How to Tackle the Company Public Statement
Over the past year, it has become increasingly more common for companies to issue statements on important societal events and movements, such as the murder of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, the rise in AAPI hate in the wake of Covid-19, and the conviction of Derek Chauvin.
These matters are delicate and companies want to do it right, not just to save face or to look “woke,” but to truly reaffirm their values and stand in solidarity with their employees and shareholders. People often underestimate the larger impact these declarations have and we will always encourage our clients and other organizations to thoughtfully consider how they can use their platform to support social justice.
We encourage executive leadership to consider how to communicate these types of matters with their teammates in a way that upholds the values of the organization, with a strong emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), while showing empathy and understanding to your employees.
The questions that often follow these discussions are WHEN do we put out a statement and more importantly, HOW? The following are proposed talking points and ideas for suggested language which may be useful to your organization in crafting a statement following a major event.
Should we send a statement?
Yes. Many of the major events and traumas of the past year are historic moments in the nation’s history and, in a lot of cases, our ongoing and necessary racial reckoning.
Who should send the statement?
The statement should come from the CEO of the organization, or another leader (such as a board chair) who can speak on behalf of the company.
Who should be involved in crafting the statement?
Certainly, this is a moment where you should ensure that key parties have a chance to have their voices heard and feel comfortable with what is being said, including but not limited to, your organization’s leadership, your communications team, your ERGs (especially ERGs whose members are most affected such as the BIPOC community, and/or ERGs or DEI-focused committees) and any other teammates whose voice and perspective you believe will add value to your thoughtfulness on these matters.
How much should we talk about our company in our statement?
Minimally. This statement should be an affirmation of your company’s values, and a recognition of the company’s focus on this moment, and its thoughtfulness about its place in the world. But the purpose of the statement is to support your employees, members of the public, and everyone as we process these events collectively.
Should we hold a listening session?
Yes, we believe that in terms of processing the events of this past year, in addition to having time to reflect on the general state of affairs in this nation throughout its history, it is a good idea to bring people together and give them space for these discussions. Holistic is glad to help organize and implement these sessions.
Some of our employees don’t agree with releasing a statement, and/or believe that it’s not our place to comment on these matters. What should we say to them?
We’ve witnessed many seminal moments in the history of this nation in a short amount of time. As such, this is a moment for companies to acknowledge the gravity of the moment and focus on processing these events together.
We must recognize that there are many employees and neighbors who are processing these events very personally and intensely. These are the same employees whose mental and physical well-being has been drained and continues to be drained in these traumatic moments, and who need to see that our company sees their pain and supports them.
Read our blog “What is the Business Community’s Role in All This?” for more information on why it is essential that businesses are getting involved in these discussions, making their viewpoints known, taking this matter seriously, and making space for their employees.
On what platform should we distribute our statement?
There is no one right answer to this question, but some ideas would be: via email to your employees, to your entire mailing list, via social media to your community, and on your company website.
What else do we need to do?
Managers should check in with all employees in the coming days and weeks to see how they are doing. There should be space made in all meetings for people to share concerns, comments or viewpoints. Employees should be reminded that they can reach out to HR if they need additional resources or support, and the company should actively share a list of resources with employees as part of any communication.
What are some available resources that we can share with employees to supplement a public statement?
We suggest compiling a mix of various resources. Some examples include:
Resources for XYZ Company team members (Employee Assistance program, etc.)
General external resources for the BIPOC Community
Hotlines
Free mental health services
Forums and support groups
Resources for Dialogue + Learning:
Articles, TED Talks, webinars, etc.
Instagram accounts dedicated to education and advocacy
Legislation focused on furthering justice
In the end, your company values can’t just be statements on paper. One of the most important parts of this process is not JUST releasing a company statement, but the follow-up You shouldn’t make promises to your employees and stakeholders that you aren’t willing to keep. The work that follows is what really matters, and we must honor the call to action continuously.
Feel free to reference Holistic’s previous public statements:
The Only Thing We Can Truly Understand Is That We Will Never Truly Understand
If you have a question that is not outlined here, reach out to Holistic and we'll help you answer it! We acknowledge that making the decision to publicly comment on recent events or make large DEI decisions can be tricky, but we want to help companies confidently make those decisions. We’re currently looking for people to beta-test our DEI Lens tool. The DEI Lens allows companies to provide their viewpoints on what they want to accomplish from a DEI perspective through a survey and analysis process, giving you a “scorecard” and a series of viewpoints that you can compare your actions against. If your company is interested in talking with us about the DEI Lens, please reach out at info@holisticindex.com.