Saturday, August 30, 2025
Saturday, August 30, 2025
By Sia Papageorgiou, Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence:
I’ve spent the last 10 years teaching communication professionals to step up and own their strategic space. To stop waiting for permission from the C-suite and start influencing and shaping culture, managing risk and building trust.
But maybe I was wrong.
Maybe we’re not cut out for this.
Because let’s be honest, how many more reports do we need to tell us that just 17% of executives feel their communication and public affairs functions are well equipped to navigate the current environment?
The reality is:
If our profession hasn’t figured this out by now, maybe we never will.
Maybe we are the people who draft talking points after the real decisions are made. Maybe getting a seat at the decision-making table is a fairytale. Maybe we should stop trying to lead and just settle for being the best corporate wordsmiths we can be.
Because that’s easier, isn’t it? No pressure to understand the business. No need to challenge thinking. No awkward moments when you ask, “What’s the business risk here?” and the room goes quiet.
Stay tactical. Stay comfortable. Let someone else shape the strategy.
Of course, I don’t actually believe that.
But the longer we resist building the skills leaders expect, the more likely that cynical narrative becomes reality.
Most business leaders don’t speak communication. They speak performance, risk, growth, culture and reputation. And they expect us to connect the dots for them.
Our interviews with executives make it clear:
Every time I run a strategic communication management training program I see it – brilliant communication professionals struggling to earn influence because they’ve been taught to focus on the wrong things.
It’s time to stop talking about being more strategic and show it.
Our credibility suffers when we hide behind communication jargon or focus on deliverables no one cares about.
What to do instead:
Lead every plan, meeting or conversation with the business objective – i.e., what is the business issue and how can your communication make a difference?
How:
When your leader says, “We need a campaign for this,” push back respectfully but firmly:
Frame your response around their world:
So, if you don’t know how your organisation makes money, what drives growth or where the risks sit, that’s your starting point.
Let’s be honest, most communication professionals still get brought in way too late, when everything’s been decided and all that’s left is execution.
What to do instead:
Position yourself as a risk mitigator and strategic sounding board.
How:
Track organisational shifts like restructures, leadership changes, market pressure, and offer insight before being asked (i.e., always come from a place of service):
When you demonstrate your value early, you stop being the person they call on last.
Outputs aren’t outcomes. But we continue to drown leaders in dashboards packed with numbers that mean very little.
What to do instead:
Stop reporting what you did and start reporting what’s changed (i.e., knowledge, attitudes, behaviours). But to do that, you need to have the right measures in place.
How:
Instead of:
Say (after you’ve measured said right things):
Leaders don’t care about how many channels you used. They want to know if communication influenced trust, confidence or performance.
The world isn’t getting simpler. We’re surrounded by volatility – AI, societal tensions, stakeholder expectations, disruption – that’s our new normal.
The most valued communication professionals help leaders navigate that ambiguity.
What to do instead:
Develop resilience within your team so you can anticipate, adapt and advise. Be on the lookout for emerging issues that could impact your organisation and use those insights to shape your communication approach.
How:
For example, when introducing new technology like AI tools or digital platforms, don’t just execute the communication plan. Create space for real conversations about fears, ethics and trust gaps, then co-create messaging that builds confidence and credibility.
Influence isn’t handed to us. You earn it by being relevant, understanding your business, and having the guts to lead beyond your comfort zone.
I say this because I believe in our profession, and in its power to transform organisations, shape culture and navigate uncertainty.
But belief isn’t enough. Action is.
So, we’ve got two options:
Stay comfortable and stay sidelined.
Or get comfortable being uncomfortable by leaning in, speaking up and leading.
No one’s lowering the bar.
And neither should we.
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Sia Papageorgiou is Co-Founder of the Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence and is a Strategic Columnist and a #WeLeadComms honoree.
Written by: Editor
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Sia,
I could not agree with you more. I often recommend that organizational communicators take a line operating position for a while so that they understand firsthand the pressures and priorities leaders and managers have. It’s one thing to hear about those things and another entirely to live them. A sidebar career shift for a bit makes it all so much more real and gives the communicator passion and power to take that ever-elusive seat at the executive table. The communicator who has ‘been there’ has earned credibility beyond their skill as a communicator – bonus: communicators generally make great team leaders because they can communicate – it’s a win/win.
Jacqui d’Eon