On the Road Again

With apologies to Kerouac, Dylan, Willie Nelson and Canned Heat for stealing the phrase, I’m back on the road again. For the first time in three years, I’m visiting Page members in seven countries. What I’m finding most remarkable is how similar are the challenges faced by chief communication officers (CCOs) everywhere. CCOs are taking on more responsibility in the face of staggering demands, and they are struggling to keep up. In our 2019 research report, The CCO as Pacesetter, we argued that if CCOs didn’t step up in response to pervasive disruption (technological, competitive, stakeholder expectations, etc.), CEOs would look elsewhere for help. We suggested four levers CCOs could use to support the CEO’s transformation agenda – societal value, corporate culture, corporate brand and CommTech.

Three years later, these trends have only accelerated. Ramped up demands for societal value creation have led to the emergence of stakeholder capitalism, a revolution in the workplace has placed a premium on employee engagement and corporate culture, brands are facing increasing criticism in a polarized environment, and digital transformation is accelerating.

The good news is, many CCOs are, in fact, stepping up. They are working with the CEO and across the C-Suite on sustainability commitments. They are deeply engaged in the response of their organizations to the immense stresses and changes in ways of working. They are building and defending corporate brands. And they are implementing increasingly sophisticated digital stakeholder engagement.

This, however, is creating significant stress on CCOs and their organizations. They and their teams are lacking the skills and resources to deal with these complex challenges. They are grappling with confusion and rivalries in the C-Suite as traditional roles evolve and overlap. And, with significant economic headwinds developing and cost controls being adopted by many organizations, they are struggling to demonstrate a return on investment (ROI).

In Tokyo, where the strategic communication function has been slow to develop into a strategic partner in strategic management, I met with a number of CCOs who have taken on significant responsibilities in sustainability, corporate culture and corporate brand. The increasingly vibrant members of that elite community came together for their first in-person meeting in three years during my visit, hosted by Page Japan Country Chair Dan Lochmann of ORIX Group. 

Many Japanese companies have an historical commitment to societal value. McKinsey has reported that in Japan “Commercial activity, the shuchu kiyaku (code of ethics) states, should not only be carried out for the sole benefit of a business but also for the benefit of society.” However, McKinsey also said Japanese companies “could be doing much more.”

I found that several of the Page CCOs in Tokyo have direct responsibility for sustainability and that they and others are working with their CEOs and business leadership to redefine the company’s purpose and its commitment to ESG, in some cases drawing on rich values in the organization’s history and bringing them forward to this challenging time. At LIXIL Group, for example, Jin Montesano helps lead the SATO initiative that is providing innovative sanitation and hygiene solutions to more than 35 million people across 44 countries.

In Sydney and Melbourne, we had similar reunions of Australian Page members hosted by Page Australia Country Chair Paul Edwards of EnergyAustralia, along with Emily Gatt of Westpac Group in Sydney and Anna Whitlam of Teneo Group in Melbourne. There, we heard significant concerns about keeping up with the need to lead on societal value and deal with challenging workplace issues while demonstrating ROI. 

In Singapore, a group of members and prospects gathered under the auspices of Country Chair Ian Herbison. There, the societal value pressures are similar, with the exception of social advocacy, where there is far less pressure on companies to speak out on social issues. However, the workplace issues, cost pressures and resources and skills challenges are equally intense. 

Page International Vice President Peter Debreceny and I are now off to India, the UAE Germany and France. Stay tuned for more updates, coming soon.