CorpComms Magazine

The appointment of a new chief executive to shake up a business may be welcomed by both media and investors, but the person co-ordinating the announcement will often have mixed emotions. The announcement may be their swansong as, in many cases, the appointment of a new man at the top signals the demise of the incumbent corporate communications director.

'The role of the corporate communications director has changed significantly. Seven or eight years ago, in-house directors were not necessarily considered to add significant value. In fact, it was often a role for retiring executives. Nowadays, the importance of corporate reputation - and therefore the role of the corporate affairs director - has never been greater,' says Jonathan Harper, consultant at Spencer Stuart.

The corporate communications director may be responsible for a company's reputation but it often appears as if his (or her) main job is to protect and enhance the reputation of the chief executive. When the chief executive's star is in the ascendant, then that is all well and good but if they leave - or are pushed - then it can leave the corporate communications director rather exposed.

'The official role of the corporate communications director is to advise the entire board on their communication strategy. More often than not though, you report to the chief executive and you are closely identified with him. People think of you as a team and that means when he goes, your job is extremely vulnerable,' says one recently deposed corporate communications director.

The perception that the corporate affairs director is inextricably linked with his, or her, chief executive is reflected not just externally but internally as well. 'Often, the main problem is internal, with the rest of the board and other members of staff,' says another source.

WORKING PARTNERSHIP

Indeed, the current recession has further strengthened the relationship (and possibly perceptions). Research from Spencer Stuart and Weber Shandwick recently revealed that 58 per cent of corporate communications directors report to the chief executive, against 48 per cent just one year earlier.

Even a cursory glance at the leading lights of corporate affairs shows how tough it is to remain in situ when the CEO departs. It may not happen immediately but, on numerous occasions, a new man at the top heralds the arrival of a new communications director - often someone who has a pre-existing relationship with the incoming boss.

'When the new guy came in, he sat me down and said quite bluntly that he had always worked with X and he wanted to continue doing so. It was pretty amicable and fairly predictable, but the upshot was that I was out of a job,' says one high-profile director.

LOYALTY COUNTS

Some corporate affairs directors view this vulnerability as part of the territory. A chief executive demands absolute loyalty and complete trust so when he leaves, it is understandable if his replacement feels more comfortable with a new right-hand person whom they have personally chosen.

One female corporate affairs director goes even further. 'Women in particular tend to be very conscientious and take their job extremely seriously. That can make them incredibly loyal to the chief executive, which is great while he is flavour of the month but can really work against you when he falls from grace,' she says.

But it is not impossible to survive a change at the top. Brian Giles has been head of communications at Northern Rock for four years. In that time, the high street bank has had four leaders and moved from private to state ownership.

'Northern Rock has seen quite a bit of change while I've been here. I was communications director when the changes started and I am still here today. You have to adapt and change as things around you change. I've had to adapt and develop personally as I've worked with several chief executives, but the key point is that I work for the company and I play a role for the company,' he says.

Other directors echo this view. 'You have to do what is right by the company and put the company first,' says Donal McCabe, director of corporate communications at Land Securities.

'You have to be loyal to the company, not particular individuals,' adds Harper.

The recruitment process tends to back this up. New appointments often involve numerous interviews, not just with the chief executive but with a variety of senior managers.

'The process is becoming a lot more professional. No board these days would approve a new corporate communications director without a rigorous process. After all, they are taking the temperature of the external market place so they have to be right,' Harper explains.

Some companies adhere to this view more than others. 'A lot comes down to the structure of the organisation. In some companies, even if the chief executive is very charismatic, the appointment of a corporate communications director is seen as a corporate appointment. That makes them more likely to survive if the chief executive goes. When Justin King arrived at Sainsbury's, for instance, he didn't change the corporate affairs director and when Stephen Hester came to Royal Bank of Scotland, he didn't make any changes either. In other companies, the chief executive is all-powerful and there is more of a patronage-at-court approach. In those cases, it is more likely that the corporate communications director will leave with the CEO,' says Andrew Grant, founder of Tulchan Communications.

The nature of the corporate communications role clearly depends on the personality and leadership style of the chief executive, as well as the company. But some situations are more manageable than others. Peter Morgan, group director of communications at BT, was once viewed as a close ally of former chief executive Ben Verwaayen. Now he is working happily with Verwaayen's successor, Ian Livingston.

