I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “honesty is the best policy.” Some learn the hard way that “the truth always comes out eventually” and get burned. Others, like General Motor’s top exec, Mary Barra, followed a basic tenet of good PR: if you have a problem or issue, own it and address it upfront and quickly.
Very few CEO’s would want to be in Barra’s shoes right now, but many appreciate the fact that she is taking a recall into her own hands and tackling it head-on. You can catch up on the fine details of GM’s recall here. In a nutshell, it sounds like the automaker failed to fix faulty ignition switches in its Chevy Cobalt and those faults have since been linked to 12 deaths. To make matters worse, it appears that GM was aware of the problem for as long as 10 years before taking action to correct the problem.
There are obviously still some very serious issues at GM and many of them can’t be fixed by improved public relations. But, improved public relations will help give GM the space and time they need to get things fixed IF they move forward to do so quickly, decisively and transparently.
If you read our post on the Tesla’s PR crisis, some of the same crisis management points can be used here. In general, Kovak-Likly recommends the following:
- When lives are involved, it’s even more crucial to bring out the truth quickly and proactively than to have it pulled out.
- Giving an update that says we have no new information is better than being silent, even if you have no new information to deliver.
- Be transparent.
o Let people know what you are doing to resolve the situation.
o Detail the steps you plan to take to avoid this in the future.
Barra’s strategy will be tested over the coming weeks and is certainly on the path to a reasonable public relations outcome if she continues to be open and honest.
If you have a problem or issue you need help addressing, give us a call or shoot me an email, we’d love to help you develop an issue or crisis communications plan.
-BML
