July 24, 2025 • 31 mins
Diane Schwartz, CEO of Ragan Communications, breaks down one of the year’s most viral PR moments—the Coldplay concert “Crisis Cam”—and shares what brands should do when leadership missteps play out in public.
She also reflects on becoming Ragan’s first female CEO, why internal communications is more important than ever, and how leaders can build trust, influence, and confidence at every level. From the value of in-person connection to what today’s employees want most, this episode delivers practical insights for communicators navigating a changing workplace.
Episode Highlights
- How Diane would’ve handled the “Crisis Cam” fallout.
- The enduring value of in-person community.
- Why flexibility, recognition, and transparency matter most to employees.
- Advice for speaking up, building influence, and bouncing back from failure.
- What leadership really looks like behind the scenes.
Links and Resources
Connect with Diane Schwartz on LinkedIn
Connect with Ragan Communications on LinkedIn
Learn more about Ragan Communications
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Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
ICO is just what it is this week.
A week later or so, it's notgoing to be as funny or relevant
for a brand to latch on to this.
I think it will be referencedand people will know what it is.
I think this is good forColdplay as well, getting on
people's radar.
So there are some benefitscoming out of it, but it's also
(00:20):
indicative of how maybe you canrun, but you can't hide these
days.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Welcome back to the show.
We have a terrific episode foryou today and one that is super
timely.
My guest today is DianeSchwartz.
She is the CEO of ReaganCommunications and they run PR
Daily.
So Diane is an expert in PR,public relations and
communications and she is thefirst female CEO in Reagan
(00:58):
Communications' 57-year history.
Once you hear Diane speak todayabout communications and how to
think about how we presentourselves, what we're saying,
how we're saying it, how bodylanguage comes into effect, you
will understand why Diane hasbeen so successful at really
helping to build and acceleratethe growth at Reagan
(01:21):
Communications since she hasbeen CEO growth at Reagan
Communications since she hasbeen CEO and because I had her
on and we had some breaking news, as happens in the world around
us these days.
We talked about the incidentlast week that occurred at the
Coldplay concert in Boston witha Kiss Cam.
If you are not familiar with it, you can Google it and just
(01:43):
Google Coldplay and Kiss Cam andyou will see what I'm talking
about.
The video that emerged that hasracked up over 126 million
views and has been featured inTime CEO and the head of HR,
head of human resources, from acompany that most of us did not
(02:11):
know the name of last week untillast week, which is Astronomer
were caught on the Kiss Cam and,based on their reaction, chris
Martin, who is the lead singerof Coldplay, called them out,
said something he just mentionedoh, these people are either
having an affair or they're veryshy.
Well, it turns out that theywere having an affair and what
(02:33):
we talk about is how to thinkabout it.
How do you deal with it?
Diane gives her perspective andwhat advice she would give to
people who are going through acrisis.
Communication of a communicatorwho started her career as a
(03:08):
reporter, as an editor, andreally built up her knowledge
and expertise and now has takenover the helm of the company
Reagan Communications, and Ibelieve you will get so much
great insight from thisconversation.
With that, I'm going to let youhear my conversation with Diane
Schwartz.
Here we go, diane.
(03:31):
Welcome to the show.
Hi, thanks for having me.
Well, I'm excited to talk withyou.
I want to get into this quicklybecause it is so timely that we
had last week the news that wason everybody's screens and this
was everywhere.
At first I thought, oh, maybeit's just in my feed, and then
(03:52):
my kids were telling me it wasin there, they were bringing it
up to me and I thought, oh myGod, this is everywhere.
Of course, we're talking rightnow about the crazy debacle that
was the Coldplay Spotlight Camor the Kiss Cam.
Is that what it's called theCrisis Cam?
Maybe the Crisis Cam Well,right, exactly the Crisis Cam
(04:14):
with the CEO of Astronomer andthe Chief People Officer of
Astronomer, kind of gettingcaught on camera.
Kind of getting caught oncamera.
And because you are acommunications guru, I want to
get your take on how this wouldyou would approach something
(04:38):
like this.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Well, in this situation, act quickly and
respond.
