If there’s one thing we’ve learned from the Astronomer kiss-cam scandal, it’s that today’s PR crises can break, take on a life of their own and morph into something entirely new before you’ve even had the chance to brush your teeth in the morning.
The viral video exposing an affair between now-former CEO Andy Byron and Head of HR Kristin Cabot had quickly accrued millions of views, sparking the proliferation of AI-generated memes, misinformation and more.
So, what has the scandal taught us about responding to a crisis in the immediacy – and in the medium-term? Let’s look at five takeaways for damage limitation, with insight from Carolyn Simpson, Senior Marketing and PR Manager at Anglo Scottish Finance, one of the UK’s top commercial finance companies.
Respond quickly, before the rumour mill does
In the social media age, quickly adapting to breaking news about your company is key. PR execs used to refer to ‘the golden 24 hours’ as a means of quickly responding to new developments; now, failing to make a statement within an hour means you’ve already given millions of people the chance to pass judgment.
By the morning, Byron’s LinkedIn page was already inundated with comments, X (Twitter) had gone into meltdown, and Astronomer was perceived to have been silent for too long already.
“Using dedicated tools to track brand mentions is a good way to ensure that you and the company are covered at all times of the day,” says Simpson. “Huge spikes in terms of the number of people discussing your business – good or bad – is often worthy of attention, even outside working hours and in the middle of the night. Investing in analytics tools like these will ensure you receive timely alerts to these developments and can act accordingly.”
Be decisive, dispel misinformation
Misinformation became rife – and, thanks to the new-found adoption of AI, the information being pushed out has become more convincing than ever. We saw AI-generated apology letters and fake quotes falsely attributed to the CEO, which made the company’s task in taking back control significantly more difficult.
Clarity is key to any statement that goes out. Directly addressing specific pieces of misinformation that have proliferated online, rather than making vague references to them, will help any company retain agency over the story.
Simpson says: “Maintaining trustworthy, responsive channels of communication – whether on social media or elsewhere – will make it easier for your business to wrestle back control. If you’ve put in dedicated time and effort to building reliable comms during positive times, statements issued via the same channels will be received more positively and instantly be more authoritative.”
Make actionable decisions
“As the old adage goes, when sizable mistakes like this take place, people want to see heads on sticks,” says Simpson. “When trust with your customer base has been breached, decisive leadership will take steps to ensure that those responsible are removed from the picture.”
Astronomer acted swiftly in placing both Byron and Cabot on leave, a temporary measure allowing them to investigate before making a longer-term decision.
In this case, Byron tendered his own resignation, but Astronomer’s board would’ve been well within their rights to expel him, regardless. An interim CEO was quickly put in charge, removing those involved in the scandal from the situation and protecting the remaining members of the company from allegations of wrong-doing.
“Quickly actioning temporary measures show stakeholders that the company is acting assertively – and not rushing into firings or doing irreversible damage before you have all the facts. Be quick to make action, but don’t make decisions that can’t be undone, unless you’re certain you’ve covered all bases.”
Retain transparency in the medium term
With viral events like this, silence on the part of the company in the medium-term can be viewed negatively by stakeholders, as if the company is hunkering down and waiting for the storm to pass.
“Transparent and open communication will still be key in the weeks following the crisis,” advises Simpson. “Publicly rectifying the mistake in the medium- (and even long-term) will be key to retaining the trust of your remaining publics and bringing uncertain stakeholders back on-side.”
While the hiring of an interim CEO was quick and timely, another important development was the board’s announcement that they had begun the search for a new, permanent CEO, signalling long-term strategic continuity and a new dawn for the company.
Don’t let your team’s previous – and current – good work be overlooked
Once the media furore has begun to die down, the next stage in recentring the narrative is reminding stakeholders of your company’s commitment to results, while reassuring them that all next steps are being taken with the express goal of getting back to those results.
Focusing longer-term communications on results delivered – whether that’s through case studies of previous work or examples of strong ESG (environmental and social governance) in other areas of the company – can be helpful. But ultimately, you need to avoid virtue signalling.
“It’s important to not be heavy-handed in this regard,” continues Simpson, “because as we know, modern audiences are savvy enough to know when they’re being fed a narrative. A gentle reminder of your company’s pedigree and the positive contributions of other members of the team should suffice.”
Any business can find itself embattled in a scandal overnight, whether via the actions of one individual or a wider issue. The way in which your business responds will depend on the specific scenario, but provided you have the right response frameworks in place, you’ll be able to weather the storm.
