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Here to address the subject of the changing environment for CEOs and how we can better support them.  Miles D. White, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Abbott – “Guerillas in the Mist – Winning the War for Reputation.”   CCO is in a challenging point – we take all the bad news, the undefined hours, last minute demands, etc.    Has been serving as CEO for past nine years – scarred and battle hardened CEO who has not succumbed to total cynicism.  Still optimistic after all these years.   “Our world has changed dramatically.  We’re in a new war – we’re in a battle for our identities, for our corporations, for our missions, for our reasons for being.  In a high stakes battle for business – political and ideological.  Attacking the foundations of our businesses.  It is a much bigger war and battle than we have given it credit for.   “Today we are in an all out war for reputation.  An asymmetrical conflict – a large force with all the resource are engaged with loose-knit guerilla group who can challenge us effectively for the hearts and minds of our constituents.   

“In this war of ideas the CCO is the right hand of the CEO.  Why?  Information is no longer reserved for the information elite.  Low cost and ease of access for all – the digital revolution..   “Ability to create and disseminate false, misleading information by anyone.  A myriad of new stakeholders – everyone is empowered to engage us on terms of quality.  Don’t need access to AP or Reuters, don’t even need rules (or values – they often don’t).  They are not held to – or aspire to – authenticity.   

“Can have high reputation with their audiences.  They can establish credibility.   “The reality of the global economy – the roller coaster of the stock exchanges that ripple through the days.    Here’s what it means as a CEO of a targeted industry- Our issues go public quicker – from a back room blog to the evening news in one day.- Solve your problems in the full glare of the public spotlight.- Is “tell the truth” too simple?  The guerillas have a lot more latitude than companies do – not bound by the same ethics and social weight.  They can largely do whatever they want to do.  Disinformation has the half-life of krypton.   Your role as CCO is to protect the identity of your companies.    We as CEOs are counting on you to be much more participatory than ever before.  Try not to get into the hole – you can dig out with a lot of time, energy and money.  Head off problems before they happen or before they explode in the public. The best ones anticipate well and respond even better.  Now a handful of examples of companies that handled these issues well. 

•  Abbott has been in AIDS medicine since early days of the epidemic.  Invested more than $100 million in AIDS relief in the developing world.  Assailed by AIDS activists, religious orders, student groups – pursuing Abbott.  New military government in Thailand decided they didn’t want to pay Abbott prices.  So they seized patent-protected drugs and started to manufacture them in their for-profit state-owned pharmaceutical manufacturers.  Instead this was an attack on Intellectual Property.  So Abbott decided to take it on as a battle. 

• Johnson & Johnson and the American Red Cross entered into strife over the trademark of the red cross logo (which J&J owns).  So of course J&J was slammed in the media while the Red Cross was seen as the victim.  Red Cross was licensing the trademark to other competing pharmaceuticals.  J&J started a blog – “You’re Doing What?”  Blog allowed the company to discuss in new media what old media would never have covered.  Terrific example of how to avert a crisis by using new media.
• McDonald’s taken on by “Super Size Me.”  The company didn’t take on the issue fast enough and didn’t think it was serious enough.  Response was made at the ultimate end of public relations – a change to business practice.  McDonald’s got serious about healthy menus, eliminating “super size” meals, getting into exercise for children.  “I think McDonald’s made lemonade out of this,” said White.   

We can use these same tools to get our messages across.  “We used to have these vehicles and weapons to ourselves.”  This is about competing to define us as an enterprise. There is a competition about identity and others are trying to define us in their terms.   I think we can be back in control.  Figure out how to be guerillas.  And win by doing it with principles.    “We are at more risk if we take the conventional route.  We are better off learning to play a new game – we take our risks on new vehicles, new methods.  If you get success you get more courage.  The more small risks we take the more success we have the more we’re able to win.   

“Normally we’re on the defensive, but many times you need to go on the attack.  Some NGOs challenge Abbott to publish all the places it donates – we ask them to tell who are their contributors (generic manufacturers, trial bar lawyers).  They back down.”