I mean, it took off like awildfire because of social media
, of course, like any crisis.
Well, these days and yeah Iwill say this is such a popular
crisis because we're in a timeof a whole other type of crisis
(05:01):
in our, you know, in the worldtoday, and this is kind of easy
thing for people to glom on tohave some fun with, even though
it's not fun for the peopleinvolved or astronomer.
It is a respite from thegeopolitical issues and a lot of
partisan chatter you know everyday, every minute.
(05:23):
So this is sort of a, in aweird way, a salve for people
and relatable for people to sortof make fun of it or have fun
with it, but it's not a funthing for an astronomer or for
the people involved, and itwould be.
I would have advised astronomerto come clean right away about
the situation which was clearlyon screen and that they were
(05:45):
doing everything to bothinvestigate it and take action,
which in the end, they did takeaction and both executives I
believe the CEO has resigned andthe head of HR as well, but
it's for other brands.
It's a big opportunity to sortof newsjack the situation and
(06:06):
get in the news with some clever, creative videos and other
content, but from a crisisstandpoint and from a leadership
standpoint, I'm not sure who'sleading HR right now.
Who's leading HR right now?
(06:27):
It's sort of the double thetrouble, because it's an HR
person who represents employeeintegrity and making sure morale
is okay and information's beingdisseminated, and in this case,
they have a void there.
But I would advise them to takeaction immediately.
I mean, everybody can see it onscreen.
So be honest and upfront, andit's not the brand's fault that
(06:51):
this happened.
I think you know an executivethat is committing adultery in
this case.
You know this is a.
This is.
It's clearly something that Ithink, in terms of internal
communications, employees wantto see that this is our leader.
What are you doing about this?
(07:11):
Customers may be less so,depending on you know the
business, but I think they hadno choice but to allow him to
resign.
Yeah, In the end, the rightthing took place, but it's not.
The story has not ended yet.
Yeah, In the end, the rightthing took place, but it's not
the story has not ended yet.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
No, and you know, I think you're it's so interesting
because I think you're right.
This is such a heavy time froma news perspective and what's
going on in the world, you know,in the United States, outside
of the United States.
I think that weighs so heavilyon people and this feels to
(07:47):
those not directly involved.
Obviously this feels like alighter topic for people to kind
of, you know, distractthemselves.
And I think what was reallyinteresting, you know, there's
sometimes, I find, that brandsget involved in something that
they shouldn't and in this caseI found that there were some
(08:10):
really clever ways that brandsgot involved in this and pushed
out clever, either whether itwas social media posts or even
billboards.
I think Chipotle did abillboard which played on this
(08:46):
and it's everywhere.
It was all over the weekend.
Any sporting event you probablyget involved in and, I think,
by association, then I thinkthat's why maybe brands are
getting involved and maybe it isone of the easier things for
them to jump into in the newcycle versus other things.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Right, and the cycle is just what it is this week, a
week later or so.
It's not going to be funny orrelevant for a brand to latch on
to this.
I think it'll be referenced andpeople will know what it is.
I think this is good forColdplay as well, getting on
people's radar.
So there are some benefitscoming out of it, but it's also
(09:28):
indicative of how maybe you canrun, but you can't hide these
days.
Eventually you'll be caught.
You know most people get caught, so it's yeah, I think people
can relate to that.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
Well, and I think too , the other positive for it.
So there is that element of it.
But obviously you know it'sfunny because my initial
(10:07):
reaction was did astronomer dothis on purpose?
Because it was a brilliant wayfor people to get you know,
impressions and awareness forthe brand that no one probably
knew, and my understanding isthat they were they're in the
process of going public.
Maybe they've got investors andand looking to potentially go
(10:30):
public, which I guess obviouslynow this is probably not a
positive thing that two keyleaders in the company have, you
know, have, have, or at leastthe CEO I know is no longer
working there, but anyway, well,thank you for that take because
I think it is so timely andalso kind of goes into the work
you get to do day to day.
