The Little Questions

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, UK-based consultants were placed in the national spotlight for ties to Russian entities. The press focused on how consultants in the law and PR for example, had made millions, on the 'Caviar Express' through ties to Russian oligarchs. For many years the PR industry has been accused of having a grubbier side, looking to unduly profit by reputation washing...

Today the Little Questions Podcast has an interview with Mark Kleinman, SKY News' Business Editor. Mark is a well-known and respected business journalist, a columnist for CityAM and winner of the 2021 British Journalism Awards. He's also picked up the London Press Club Business Journalist of the Year award not once, but twice. We ask Mark about his role, his amazing ability to get exclusives and h...

The relationships between a Corporate Affairs Director and the senior leadership of their organisation are arguably the most important they'll manage during their time in the role.  Positioning the CEO or Chair in a positive light is more important today than perhaps ever before. Which means that CADs are responsible not only for keeping business leaders out of trouble, but also advising them on a...

This week, join Apella Advisors' Jenny Scott and Andrew Brown for a fascinating discussion with  Dr Kris De Meyer, director of the UCL Climate Action Unit and neuroscientist at King's College London. On the surface, this is a curious blend of disciplines, yet it is allowing Dr. Kris and his team to explore the whole domain of climate action and specifically how to enable people to change and act f...

With the digital world growing and increasing its domination of our lives, some have for years been calling time on traditional media; Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer once described it as "a dead man walking".   In 2019 digital ad spending overtook traditional ad spending for the first time, and since then the gap has only widened. This matters because the majority of traditional media is funded by ad...

If you get to the end of your career and you've never worked for a firm that has either acquired or been acquired you will very much be the exception.  This week, on the Little Questions Podcast we're talking mergers and acquisitions, or M&A as its often shortened to. M&A can be a great way to improve efficiencies, accelerate growth and create value. But when they fail to produce the desired resul...

There was a time, not very long ago, when communications was thought of as a nice, but not that necessary, soft skill. Thankfully times have changed. We now know that strong internal communication improves employee engagement which is critical to commercial success. Conversely, poor internal comms can seriously damage your business. It's a cascading effect of annoying comms, poor morale, lower pro...

The company and agency relationship should be the perfect embodiment of symbiosis. Mutual productivity for the benefit of all. Happy days! For those working either side of the fence, that's not always the case. The latest Little Questions Podcast considers all the ups and the downs of the relationship: from grumpy clients providing poorly written briefs to agency leaders who disappear after the fi...

On this edition of The Little Questions we're talking to Alison Brittain, the Chief Executive Officer of Whitbread - a company known for owning brands such as Premier Inn, Bar + Block and Beefeater.   Prior to joining Whitbread, Alison was Group Director of Lloyds Banking Group's Retail Division, with responsibility for the Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland retail branch networks, remote / inte...

This week, on The Little Questions Podcast, we look at the art of storytelling in business.  For many years, observers have encouraged corporates to embrace the art of storytelling. To drop the corporate rhetoric and comfort of your slide-ware of choice and tie your idea or vision to an emotion, for that is how you truly persuade. But is it that easy? Can corporates ever really become storytellers...

This episode is all about campaigning.  Historically, the preserve of dictators, generals, crusties, and politicos, campaigning is now a tool that's been adopted by marketers, communicators, and every purpose-led business in the land. Or so it seems.  We explore whether it's a crucial part of modern communications, or just a load of hot air.  There's no doubt that organisations of all shapes and s...

In this episode we dive head first into the pond that is ESG, better known as Environmental, Social and Governance. So what exactly is ESG? The airwaves are full of it, Boardrooms are awash with it, but no-one really knows how to account for it, and we're all having to learn how to talk about it in terms that suit our organisations. We liken ESG to an ECG, the scan that tracks our vital organ to c...

This is a special edition of the Little Questions podcast as we chat with Joe Garner, CEO of Nationwide Building Society. Joe is one of the UK's most respected business leaders and gives us an insight into the world of the CEO. We discuss everything from the ability of a leader to stay grounded, the CEO as a communicator, and on to Joe's first, somewhat humbling, media training session. A fascinat...