'If the new CEO is an external appointment, it is more likely that the corporate communications director will change because they may well have developed a relationship with the in-house person at their previous organisation. Ian Livingstone was on the board already as head of retail so we had worked together closely before he even became chief executive,' says Morgan.

'I could not work for someone I didn't respect and admire. Conversely, a chief executive needs someone who can offer them frank advice but who they can trust 100 per cent and someone who is passionate about the company they work for. You have to believe the story.'

CHANGING PRIORITIES

Morgan, like many of his peers, has seen his role evolve as economic circumstances have changed. 'The job I do is very different with Ian because Ian is very focused on delivery and customer service whereas Ben was very interested in wider social issues. But the climate is very different too. I was fortunate enough to work with Ben during boom times. Now the recession has changed the nature of the work I do,' he says.

Different environments make the communications role more or less challenging but job retention may depend on other factors too.

Tim Johns was at BT when Verwaayen replaced Peter Bonfield as chief executive. Now he is head of corporate communications at Unilever, where Paul Polman recently succeeded Patrick Cescau as chief executive.

'Both BT and Unilever are highly professional organisations. Also Ben and Paul are both Dutch. They came from outside the UK and genuinely recognised the need for on-the-ground communications advice. Ben felt he really needed help to navigate the UK media and Paul needs people around him whose advice he can totally trust,' he says.

Johns believes too that, ultimately, corporate communications directors are judged in much the same way as any other executive. 'If you are doing a professional job, you will be judged accordingly, just like the finance director or head of legal,' he says.

McCabe agrees with this thesis, while adding that basic chemistry does play a part. 'When a new chief executive arrives, you have to ask yourself Will we get on and will he take my advice? But this is much the same as any director. You have to hope that if you have done a good job, people will recognise it and acknowledge it,' he says.

Making friends across the organisation is clearly helpful in this respect. 'The corporate communications person needs to make sure they have a good relationship with the chairman as well as the CEO. Modern chairmen have a very good perspective on the role of the communications director. They really understand their value. Ideally, corporate communications professionals should also make friends with some of the non-executive directors and it is useful to have allies on the executive team too,' says Harper.

In-depth knowledge is invaluable too. Board directors want to know their corporate communications director is well-respected by the media and journalists are always most keen to speak to the advisers who know the most, be they external or in-house.

'Quality should always be recognised. Roddy Kennedy at BP for example, must be one of the longest-serving corporate communications directors in the UK and he understands the company inside and out. He is part of its DNA and he makes it his business to know people up and down the organisation,' says Patrick Donovan, managing director at Citigate Dewe Rogerson.

Most practitioners acknowledge that insight, ability and hard work can separate good, effective corporate communications directors from the rest. But the loyalty demanded of them by many chief executives does put them in a difficult position.

'You need to be a master of internal politics. It is a really delicate balancing act. You have to show absolute loyalty to the chief executive but you also have to try and be close to the rest of the senior team,' says one PR consultant.

BECOME IMPREGNABLE

Agencies do accept however that some corporate communications directors are less vulnerable than others.

'They have to prove they are invaluable in terms of their knowledge of the organisation they work in, the culture that prevails and the sensitivities to which it is prone. They also have to stay very close to audiences such as journalists, analysts and investors. They need to make themselves impregnable,' says one adviser.

On the other hand, the relationship between a chief executive and a communications director is a two-way street. There will be times when a new chief executive wants to change the communications approach - and the director at the top of the team - but there will also be times when the director does not feel comfortable working with a new leader.

'When the new chief executive came along, we both knew within days that it would not work. The chemistry just wasn't there. We sat down and had a grown-up conversation about it - and I left a short while later. It was as simple as that,' says one corporate communications director, since employed elsewhere.

Clearly, the days when a corporate communications director was little more than a product PR are long gone. Now, the role is expected to be filled by someone who is loyal enough to be trusted, wise enough to offer sound advice, diplomatic enough to listen when necessary and make friends with the right people, knowledgeable enough to be considered useful by external stakeholders and sophisticated enough to handle the myriad modern methods of communication.

Yet despite this long list of necessary attributes, many corporate affairs professionals spend most of their time advising, helping and supporting the chief executive. Inevitably, it makes them vulnerable when changes happen at the top of the business.

As Morgan says: 'It is not a job for the faint-hearted.' One advantage however, is that effective professionals invariably find a job somewhere else. Like journalists, they never seem to disappear; they simply turn up at a different organisation. And the really astute ones use the opportunity of a change at the top to find not just a different job but a better one. 

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