(10:51):
You are running and you havebeen running Reagan
Communications and PR Daily.
You are the CEO, but talk alittle bit about what you do day
to day.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
Reagan is a leading authority for communications
professionals and worldwide, sowe provide.
The two main things that weprovide are professional
development and community, andthese are for communications
professionals at all stages oftheir career.
And then, adjacently, we servemarketers and HR professionals,
(11:26):
and we do that through we'resort of content agnostic, if you
will so we do that through ourconferences, through our
websites.
We have a membership communitycalled the Communications
Leadership Council.
We do online training throughour Reagan training platform.
We have certificate programs oneverything from AI to media
(11:47):
relations to crisis, and sowe're all about advancing the
communicator within theirorganization, helping them to be
more influential and impactful.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
So you have run in your career many, many
conferences been a part of thatand I love that you described
Reagan first and foremost asprofessional development and
community, because in today'sday and age, where so much is
(12:20):
since COVID, so many things arenot in person, they are done
virtually.
Can you talk just a little bitabout in today's environment
what is the value of gettingpeople together and in community
in person?
Speaker 1 (12:37):
Yeah, there is nothing better than being in a
room with your peers and theinformal conversations that you
have with the people at yourtable, to be in real life with
subject matter experts on thestage and getting to meet with
them afterwards.
You know it's important.
There's nothing like bodylanguage.
You know that what you get incommunication from seeing the
(13:01):
full person you know, versuswhat right now you know from the
neck up.
So there's, you know, thelearning that can be had in
informal ways at conferences.
You can't really get that.
You mostly don't get thatvirtually.
We do offer like four.
We have 40 to 50 programsonline throughout the year.
That's learning and developmentonline throughout the year.
(13:27):
That's learning and development.
But you know we, our events,are time for also people to come
together as a community andthat's the other part of it.
There's a learning andcommunity.
It's just like any when you goto a concert or where you go to
a church or synagogue or amosque.
You know you're with your orany place where you're with your
community and talking the sametalk and learning from each
(13:48):
other.
There's nothing better thanthat.
And I guess a big change afterCOVID people coming together was
essential.
People need to get out of theirhouses, you know, or out of
their, you know.
Out of their even offices, youknow.
Houses, you know, or out oftheir, you know.
Out of their even offices, youknow into the community and
being together again.
Yet, at the same time, there'sa lot of innovation in online
(14:11):
learning.
We always have to answer thequestion well, why would
somebody need to come to thisevent if they could just learn
it online?
Right, and so that haschallenged us to get into more
of the experiential component ofconferences.
So it's not just about sittingin a room looking at a
(14:31):
PowerPoint, someone's PowerPointdeck.
It's about interactive sessions.
It's about the stuff you dooutside of the ballroom or the
classroom, things that you dotogether, fun things, networking
, that sort of thing.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
I love that.
I mean I think that also, asyou're talking, I was thinking
to myself that it is not asurprise that Reagan is really
still and very much forging intothe in-person.
You have so many great eventsand they're well attended,
because if you think about thenature of what communications
(15:08):
professionals do, when you weretalking about body language, I
mean that's a big part right ofunderstanding that if you're a
communications professional, oneof the things that you're
probably taught when you'restudying in school is to think
about body language as part ofwhat you're communicating.
It's a big part of what you'recommunicating and in today's day
(15:30):
and age we have so much onlinebut there is this nuance that
in-person gives you.
That is a big part of what iscommunicated and it's
interesting because I wonder howmuch that has affected the
industry.
There is so much that'scommunicated through how you
(15:52):
move your body and what ishappening when you are speaking.
That happened from below yourhead, let's say, down right, and
it's interesting to think abouthow that has impacted
communications just generally,and I don't mean the industry,
but just how we communicate.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
And one of the fastest growing areas of
communications is the internalcommunications practice, which
is more about employeecommunications versus PR and
external comms.
And so the need for employee,the struggle that companies have
(16:31):
now to retain especiallyyounger generations of employees
and to have them feel engagedwith the company that they work
with.
