Your company’s reputation is its lifeblood, a critical asset that all hinges on trust. Financiers choose to invest in trustworthy organisations, consumers remain loyal to brands they can rely on, and employees seek out workplaces with a strong, trustworthy culture.

So why isn’t reputation a board-level issue? Ultimately, the board is responsible for the governance of the organisation, including upholding its legal and ethical standards. In the event of a crisis, board members can face personal liability, making it essential for them to prioritise and manage reputation effectively through thorough crisis communications.

If your stakeholders trust you, they are more likely to be loyal during times of crisis and you will likely have a better reputational outcome if you have already built trust in your brand through transparent practices and ongoing risk management. 

Poor decisions can result in serious reputational damage for organisations, impacting share price, consumer confidence, employee morale and community perception. 

Take the Juukan Gorge incident in 2020 for example, which serves as a stark reminder of the complexities surrounding reputation management. Although explosive works had been permitted in an area of cultural significance, so a company could access high-grade iron ore, the decision to proceed led to widespread community outrage, extensive negative media coverage and ongoing reputational damage. 

This raises an important question: just because an action is permitted, does that make it a good reputational decision? It can take years to cultivate a brand’s reputation – and it must be protected at all costs. What started as a routine operational task escalated to a major issue for the company’s board, with a subsequent review of their cultural heritage management highlighting failures in their decision-making processes, systems and governance.

Wherever possible, an organisation should always weigh up the potential consequences of its actions, especially in sensitive contexts. If a decision is made to proceed despite the risks, it’s crucial to have a detailed risk management plan in place to address potential negative media fallout and protect the organisation’s reputation.

Data breaches are an ongoing concern for boards in the digital age, as highlighted by recent incidents involving companies like Optus, Medicare and Latitude Financial. These breaches have significantly impacted the lives of affected customers and drawn intense criticism from the media which has resulted in reputational damage. According to the Australian Institute of Company Directors, cybersecurity now ranks among the top governance issues facing boards as the consequences of these events serve as a warning for all businesses that collect data to store it safely and have an action plan in the event there is a breach.

Organisations must recognise that safeguarding personal information is not just a compliance issue; it’s a critical component of maintaining trust and protecting their reputation.

 Five tips to help your board manage your organisation’s reputation: 

• Ensure reputation is discussed regularly at board meetings by including it as a standing agenda item.

• Make sure key employees are properly media trained, and this means more than one contact. In the event of a crisis there needs to be several employees across key functions ready to speak on behalf of the company. More than one media trained person means more experts and more people who can step up in the event of leave or absence at the time of the incident. 

• Plan for potential crises and strategise with the board and executives on what the plan would be in the event something was to happen.

• Create an environment of trust and transparency with each other – CEO up and board down. Make sure that the communication is always transparent and honest so that when it comes to mitigating a crisis you know you can trust each other implicitly.

• Include a communications professional/s on your board – they will likely understand how stakeholders will be impacted and how issues will be perceived by a potential incident.

BBS offers a range of training courses that can help you start managing your reputation effectively now. Our crisis communications training will help you craft a thorough plan to get you through a range of difficult situations. 

We also offer professional media training and a range of other team training and development options. 

Contact us today to discuss our tailored training workshops for your team today.