The Power of Communications During Turbulent Times

Notwithstanding the ongoing shocks from the war in Ukraine, the pandemic, and now rapidly slowing global growth, C-suite executives still have an intense focus on the longer-term impacts for the business. Communications play a pivotal role in the strategy for ensuring business expansion even through the most turbulent of economic and geopolitical waters.

In times of crisis, communications cadence and content is vital to all stakeholders. Create plans for what will happen next centered on your purpose and your corporate strategy but also shape your organization and processes so that are ready to react quickly to what you cannot plan for.

The biggest challenge for external communications is the issue of rising prices. Communicating the story to your customers is one to be handled carefully but one where honesty and transparency is the key to preserving trust.

CEOs believe the coalescence of regional blocs will present strategic challenges in the future, so scenario planning should begin now. This will have implications on those businesses that operate globally. Think about how you might structure your teams, how you build and sell your brands, and how you manage your communications in a world that is more divided economically.

For a deeper dive on how CEOs and other members of the C-Suite view the role of communications during times of extreme volatility, war and risks, see C-Suite Outlook 2022 Midyear Survey: Implications for Marketing and Communications Leaders and C-Suite View of Volatility, War, Risks, and Growth for Global Business.