Some of that from a virtualenvironment and remote working,
where it's harder to communicateand really take the pulse of
employees when you're just likeseeing them on screen and they
(16:53):
don't feel as connected, youknow that's a real struggle on
the communications front.
So that's, we can get more intothat in a second.
The other thing I was thinkingabout with our events and what
we do for our community is onany given conference, we have
like 50 speakers or so.
A lot of them are communicators, and allowing them to get on
(17:14):
stage and to do somestorytelling and presenting
really helps them.
You know.
Strengthen that communicationsmuscle you know that
storytelling muscle.
So, we give them the stage.
You know, a lot of timesthey're behind the scenes and so
being able and mostly they'rebehind the scenes, but they
(17:35):
should be at least so givingthem that chance to be on stage
and be better at, you know,learn how to convey messages
more concisely, clearer, youknow, is something I think we
helped do as well.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, well, reagan's been around for 57 years and you
are the first female CEO in the57-year history of the company.
Can you talk a little bit abouthow that came to be and what
you feel like has maybesurprised you about that journey
to CEO?
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Backgrounds in journalism and I was running a
media group that had acompetitor in it, a brand that
was competing with ReaganCommunications.
So I got to know Mark Reagan,who's the owner of Reagan
Communications now.
I got to know him 20 some yearsago, so over two decades.
(18:28):
We built a relationshipsomewhat competitive, but it got
to the point where about sixyears ago and he was obviously
thinking about moving away fromthe bit, you know maybe
semi-retiring handing over thebaton.
So he literally asked me thequestion what do you think about
(18:48):
running Reagan?
And I kind of laughed at officeat first because of our casual
conversations we've had aboutbusiness, and then I had that
aha moment or question like whynot?
So that was sort of that pinchme moment and we've had such a
strong relationship and trustedrelationship over the years.
(19:11):
So it seemed natural, you know,to take this over and it gave
me the chance to not only coverthe communication space but to
run a company, which I had neverdone before, and so I got to
learn a lot of new things.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
For people listening who have an interest in, at some
point, making the leap to CEOor running their own company.
What do you think is the mostimportant thing for someone to
think about when they move intothat role in terms of how they
look at the business?
(19:48):
I know there are probably a tonof things, but is there one
piece of advice or importantelement that you think people
should know?
Speaker 1 (19:56):
Well, first, in thinking about how I got here, I
think one of the key things forme was I focused a lot on the
work itself, the work thatneeded to be done.
You know versus, you knowputting a woman in place as a
CEO or just sort of posturing inany way it was really about.
(20:17):
I knew that I brought a lot ofstrength to the to this role
because I knew the, I knew aboutcommunications, I did the work,
I came in with knowledge and Ialso knew a lot about employee
communications.
You know, sort of like eat yourown dog food kind of thing it's
(20:38):
.
You know we cover this space.
So I knew that listening wouldbe really important coming into
this role.
And even when I think back whenmy first year leading Reagan, I
knew that listening would bereally important coming into
this role, and even when I thinkback on my first year leading
Reagan, I probably should havelistened even more carefully to
some of the things that theexisting employees were saying.
You know, when I asked fortheir advice, what would you do
(21:00):
in this case or that case, as Iwas getting to know everybody?
In retrospect I'm like I thinkthat person was right.
I should have X, y, z, you know, but you kind of have to make a
few, you have to make decisions, you have to show that you can
make decisions.
So when I knew some of themmight've been the wrong
decisions, but I've alwaysprided myself on being able to
(21:23):
fail fast, move on, learn fromit.
So that's the other part of it.
The sky isn't falling, you know, if I do something wrong.
I think that's a key thing toremember.
Almost about you knoweverything, except for unless
you're a doctor and you'resaving people's lives or
something like you know, you'resaving people's lives In other
(21:44):
communications.
Nothing is sort of life livesIn communications.
Nothing is sort oflife-threatening.
I'm a generally calm person soI think that served me well and
I was surrounded by reallytalented people and I needed all
these great people around me tobe successful in my role.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I think that we grow up and go through a schooling
system that that teaches usfailure is bad, failure is bad.
