Last year at Assembly, the annual CCO retreat, the Chief Communications Officers from some of the biggest and best companies in India, gathered in the city of Lakes, Bhopal. I wrote a piece titled ‘A walk around the lake’ – a reminder that for better or worse when the sun comes up or even if it’s raining, I must explore my world. “Put on your walking shoes and get out there. Take a walk… get into the arena of your life, enjoy it from the balcony seats when you can but don’t forget to get out there” is what I told myself.
I am happy to report this year too, when the CCOs assembled at the lovely Taj Bekal, I had the opportunity to be in their midst for two days of learning, courtesy my firm Adfactors. From the placid lakeside of Bhopal, to the shores of the Arabian Sea, the change of scenery was a metaphor for the waves of change our world is now confronted with.
The agenda for Assembly was an interesting one reflecting the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Day one started with a masterclass by Rama Bijapurkar on the Indian Consumer, followed by a keynote titled ‘When brands carry bloodlines’ in which Srinath Sridharan examined the role of the CCO in Family Managed Businesses. The second half had a workshop by Ramesh Kailasam on navigating the policy landscape, an address by Gaurav Phadke on ‘Building an Investor Brand’, and ended with a panel discussion moderated by Llloyd Mathias on what boards expect from the CCO.
Day two had a workshop on ‘Brand Activism’ by Aditi Hingu and a Masterclass on managing cyber risk incidents and crises by Chandra Prakash Suryawanshi, (who heads the global cyber risks practice at Alvarez and Marsal).
I took copious notes and had lots of animated discussions with my fellow travellers during the breaks and the break-out sessions. Here are a few of my favourite takeaways.
Rama’s wisdom:
“Who is your buyer? Not enough time and attention is given to who is buying. We are preoccupied with what we are selling.”
“Behaviour stories get a lot of attention, how are people behaving?… But not enough time on who is buying?
“The dharma of business is to add value and extract value…”
“You have to have a brain that is connected to your spine”
On the role of boards – “Value creation and prevent value destruction.” ; “Nose in fingers out.”
Srinath’s wisdom:
“Who really holds the wallet in your organisation?”
“Are you the guardian of brand, family, or enterprise?”
“Promoters are digital-first reputation actors. Sometimes more visible than the CEO.”
“Reputation is personal legacy. Not a measurable corporate asset.”
“Do you know why you are doing what you are doing?”
“Perceptions shift when control shifts. Ownership or leadership change needs to be navigated carefully.”
“Respect the past when crafting future narratives.”
“If you dine together, you will be fine together.”
Rameesh wisdom:
“How do we solve for and serve the mass market?”
Where possible in advocacy use “the ACE approach – Advocate. Collaborate. Educate.”
Otherwise, there is always “the FUD approach – Fears. Uncertainty. Doubts.”
Gaurav’s wisdom:
“Equity Value = Narrative x Numbers”
“Equity stories are self-fulfilling prophesies”
“Narratives help bridge the void between numbers”
“The investor brand is a promise of performance, conveyed through an equity story”
Aditi Wisdom:
Brand activism is not just the intersection of understanding the brand and the CSR or social impact context. Many other aspects like the regulatory environment and Geo politics need to be factored into the equation.
Chandra Prakash’s wisdom:
The world of crisis management in context of cyber security has evolved “Would you buy this car without brakes?” Has now moved to “Would you buy this car without airbags?” a simple and powerful way to underline the growing importance of resilience and response management, in addition to prevention and preparedness.
“Technical. Management. Regulatory. (The three responses required for a cyber security incident or crisis)”
Crisis comms response is currently focussed on compliance. Response to audience and empathy is the opportunity for improving preparedness when it comes to the communications function.
Time to talk the walk (and maybe learn to run): The two days served as a dual reminder to build the capability and capacity of the communications function, but also to shine a light on the evolving role of the Chief Reputation Officer. What stayed with me this time? “talk your walk”. Rama’s advice to PR practitioners. Ironic but truly what the reputation experts needed to hear. Possibly a bitter pill to swallow, but clearly, we need to get professionals who practice the science of reputation a good reputation. This is an agenda we must focus on.
Assembly reminded me about the role of the reputation consultant and the opportunity that lies ahead. Getting our profession ready to surf the waves of change, is part of what the Bekal get-together was all about. The blurbs I captured can only serve as clues to the path forward. The relationships forged, the stories shared, the pictures we took, and the meals we shared made the experience exceptional.
A sidebar courtesy of a bar encounter is a happy by-product of the Bekal Assembly. I am not sure how, but in the three decades I have been in this profession, I never had the pleasure of an informal catch-up with Kamlesh Kumar Sharma. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know a bit about the person behind the professional and am glad that we got to spend some time together. Assembly was about meeting old friends and making new ones.
As we race into an AI-powered world and learn to shape narratives and nurture reputation, the important role of real-world experiences and meaningful relationships will continue to be central. This gives me confidence – the reputation custodian and the leadership coach are crucial roles to navigate change, and I am excited about the future.
The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.
A trusted coaching and communications professional, Nikhil Dey is a certified life and leadership coach (International Coach Federation - ICF). Nurturing talent and helping clients achieve their goals is what makes him happy. He loves learning from students of communication, teaching courses and guest lecturing at various educational institutions. When he is not working you will find him on the tennis court or out for long walks with his family and four legged friends.
Previously he has held senior leadership positions at Weber Shandwick and Genesis BCW.
He can be reached on twitter @deydreaming
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