How hard is it to say sorry? This week, The Little Questions podcast looks into the world of the corporate apology. If we've done something wrong, or more relevant to our specific discussion, if the firm we represent has messed up, why can't we just get them to say sorry and mean it; and then move on? This week, James Acheson-Gray joins Matt Young and Andrew Brown to tackle this tricky topic. Are...

A panel of industry experts joined us for Little Questions Live in front of a studio audience at the RSA in London. On this special edition of the podcast we discuss the relationship between a CAD and the CEO. The panel were Victoria McKenzie Gould (CAD - M&S), Fiona Thorne (Former CAD - Flutter), Alex Cole (Former CAD - Bupa) and Ed Petter (CAD - BT). This fascinating conversation was chaired by...

Christmas is nearly upon us and in the best traditions of the holiday season broadcasters are gathering up all their best bits from the year and packaging it up into a highlights reel.  We didn't want to miss out on this more affordable form of entertainment, so we've produced our very own Little Questions Podcast highlights. These are our best bits. Our thoughts on everything from the merits or o...

Corporate Affairs is a key driver of an organisation's success, when done well. And done badly, the consequences can be all too, painfully, visible. All team members play a critical role in making sure the function is set up for success, none more so than its leader, the Corporate Affairs Director.    In 2020, Apella's Andrew Brown and Wayne Reynolds from executive search firm Birchwood Knight set...

Today we consider the extent to which we live in a post-truth age. We are quite literally going to talk bullshit, described by Jon Lovett, a former advisor to Clinton and Obama, as "one of the greatest threats we face".  So, the logic goes, we are constantly assailed by partisan rhetoric, industry sponsored research, facile brand messages and spokespeople with their lines that are just true enough...

It's time for some honesty amongst friends. Compared to other corporate functions, comms has never really been particularly good when it comes to measuring and reporting on the value of what we do. For too long we relied on our beautifully designed press cutting books and detailed engagement reports, hoping our Advertising Value Equivalent scores would impress our marketing colleagues.   But the t...

This time we're discussing pitches. Not the dark, viscous residue from tar, or the frantic movements of a ship in high seas but the arduous process that companies use to choose their advisors. They are a (terrible?) feature of our lives , require huge amounts of work from both in-house and agency teams a nd take up a lot of everyone's time. Agencies are often suspicious that pitches are fixed befo...

It's an unusual relationship, the one between the corporate affairs director and the CEO. Aside from perhaps the CFO, you get a lot more time with him or her than any other member of the leadership team. As Aviva CEO Amanda Blanc put it in our last episode, what she values above all else is total, brutal honesty. This can result in a difficult relationship if not managed well, so how do you balanc...

On this edition of The Little Questions podcast we are out on the road to chat to Amanda Blanc, the Group CEO of insurance giant, Aviva. During this wide ranging interview we discuss her views on confidence being contagious; why good CEO's need to be good communicators and what she really wants from a good PR.  Amanda was born and bred in Wales, having grown up in the Rhondda Valley. She started h...

Media training is part of the world we live in these days. We've all seen those car crash interviews, and many of us have been relieved it wasn't our CEO giving the disastrous performance. So many interviews, be they with sports stars, politicians or business leaders increasingly verge on the soporific, but is it the personality, the training or something else that's at fault? No one wants to be t...

"Those who can, do; those who can't, teach" is often unfairly said about educators. And, similarly, about consultants! In the world of comms and corporate affairs, there is a steady exchange of people between consultancy and in-house roles, with some making the transition several times throughout their careers. To what extent is it desirable for people to switch, both for their careers and their e...

We live in woke times. What started as a way to show one's awareness of social and especially racially motivated injustices has itself been culturally appropriated by a myriad of other groups and causes, including big business. Corporate wokery appears to be everywhere.  At Apella, we are pro purpose and have seen first-hand the transformative benefits a genuine desire to do the right thing can ha...