Leaders Need to Say More

Just as we were taught to never discuss sex, politics or religion in public, whole generations of CEOs and business leaders were schooled to stay silent on polarizing social issues.

How times have changed. With governments in gridlock, CEOs and the companies they lead are facing unprecedented pressure to take a stand on social issues that matter deeply to their employees and customers. The pressure is greatest among younger workers, employees of color, and consumers who — having lost faith in politics — demand corporate action on issues such as abortion rights, climate change, gun violence, voter suppression laws and racial equality. To these large and growing groups, silence is perceived as complicity.

Yes, businesses feel caught in the middle. But business leaders need to find their voice if they want to maintain the trust and goodwill of the communities they serve. By taking a stand, CEOs can build a stronger bond to their employees and other stakeholder groups around the values and purpose that bind them together. Doing so helps with employee recruitment and retention, and greater loyalty among customers who increasingly buy from companies that share their values. That’s doubly so for startups, which need to establish their mission and values before going public.

For CEOs, taking bold stands burnishes their legacy as a leader who stood on the right side of history. But to change opinions — and, ideally, policy — the message has to be authentic for both the company and the CEO. Audiences must understand why this CEO is qualified to address this issue at this moment in history.

The challenge for CEOs, and the businesses they lead, is to pick their spots in the new era of stakeholder capitalism — so they don’t speak up too early, too often, or so late that they look reactionary in their responses. That requires developing a framework to help determine when to engage on social issues so there is consistency — in their actions and their words. They can determine how an issue lines up with their business and their values by pondering these three questions:

·       Does the issue relate, in ways that look authentic, to your company’s values?

·       Does the issue relate directly to your company’s business mission? 

·       Are you willing to back your words with real action (money, people, and other resources)? 

If you answer yes to all three, you are entitled to take an “All In” stance, as shown in the matrix to the right. But backing your words with action is critical — without taking measurable steps to address the issue at hand, you’re at risk of looking, at best, toothless or, worse, disingenuous. In a 2020 report, Edelman warned companies that “a few vague social media posts declaring broad support and other forms of “woke-washing” aren’t going to cut it with today’s consumers.” Ditto for businesses that exploit Pride Month by slapping a rainbow on their logo without taking meaningful action to support LGBTQ+ rights. 

Fortunately, many companies are putting their money and other resources behind their words. After Breonna Taylor was killed during a botched police raid and George Floyd was strangled under a policeman’s knee, scores of companies made bold commitments to address systemic racism. Many gave money to Black Lives Matter and other anti-racism organizations, stepped up their “unconscious bias” training and beefed up their internal diversity programs.

If an issue is more about your company’s values than its bottom line — a “yes” on the first question (top left box) but a “no” on the second (bottom right box) — consider issuing a “Principled”, or low-key, response that supports your stakeholders’ core values. To minimize any backlash, you can speak out as part of a coalition like the 65 companies that, in partnership with the Human Rights Campaign, signed an open letter asking Texas Governor Greg Abbott to abandon the state's anti-LGBTQ+ initiatives. “Discrimination is bad for business,” read the headline of the full-page ad published in Dallas’ largest newspaper.

Conversely, if the issue impacts your business without affecting your values, consider issuing a “Pragmatic” response as Shell did in its opposition to Brexit. Corporations should be honest about how the issue will impact its business without cloaking itself in ideological or moral arguments. Shell CEO Ben van Beurden warned that the energy giant could suffer if Britain left the European Union. 

“We are a company with a strong heritage in the UK and on the Continent. There would be a real break between the two, which would affect freedom of movement of staff, trade — we would be impacted,” he told The Sunday Times newspaper.

Obviously, if your answer is no to all three questions, you may want to take a low-key approach. While the genocide in Yemen has been a humanitarian crisis, there are few companies who have standing on the issue. You may also want to consider whether to update your strategy to support the issue, as some companies have done in offering bail for workers who protest (peacefully) for reproductive justice.

Before you speak out, make sure to test your message internally before going public. Consult your employee resource groups (ERGs) or, absent that, create a “sounding board” of employees that can provide feedback in advance. Cardinal Health CEO Mike Kauffman consults what he calls his “truth tellers” — a group of employees of color who advise him on which societal issues to address and how. 

In addition, solicit the feedback of your formal Board of Directors before you do speak out publicly. Last but not least, break the news to your employees first rather than leaving them to read about in on the Internet. You can then share that employee memo with the media in lieu of an external statement; the press loves the “insider” feel of employee memos and tend to publish with less commentary.

They must also honor the golden rule of taking a stand: Confront the issue, not the people on the other side, and speak to your values. Last, create an opening for both sides to come together and resolve their differences. Leaders shouldn’t try to win a fight so much as encourage people to reconsider their views.

We cover these points and so much more in our one-on-one and group coaching — and in The New Language of Leadership workshops, which incorporate the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience, psychology, and management theory to help executives communicate like a leader. We also offer our Taking a Stand workshop to help business leaders and the communication professionals who support them work through the attendant issues in speaking out publicly on social issues.