And then you get dumped intothe working world and you are
fearful of failing.
But I think as you grow in lifeand in career, you realize that
(22:21):
you're going to make mistakes,mistakes are going to happen.
It's all about understandinghow do I learn from that mistake
and how do I move forward, andit's the recognition that you're
going to make mistakes andthat's okay.
In thinking about this podcast,this podcast is called Women of
(22:45):
Influence.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
I would love if you could talk about what influence
means to you, to me it meanspositively impacting the
community that I serve and thestakeholders around me so that
they have also the courage andconviction to take action in
meaningful ways.
Influence is something you earn.
(23:09):
You can't tell people you'reinfluential.
You have to.
You know you earn it throughmerit and through trust and we
try aside from how I see it formyself we try really hard at
Reagan to help communicatorsgain more influence in the roles
that they're in.
(23:30):
You know, and a lot of that hasto do with listening.
A lot of that has to do withthe courage to speak up.
You know, because people can'tread your mind.
So you're not going to have alot of influence if you're not
speaking up and just spendingall your time listening.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
I can remember sitting in meetings earlier in
my career and a woman would saysomething and it would kind of
be like, okay, and then a guywould raise his hand and say
almost the same exact thing thatthe woman just said, but he'd
say it differently.
Say almost the same exact thingthat the woman just said, but
(24:10):
he'd say it differently, and thewhole room would go, oh, oh,
that's a great idea.
But I say that, yes, I'vedefinitely seen that happen
between women and men, but Ithink it also happens within.
Like you know, a woman will saysomething and another woman
will pick it up and say it in abetter way.
A woman will say something andanother woman will pick it up
and say it in a better way.
I just want to get yourperspective as a communications
(24:34):
professional and an expert onwhat can people do and how
should they think about a coreof how do they communicate.
When they have an idea, thenthey raise their hands in that
room, what is important for themto think about when they're
communicating, whatever it isthat they want to say.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
I would start with the idea I mentioned before,
which is know your stuff right.
If you understand the subjectmatter, whatever it may be,
whether it's a recent currentevent or it's something you know
(25:11):
, some intense topic that youneed to study up on If you know
what you're about to talk about,if you truly understand it and
comprehend the subject matter,then you're going to have a lot
more confidence to speak up.
If you're faking it just to saysomething, or you're using AI to
(25:31):
tell you what to say, forexample which I think we might
see happening more and more thenit's going to show and you're
going to not feel right.
It's not going to feel right andthe more confidence you have in
this, in the work that you'redoing, the easier it is and the
more authentic it's going to beto speak up and you're going to
(25:53):
get that positive reinforcement.
And so it goes back to you know, like doing the work and there
are a lot of shortcuts we cantake and there are a lot of
great tools now at our disposalto tell us how to think and what
to do and how to say.
But if you, you know you'restill a human being with a brain
and just like, use it, and thatwould be my best advice, cause
(26:16):
I am.
I can guarantee you that if youknow what you're talking about
and you raise your hand andyou're able to share it in a way
that proves you know you haveknowledge, you're going to just
it's a multiplier effect for you.
You're going to continue to dothat.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
I love that.
It's great advice and I thinkcertainly earlier you're growing
your career, understanding whatyou're talking about, the
subject matter and really beinga sponge and absorbing as much
as you possibly can.
Can you just share a little bit, because I do think that this
(26:55):
is such a hot topic in this dayand age?
One's thinking about gettingpeople back to the offices and
how jobs should work.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat you think employees are
expecting from their employersin this environment?
Speaker 1 (27:13):
I would say the number one and this bears out in
our we just were coming outwith our salary survey and
culture report workplace culturereport and the number one thing
that employees say that theywant more of is flexibility.
It's almost like 60% said thatthat is what is most satisfying
(27:35):
about their job, is theemployer's flexibility, and that
pertains to mostly, you know,working in the office or the
work hours in the office remoteand just being flexible.
