Lessons we can all take from Brad Banducci’s Four Corners Interview

When executives face high-pressure situations such as media interviews, especially during a crisis, their responses and actions can significantly impact their company’s reputation and stakeholder trust. Brad Banducci’s threat to walk out of a media interview, as part of his crisis management strategy, serves as an instructive scenario for executives. I’ve been there as colleagues and clients face challenging interviews on topics that they’re not comfortable with but there are several key learnings we can all take out of this event, including:

Thoroughly Prepare for Tough Questions: Executives should anticipate difficult questions and prepare their responses in advance. This preparation can help avoid situations where they feel cornered or frustrated, reducing the likelihood of reactive decisions like walking out.

Understand the Interview Format and Expectations: Being familiar with the interview’s format and the journalist’s style can help in preparing for the tone and direction of the questions.

A good Corporate Comms or PR representative will always do all that legwork and brief an executive before any interview.

Stay Calm Under Pressure: Executives are often the face of their company, and their demeanour in stressful situations can reflect on the organisation. Maintaining composure, even in the face of challenging questions, is crucial.

Emotional Intelligence: The ability to manage one’s emotions and understand the emotions of others (including the interviewer and the audience) can lead to more effective communication and avoid escalation.

One of my favourite recommendations before any interview, not just the challenging ones, is find your centre – do some breathing exercises immediately before you are “on” and if that’s not your thing, if you have a favourite hype song, play it LOUD!

Clear Messaging: Having clear, concise, and consistent messages can help in effectively communicating the company’s stance and actions regarding a crisis.

Transparency and Honesty: Being transparent and honest can foster trust, even in difficult situations. Attempting to evade questions or appearing to hide information can damage credibility.

I get our clients to practice this with their family and friends in their everyday lives, they’re the ones most likely to call you our if you’re not being clear or transparent. Doing it in this way is habit forming and becomes second nature so when you’re in the eye of the storm, you’re not battling on that front as well.

Strategic Withdrawal vs. Walking Out: There’s a fine line between strategically choosing not to engage further and abruptly walking out of an interview. Executives should carefully consider the implications of both and have a plan for diplomatically disengaging if necessary.

Contingency Planning: Part of crisis management is having contingency plans for when interviews do not go as expected. This could include follow-up statements or clarifications post-interview.

Your Comms team will be able to work through contingency plans for you. They will know when and how to step in, you can see that the Woolies Comms team were right there and they stepped in at that moment… ALWAYS have them by your side.

Consider the Stakeholder Perspective: Decisions made during a crisis, including how to handle media interactions, should consider the potential impact on stakeholders, including customers, employees, and investors.

Long-term Reputation Management: Immediate responses in a crisis situation can have long-term implications for an executive’s and company’s reputation. It’s essential to weigh the immediate benefits of actions like walking out against potential long-term repercussions.

To err is human, we all have that moment, it’s about understanding how even our body language or facial expression can cause a significant ripple effect – journalists are trained to pick up on nuances of how their interview subject is feeling in that moment, it’s important to have the training and necessary tools to steer the conversation back to where you want it to be.

Executives can learn from Banducci’s situation that managing a crisis effectively requires a blend of preparation, composure, effective communication, strategic thinking, and an understanding of stakeholder perspectives. The decision to walk out of an interview should not be taken lightly, as it can have significant implications for an executive’s and company’s image. Instead, focusing on constructive engagement, even in the face of difficult questions, can help maintain and even build trust with stakeholders during challenging times.

Lessons we can all take from Brad Banducci’s Four Corners Interview

Thoughts from our Managing Partner, Jacinta Chapman:

SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER