In the News–The Media
Crisis of the Week: How Well Did Tesco Account for Itself?
Ben DiPietro, The Wall Street Journal’s Risk & Compliance Journal, September 29, 2014
Since news of the shortfall was made public Tesco has suspended four senior executives and called in outside auditors and attorneys to investigate. It also moved up the starting date for its new chief financial officer, who was supposed to take over in December but who now is starting immediately. We asked our crisis and reputation experts if the actions taken by Chief Executive Dave Lewis—who assumed the top job just last month—are sufficient to quell the negative publicity.
Davia Temin, president and CEO, Temin and Co.: “When companies are this troubled, new issues keep bubbling up, as this latest one seemingly did. And that is in direct conflict with crisis management rule 101–get all of the bad news out right away, don’t let it trickle out–so that once it is all in the open, you can focus on the fixes.” […read more]
In NFL Probe, Even FBI Chiefs Risk ‘Motivated Blindness’
Jeff Green, Bloomberg, September 24, 2014
It’s becoming a time-worn script. Company gets in trouble. Public gets upset. Company hires former head of three-letter agency or former prosecutor to get to the bottom of said trouble in thick report. Public forgives.
The National Football League’s decision to hire former FBI Director Robert Mueller to examine its handling of a player’s domestic violence case mimics companies such as General Motors Co. and BP Plc in hiring high-profile outsiders to blunt criticism by airing their dirty laundry. Demand for such investigations has spawned a multi-million business as 55 percent of companies last year said they had at least one internal investigation requiring the assistance of outside counsel, according to an April report on litigation trends by Norton Rose Fulbright.
The question is how impartial these investigation can really be — or, more broadly, how much truth do they want to find?
“It’s always a challenge when you’re trying to shine bright lights on what’s going on in dark rooms,” said Davia Temin, head of the New York-based crisis management firm Temin & Co. “The question always is, how far does the public blood-letting go?” […read more]
Roger Goodell has gone to ground
Tim Keown, ESPN, September 18, 2014
Roger Goodell has disappeared. In the NFL’s hour of greatest need, its leader has decided to remain silent and invisible. Poof! Vanished. For more than a week, as pictures emerge and indictments are filed and news conferences collapse under the weight of doublespeak and obfuscation, Goodell has sealed himself away from the mounting pile of rubble.
Where is he, and why? Is the commissioner himself on the NFL exempt/commissioner’s permission list? His retreat from the public realm gives the impression of a boss who is not only inaccessible, but incapable. This isn’t going away soon.
New York crisis management expert Davia Temin says she would tell Goodell this: The league must use its reach and influence to devote itself to the issue of domestic violence, including child abuse. It should mandate its players and team employees to complete the strictest and most comprehensive domestic violence training in corporate America. It should buy in wholly and completely, not as a PR stunt. […read more]
Office Hours with Davia Temin
Freyan Billimoria, Levo League, July 8, 2014
Davia Temin joins Freyan Billimoria for Levo League’s “Office Hours,” a weekly, 30-minute live Q&A video chat that gives viewers an exclusive inside look into the career path, lessons learned and personal advice from top leaders and experts. She shares stories about how she got where she is today, top tips for communications, and managing those curveballs that life throws at you. […read more]
EBay says client information stolen in hacking attack
CNBC/Reuters, May 21, 2014
E-commerce company eBay said client identity information including emails, addresses and birthdays was stolen in a hacking attack between late February and early March.
EBay urged users to change their passwords after the attack on a database that also contained encrypted passwords, physical addresses and phone numbers.
It said it found no evidence of any unauthorized access to financial or credit card information.
Davia Temin talks with CNBC’s Josh Lipton about the breach. […read more]
“Eight Management Lessons From the Mishandled NYT Firing”
While few people agree on just about any aspect of Jill Abramson’s dismissal as executive editor of the New York Times, there’s general consensus on this: The company didn’t handle it well. “When someone is embroiled in a dispute, you become myopic and you see the world through your own lenses and lose track of how others will view it,” said Davia Temin. “There’s no excuse for not taking the high road — no matter how provoked you feel you are.” — Bloomberg […read more]
NBA Response to Sterling-Clippers Fiasco Holds Lessons for Companies
Ben DiPietro, The Wall Street Journal, May 2, 2014
The speed and severity with which the National Basketball Association acted following the public release of racist remarks made by L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling should serve as a model for how other organizations respond to crises, experts in the field said.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued a lifetime ban on Sterling and vowed to force him to sell the team, all within a few days of Mr. Sterling’s comments being made public.
Davia Temin, principal of reputation and crisis management firm Temin and Co., said “he’s defusing some of the anger by his swift and very strong and powerful actions.” […read more]
How to Protect Corporate Brands Around the World
T&C Press Release, Bloomberg Businessweek, April 22, 2014
“Reputation management for brands and executives takes on new meaning in a global, connected, 25/8 environment,” says Davia Temin, CEO of marketing, media, reputation and crisis leadership firm Temin and Company. “Whereas one misstep by a brand half a world away used to be containable, today reputational damage is instant, hard to control, and globally open to comment and rebuke. We all have stories of cultural brand missteps, but today the stakes are far higher when brands appear culturally insensitive or worse.”
Ms. Temin will speak at the Dow Jones Global Compliance Symposium today, April 22, on a panel titled “How to Protect Corporate Brands Around the World.” Moderating the panel will be Nick Elliott, editor of The Wall Street Journal’s Risk & Compliance Journal. The panelists will discuss why “multinationals should be concerned about their reputations in emerging economies as those nations become sources of demand as well as supply. What are the pitfalls and how should companies approach local-country reputational management?” […read more]
Christie’s $1 million spin-control bridge report
Dustin Racioppi, USA Today, March 27, 2014
For a pricey admission, New Jersey taxpayers now have a front-row seat to Gov. Chris Christie’s national rehab from scandal. After three months of press-dodging and largely evading public questions on the George Washington Bridge lane closures, the politically hobbled governor finally gets to tell his side of the saga, and on his own terms. The cost to state taxpayers: $1 million.
Davia Temin, who runs a crisis-management company in New York, said Christie should have ordered an investigation into the lane closure and he should have released the findings of the investigation shortly after it concluded. […read more]
GM’s Barra Saying Sorry Seeks to Limit Fallout on Recall
Jeff Green, Bloomberg, March 19, 2014
General Motors Co. Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra apologized for the lives lost in accidents linked to an ignition defect and pledged an aggressive probe into why a recall took so long, in her boldest effort yet to limit damage from safety lapses at the largest U.S. automaker. Her apology is just the start, says Davia Temin. “She will be judged on how she handles the next 95 percent of it.” […read more]
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