Why everybody loves Starling Bank

Usually on this podcast we talk a lot about the problems to avoid and examples to learn from. We help each other avoid beartraps in order to speed up learning. This episode is a bit different… Daisy speaks to Ariane Vickman, Head of Public Affairs at Starling Bank about the novel experience of working for an organisation with very few detractors.

Key takeaways include:
- how to use purpose to make practical change
- why simplicity matters, in so many ways
- and why Starling wants to carry other banks along for the ride. 

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Daisy talks to Tim Coombes, a carbon markets expert, about why carbon markets matter for reaching net zero and how to use them while protecting your corporate reputation.

Together they cover:

• What we mean when we talk about carbon markets
• Why the markets had a bad year in 2023
• How to use carbon markets effectively to augment your net zero strategy
• What the reputation risks are and how to mitigate them, and
• The big changes to expect in the next few years.

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Colin Walker from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), talks to Daisy about mis- and disinformation in the world of electric vehicles and how to defend an entire industry from attack.

Key takeaways include:

• The reputational opportunities and challenges inherent in the energy transition
• The seismic impact that the energy transition may have upon brand loyalty
• How important it is to amplify external advocates, and in an echo of last episode:
• How much political mood music and regulatory decisions impact investment

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Daisy interviews Helen Thomas, CEO and founder of Blonde Money -  a risk monitoring consultancy that brings together years of experience in the worlds of Westminster and Wall Street to advise clients on political risk and how it affects financial markets.

Key takeaways include:

• That companies need to be much broader in the types of risks that they monitor, model, and prepare for. 
• The importance of developing a framework for understanding how the very human beating heart of politics may shift and how that might impact them and the broader market.

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

To kick off series five, Alex Vail - Chief Executive at the Data Strategy Alliance, talks to Daisy about starting a new non-profit trade association to help businesses with digital transformation. Expect some sobering statistics on how (un)prepared many businesses are for big data as well as plenty of tips about how to manage major change programs.

Key takeaways include: 

• Data remains a massive challenge. It's a big technical challenge. It's a big hiring challenge. It's a big change challenge. It's a big comms challenge for your board, internal stakeholders, and probably your consumers.
• One way to deal with that is to get more comfortable with failure and plan how you will deal with it when it (inevitably) rears its head.
• The power of great trade associations to convene business and help them put aside competitive urges for the greater good.
• The importance, once again, of internal advocates and allies.

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Celia Richardson, Director Of Communications and Audience Insight at the National Trust, talks to Daisy about navigating through political strife, putting audience at the heart of a comms plan, and tips for a successful career in communications.

Key takeaways include: 

• Being a big name, a national institution, isn't all roses and rainbows: yes, the press might take your call but they love to take a big name down a peg. It's also harder to please a niche group than everyone.
• Keep a close eye on your key numbers: they will guide you when the news is bad or the critics won't shut up. 
• Not all bad publicity is as terrible as it feels at the time, it may articulate an important part of your story.
• Just because your job title doesn't change, doesn't mean you aren't growing and developing your skills.
• Relationships are key, whether that is building links with your colleagues or reaching out to the audience.

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Richard Maughan, Senior Director, UK Policy and Public Affairs at Pfizer, talks to Daisy about keeping teams sane during a crisis and how to use the lessons from the pandemic to embed positive change.

Key takeaways include: 

• Collaboration and flexibility are key to progress. If we want to reap the benefits, we need to apply these tools with enthusiasm and experiment with bringing them into areas where they have previously been taboo.
• More exposure to your stakeholders isn't a guaranteed win: it is down to you to make the most of that opportunity. Pfizer is doing that by building an authentic story around the concept of 'Breakthroughs'. This is reflected in their company mission but also in what we know about them and they are amplifying that with policy and communications.
• It can be useful to create a formal structure for making communication decisions. Richard talks about using the company's purpose and the difference that a topic might make to their stakeholders. What questions do you use to decide if your organisation should be vocal on a particular topic?

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

 A double-length episode with double the reputation geek fun: Reputation coach Daisy Powell-Chandler in conversation with Ed Coke, founder of Repute Associates about how brands can or should respond to the cost of living crisis in a way that builds their reputation.

They look at examples of companies taking action to help consumers and distil some advice for brands thinking about how to communicate in tough times.

In summary, we agree that:

• Context is key - and right now it's the economy, stupid
• Brands need to show us their own pain to win our trust
• Bold, swift communication that is authentic will be rewarded with domain ownership - even if many brands are doing the same thing 
• But brands must be consistent - your values need to run through everything you do like a stick of rock
• Strategise: this crisis won't be over next week and it takes years to build a reputation. Build for the long term
• Test. When you are building for the long term it is worth taking the time to get a message right and test it before you launch

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Daisy speaks to Mark Geoghegan, Editor of The Voice of Insurance, about why everybody hates insurers, how to survive after a meteorite strike, and how insurance both requires and feeds a good reputation.

We dig into why economies - and countries - need and want insurers and how insurance can speed up the journey to net zero. And then we discuss if you can insure against reputation damage.

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639

Daisy talks to Imogen Hitchcock, owner of communications agency Beaumont. Imogen helps companies to tell better stories and has a particular expertise in employee advocacy programs and in this episode the conversation is all about why and how organisations should better articulate their work on sustainability. 

This episode brings us to the end of our season focused on sustainability and reputation. It was actually the first interview recorded but we deliberately pushed it to the end because it is a really neat summary of why companies should care about sustainability at all, and how to get started on the journey towards changing corporate behaviour and communicating more effectively so you gain some credit for doing so.

You can find the all the data and analysis from the BRODIE Public First Sustainability Sentiment tracker here: http://www.publicfirst.co.uk/sustainability-sentiment-tracker.html

Find all of our episodes - and full transcripts for each one - at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1121639