Why Everybody Hates You

Usually on this podcast we talk a lot about the problems to avoid and examples to learn from. We help each other avoid beartraps in order to speed up learning. This episode is a bit different… Daisy speaks to Ariane Vickman, Head of Public Affairs at Starling Bank about the novel experience of working for an organisation with very few detractors. Key takeaways include: - how to use purpose to make...

Daisy talks to Tim Coombes, a carbon markets expert, about why carbon markets matter for reaching net zero and how to use them while protecting your corporate reputation. Together they cover: What we mean when we talk about carbon markets Why the markets had a bad year in 2023 How to use carbon markets effectively to augment your net zero strategy What the reputation risks are and how to mitigate...

Colin Walker from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), talks to Daisy about mis- and disinformation in the world of electric vehicles and how to defend an entire industry from attack. Key takeaways include: The reputational opportunities and challenges inherent in the energy transition The seismic impact that the energy transition may have upon brand loyalty How important it is to ampl...

Daisy interviews Helen Thomas, CEO and founder of Blonde Money -  a risk monitoring consultancy that brings together years of experience in the worlds of Westminster and Wall Street to advise clients on political risk and how it affects financial markets. Key takeaways include: That companies need to be much broader in the types of risks that they monitor, model, and prepare for.  The importance o...

To kick off series five, Alex Vail - Chief Executive at the Data Strategy Alliance, talks to Daisy about starting a new non-profit trade association to help businesses with digital transformation. Expect some sobering statistics on how (un)prepared many businesses are for big data as well as plenty of tips about how to manage major change programs. Key takeaways include:  Data remains a massive ch...

Celia Richardson, Director Of Communications and Audience Insight at the National Trust, talks to Daisy about navigating through political strife, putting audience at the heart of a comms plan, and tips for a successful career in communications. Key takeaways include:  Being a big name, a national institution, isn't all roses and rainbows: yes, the press might take your call but they love to...

Richard Maughan, Senior Director, UK Policy and Public Affairs at Pfizer, talks to Daisy about keeping teams sane during a crisis and how to use the lessons from the pandemic to embed positive change. Key takeaways include:  Collaboration and flexibility are key to progress. If we want to reap the benefits, we need to apply these tools with enthusiasm and experiment with bringing them into areas w...

 A double-length episode with double the reputation geek fun: Reputation coach Daisy Powell-Chandler in conversation with Ed Coke, founder of Repute Associates about how brands can or should respond to the cost of living crisis in a way that builds their reputation. They look at examples of companies taking action to help consumers and distil some advice for brands thinking about how to communicat...

Daisy speaks to Mark Geoghegan, Editor of The Voice of Insurance , about why everybody hates insurers, how to survive after a meteorite strike, and how insurance both requires and feeds a good reputation. We dig into why economies - and countries - need and want insurers and how insurance can speed up the journey to net zero. And then we discuss if you can insure against reputation damage. Find al...

Daisy talks to Imogen Hitchcock, owner of communications agency Beaumont. Imogen helps companies to tell better stories and has a particular expertise in employee advocacy programs and in this episode the conversation is all about why and how organisations should better articulate their work on sustainability.  This episode brings us to the end of our season focused on sustainability and reputatio...

Daisy talks to Dr Adam Read, External Affairs Director for SUEZ Recycling & Recovery UK, about how crucial it is that we talk about waste - and why it is hard to do. Along the way, this discussion touches on Roman waste-management practices, the huge changes in the sector over the past decade, the power of communicating through images, and the need for cross-industry co-operation. And what doe...

Hayley Baines-Buffery, a Director at sustainability agency BRODIE Consulting talks to Daisy about why it matters whether we talk about net zero or carbon neutral, how climate talks have changed over the past decade, and what all of this means for businesses. And what does it all mean for you? Our key takeaways are:  Companies that really look at their impact holistically (for example, B&Q) thi...

