6 months should be the minimum to build a legit program, with course corrections along the way.

Happy best long weekend of the year.

Starting and stopping or trying one off gimmicks are WAY more expensive, less effective, and inauthentic if the goal is to build trust, visibility, reputation, and impact.

Commit to doing it the right way without shortcuts.

This means making good decisions the first time, and being prepared to be outfront when things go astray.

It also means having a structure where the communications lead has a direct reporting line to the CEO.

This the one hill I’m prepared to die on, including the many that I plan ⛷️ on safely. 😉

Social media means every constituency is now a potential investigative reporter with a massive distribution platform.

How do you analogize reputation crises?

If no, just wait until everyone’s back. ❌

Unless you have awkward / bad news to dump into the T-Giving black hole, then have at it. 👍

Now onto serving food at my daughter’s school FriendsGiving lunch.

📰 🦃 🇺🇸 ❤️

bsky.app/profile/jere...

We’re not magicians and we don’t often have the final say, but we should be that guy/girl who speaks up when others won’t.

And we must support our fellow communications truth tellers no matter the consequences.

But speaking truth to power is never easy, but at the end of the day, it’s the right thing to do and an indispensable responsibility for a CCO, who is a primary guardian of reputation.

Being the awkward truth teller (and bringing solutions) can be a risky endeavor in some orgs.

It can even costs folks their jobs or promotions.

CFO is a close second, but when I look at the highest profile corporate crises over the past year, many could have been avoided or minimized if someone had said “hey, we have a problem here and it’s not going away.”

The “Hi Rick, I’m just circling back one final time” is not your friend for future pitches. Memories are long, don’t be that annoying PR person who brings problems versus value.

Less is more, people are really busy, news cycles are insanely short and chaotic, so don’t take it personally.

4️⃣ Still nada? Now you’ve received feedback that they’re just not that into your pitch and/or too busy. Either way, take a hint.

5️⃣ Move onto the next target whether it’s another reporter, owned/borrowed channel, etc.

For those of us doing PR for these technologies, it’s time to go deeper, expect increased scrutiny, bring credible answers and smart positioning.

Times and expectations change, and fast.

Journalists, VCs, Family Offices, PE shops, event organizers, regulators, politicians are asking for receipts, customer validation, security protocols, model construction, safety guardrails, who’s actually paying to use it, competitors, IP, energy usage, research costs, among many other Qs.