and its importance.
You can read the article, and watch the video, here.
Jan 9 by Virgil Scudder
Are you wondering what you can do now to prepare for a crisis?
Ken Scudder, VS&A’s vice president, offers some great tips in the current issue of Tactics, the award-winning monthly newspaper of the Public Relations Society of America. The print version is sent to the organization’s nearly 20,000 members, and the online version is viewed by 70,000 unique visitors each month.
Ken’s article is entitled: Be prepared: 10 steps to take now for crisis readiness. His tips are based on his 20 years of experience in helping clients through a wide variety of crises including closings and layoffs, government investigations, and suspected product tamperings. Ken also has designed and conducted crisis readiness programs for a wide range of clients.
In the article, he notes that “companies are not immune to misconduct by employees, the sudden resignation of your CEO, recalls, or natural disasters.” He advises every organization to prepare now to manage every possible crisis.
His tips include the following: identify potential crises now, analyze your company’s state of readiness for them, research your company’s previous crisis record, build the public image of key leaders, schedule media training for principals, and stage crisis readiness simulations.
Ken is an active member of PRSA who serves on the board of directors of its New York chapter and pens the highly-praised scripts for the Oscar-like presentation of the annual Big Apple Awards.
If you have any questions about crisis preparation or crisis handling, feel free to call Ken at 212-627-4400 or via email: ken@virgilscudder.com.
Jan 3 by Virgil Scudder
A lot of companies weren’t ready in 2011, and it’s a good bet that more will be caught off-guard in 2012. Smart PR professionals will be studying the mistakes of others to learn all they can about the do’s and don’ts of crisis management.
One of the best tools available today is PR News’s new Crisis Management Guidebook, a 233 page document that contains articles from scores of experts in the field. Ken Scudder’s bylined article, Lessons from the TEPCO Response: 6 Key Messages to the Media, leads off Chapter 2.
Ken points out: “A catastrophic event tests every single aspect and department of an organization.”
He provides a detailed outline of how Tokyo Electric, known as TEPCO, mishandled crisis communication so badly that the result was outraged media and a government so disgusted that it took over all communication during the disaster.
In a sidebar, Ken provides a checklist of crisis strategies for media relations. It includes steps to be taken internally and externally, how to prepare for a news conference, and who should speak for the company.
This is the second year that Ken has written for the publication.
The book is available here.
Dec 30 by Virgil Scudder
As seen in this picture taken at the Carl Byoir & Associates reunion last September 27, John Budd was ever ready and willing to listen and provide wise counsel, especially to younger professionals who wanted to be the best. Here, he’s engaged in conversation with Lisa Caugherty Hahn, an outstanding former Byoir talent who now has her own agency.
His lively participation in the reunion was a treat to Byoirites who joined the firm too late to have a chance to work with him. But, all of us heard tales of his accomplishments and benefited from his example.
Dec 29 by Virgil Scudder
The public relations world lost a legend this year: John Budd. John died on November 21at the age of 88. A memorial service is taking place today (December 29) on Long Island.
John was described in many ways—crusty, independent, a maverick, and brilliant to name just a few. He always believed in telling it the way it was, whether or not the message was one that would be welcomed by the recipient. According to O’Dwyer’s Newsletter, he was especially critical of many PR people, calling them “courtiers” rather than “counselors.” (more…)
Nov 18 by Virgil Scudder
I’ve heard, and read, a lot of theories lately about why Rick Perry and Herman Cain suddenly went blank in public appearances but I have yet to come across the one that seems most logical to me.
Perry couldn’t remember the third of three Federal departments he intends to abolish if elected president. Cain couldn’t come up with an answer when asked about U.S. policy in Libya.
Why? In a nutshell, neither had internalized the message.
It’s hard to believe the Texas governor couldn’t recall what departments should be eliminated—IF it was his idea in the first place. After all, this is a very serious, if not radical, proposal. My guess is that the policy was created by one of his advisers and he failed to internalize the points.
Cain’s Libya flub may be a case of “Palin’s disease.” Sarah Palin never did her homework on international affairs before running for vice president and she ended up being badly embarrassed by her ignorance. My guess is that Cain, too, is trying to instantly bone up on a lot of previously-ignored international subjects and his brain overheated from the overload.
These theories are a lot more logical to me that deep ruminations on psychology.
Ask yourself—did you ever just freeze up and go speechless when dealing a subject you deeply believed in or knew well? Of course not. I don’t believe they did, either.