Angela Halliday from Sodexo talks to Daisy about how best to measure impact, how to choose what you focus on – and whether customers care.  And what does it all mean for you? Our key takeaways are:  Make clear commitments where you can get some depth and meet those commitments publicly in order to drive impact Don't just measure the easy KPIs - try to measure what matters most to your stakeho...

Georgie Erangey from BRODIE Consulting talks to Daisy about how new human rights is as a concept, what the reputation risks are for companies, and whether there is any upside to getting this right. TLDR; don't do this for the accolades, do it for your conscience and as risk mitigation. Human rights and supply chain due diligence passed swiftly from a novelty to becoming a hygiene factor. You...

Daisy why retail is a lot like working in politics and also offers lessons on leadership - as well as gems on reputation and communication. Five key lessons stood out – three about leadership and two about communications. Let’s start with leadership: Define what you believe in, your starting principles and use them to inform all of your decisions. It will make those decisions easier – because you...

Liz Edwards, Head of Communications at TUI, tells Daisy about repatriating thousands of customers and why IT systems were actually the biggest challenge that TUI faced when Covid hit. This insight into what goes on behind the scenes at a holiday company was totally fascinating.  Some key lessons from Liz: Put the customer at the heart of whatever you are doing. This is an oldie but a goodie. And i...

Beth Hart, Vice President for Supply Chain and Brand Trust at McDonald's UK & Ireland talks to Daisy about how it felt to shut down McDonald's - and the important work that went on behind the scenes so that food did not go to waste. This discussion has it all: how to be a responsible member of a supply chain, the difficulties involved in quantifying trust, and even a cameo by Brexit....

Chris Lowe, Senior Director of Corporate Affairs at Asda talks to Daisy about what happens at a supermarket when a global pandemic hits, how Covid has changed his relationships with MPs, and the innovations he'll be keeping when the pandemic is over. Key takeaways include:  First, be realistic. In many situations the chances of your organization pleasing 100% of your stakeholders may be zero....

Charlotte Holloway, UK&I Government Relations Director at Zoom talks to Daisy about joining a company that is growing at an extraordinary pace, what happens when Prime Ministers use your product and the importance of agency support. Key takeaways include:  Growing fast is hard but exciting and that communication is key to mitigating any growing pains – that puts an extra burden on us as reputa...

Rebecca Park, Managing Director of Corporate Affairs at UK Finance talks to Daisy about the real role of communications professionals, why working in an industry body is more interesting that you might think and, of course, why everybody hates bankers. She also dispenses some excellent advice, including:  One of the most valuable roles we can play is to be the person in the room who identifies and...

Nick Baird, Corporate Affairs Director at Centrica talks to Daisy about how important (and challenging!) it is for businesses to partner positively with government. We discuss how big corporates can speak authentically about climate change and community, and the challenge of communicating about big topics when you are in the midst of constant reorganisations. We also discuss:  Why he moved from go...

Sean O'Meara, founder of Essential Content, publicist and co-author of The Apology Impulse, tells Daisy how the business world ruined sorry and why we can't stop saying it. We talk about why you should think twice before apologising, how to avoid making an awful apology, and what the best apologies include. With lots of horrifying examples and practical tips thrown in. The main lessons?:...

James Frayne, co-founder of Public First, campaign strategist and author of corporate communications primer Meet the People, tells me why no organisation can truly avoid politics these days - no matter how much they may wish to.  We talk about what that means for your communications strategy, how you should structure a communications team, and what to make of the whole 'purpose thing'. ...

Something a little bit different from our usual format. I recorded the first episode of this series - covering diversity and corporate reputation - before George Floyd was killed, catapulting the Black Lives Matters movement into a much wider audience. And so, we talked about the importance of diversity for corporate reputation but we didn’t discuss recent events. It is now three months later and...

In this episode we look at data use, misuse and abuse. Is data morally neutral? Can there be such a thing as too much data? I’ll answer these questions, explore how data capitalism is shaping our world – for better and worse – then take you on a brief gallop through the politics of algorithms and data breaches. To tell you more, I'm joined by three excellent guests: Hellen Beveridge,  Privacy...