Public Relations can’t spot a well hidden crime, or deceptions or lies. What Public Relations can do is help instill a culture of integrity and truthfulness in an organisation so that when instances do occur they are isolated and are reported. And then, once rooted out, repairs to reputation can take place ruthlessly and efficiently. Public Relations folks then ensure that public confidence is restored, taking the shortest
possible route.
This assumes that the Public Relation Department, or whatever it is called, is respected for that task.
When Public Relations fails, culture can become rotten and deceptions rampant.
So what’s happened at Australia’s Commonwealth Bank?
Four Corners (8th March, 2016) – ‘Money for Nothing’ – is required viewing for all Corporate Affairs professionals and everyone who works in risk management in an insurance company. It sets out an appalling record of what not to do. It will be used in media training sessions for years to come.
In short the program presents a series of allegations, with apparent supporting documents, purporting to show how staff at CommInsure, the banks’ insurance arm, destroyed documents and altered doctors’ opinions to deny damaged and dying people the money that was rightfully theirs to claim under life insurance policies.
We don’t know how much of it is true, but it presented a compelling catalogue of apparently documented cases, also apparently supported by a former Chief Medical Officer turned whistleblower.
In one tragic allegation CommInsure even defrauded one of their own former staff members – first retiring her because of a debilitating disease and then denying her claim for the same.
And these cases are alleged to have occurred on a widespread and systematic basis.
Now if the story is accurate, obviously the greatest wrong is with the perpetrators, but it is also the failure of the relevant public relations teams – to allow a rotten culture to develop where that is allowed to happen on a systemic basis.
I feel sorry for the many good people impacted by the behaviour and failures of a few.
Second, the relevant public relations professionals were asleep at the wheel when the crisis broke. This has nothing to do with the accuracy, or otherwise, of the story. It has everything to do with the trashing of a bank’s reputation.
They allowed their CEO to be hung out to dry on national television in what will certainly go down as one of the best self-destructs on television this year. Superb television, disastrous public relations. It has ensured that the road back to recovery is indeed going to be long and winding.
I was once asked by a senior corporate affairs operative in a petroleum company what he should do if he couldn’t right a hidden wrong in the company. Ultimately, resign. Otherwise when the crisis broke his reputation would be tarnished with the company’s.
In the case of CommInsure, following Four Corners, they may be able to repair the damage to the Bank’s reputation, but probably not the CEO’s.
One of the roles of public relations professionals in a crisis is to prevent further damage by properly assessing the situation and minimising damage. ‘Will our situation be better or worse by participating in the story’. They made the wrong call. Then, they next need to protect the leadership by using a spokesperson lower down the ranks – perhaps a head of corporate affairs or a leader from the responsible arm, CommInsure. Fail. Another is to prepare an appropriate response, in this case an apology and a commitment to clean out a rotten part of the bank. Fail. Perhaps they did all that, and it was ignored. Perhaps they did that and the CEO couldn’t say it. Again fail. That is what media training tests.
This is not a case of hindsight being a wonderful teacher. It’s basic damage minimisation.
What should have happened is text-book; if it did, it’s well hidden:
- Be very cautious about appearing on Four Corners, but develop a relationship with the program so that the extent of the allegations can be assessed.
- Decide whether to appear, based on ‘Will our situation be better or worse by appearing’.
- Start fixing the problem before the program goes to air, isolating the key complaints and if possible start excising the people who have committed the wrongs. The whistle-blower might have helped with that.
- Institute an independent forensic investigation to ensure that longer-term a proper clean-out can occur.
- Commence another (training) program, immediately, of culture transformation to ensure future systemic integrity and individual honesty, including effective detection and reporting processes, that prevents this ever happening again.
- Prepare a response to the program, to be used after it goes to air, with a genuine apology, explaining that the responses above are already in progress. I can’t see anything on the website or Facebook, so if it’s there it’s well hidden.
Perhaps some of the above has already happened.
Oh, and the insurance industry should take a strong public position too, condemning this behaviour, so there isn’t reflected reputation damage.
But so far, congratulations to Four Corners; boo to Comm Bank.