I think you could extend thatto other types of flexibility
and trusting the employee.
We have at least fivegenerations in the workplace
(27:57):
right now, so what Gen X wantsand what Gen Alpha wants are
often going to be very different.
So, obviously, understandinggenerational differences and
meeting them where they're at tosome extent, I also think that
employers can be too flexibleand people like, I think people
(28:21):
like roles and some guardrails,you know, within an organization
, so some companies can go toofar, you know, on that front.
But I would say flexibility,transparency from senior
leadership.
That has not changed.
I mean.
You asked me that question 20years ago.
It should be the same answer,right?
(28:43):
Maybe flexibility would havebeen less of the top of the list
, but I'd say transparency,diversity of opinion.
I mean I the word diversity isnow a very charged word, but I'm
talking about different kindsof opinions and that means
having different kinds ofbackgrounds in your
(29:05):
organizations of all different.
You know, I can, we can definethat in a lot of different ways.
And then the last thing isrecognition.
Employees want to be publiclyrecognized.
They, you know, they, they, insome ways, you know, we say they
say people leave their manager,you know if they leave a
company.
(29:25):
So recognition by their manager, recognition by their peers, by
senior leadership.
Speaker 2 (29:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
Same thing 20 years ago, so a lot of the same best
practices.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
I love that, and I'm glad that you said that about
the recognition, because I wouldagree that, like transparency,
it is the thing that isconsistent over many years of
work.
I think it is so important tomake sure that people are being
told, hey, you did a good jobhere, and being told that in an
(30:00):
environment that helps them feelgood about it, and I love that.
Well, my last question for you,diane, as we wrap up, is if you
could go back and give youryounger self one piece of advice
, what would that be?
Speaker 1 (30:18):
Less second-guessing myself and overthinking how to
be liked versus how to be heard,Going back to having a voice in
the room.
You know, I would wish I hadcared less about what people
thought of me and more about howto make a difference and make
(30:44):
things happen.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I love that.
What great advice and what agreat way to end this
conversation.
Thank you so much for spendingthis time with us today.
If people want to follow you orthe work that you are doing at
Reagan, what is the best way forthem to do that?
Speaker 1 (31:01):
Yeah, I'm on LinkedIn under Diane Schwartz.
My email is dianes at reagancom.
So I'm on all the most of thesocial networks, so I hope that
you will connect with me andthank you so much for having me
today, my pleasure.
Thanks for doing this today.
ICO is just what it is this week.
A week later or so, it's notgoing to be as funny or relevant
for a brand to latch on to this.
I think it will be referencedand people will know what it is.
I think this is good forColdplay as well, getting on
people's radar.
So there are some benefitscoming out of it, but it's also
(00:20):
indicative of how maybe you canrun, but you can't hide these
days.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Welcome back to the show.
We have a terrific episode foryou today and one that is super
timely.
My guest today is DianeSchwartz.
She is the CEO of ReaganCommunications and they run PR
Daily.
So Diane is an expert in PR,public relations and
communications and she is thefirst female CEO in Reagan
(00:58):
Communications' 57-year history.
Once you hear Diane speak todayabout communications and how to
think about how we presentourselves, what we're saying,
how we're saying it, how bodylanguage comes into effect, you
will understand why Diane hasbeen so successful at really
helping to build and acceleratethe growth at Reagan
(01:21):
Communications since she hasbeen CEO growth at Reagan
Communications since she hasbeen CEO and because I had her
on and we had some breaking news, as happens in the world around
us these days.
We talked about the incidentlast week that occurred at the
Coldplay concert in Boston witha Kiss Cam.
If you are not familiar with it, you can Google it and just
(01:43):
Google Coldplay and Kiss Cam andyou will see what I'm talking
about.
The video that emerged that hasracked up over 126 million
views and has been featured inTime CEO and the head of HR,
head of human resources, from acompany that most of us did not
(02:11):
know the name of last week untillast week, which is Astronomer
were caught on the Kiss Cam and,based on their reaction, chris
Martin, who is the lead singerof Coldplay, called them out,
said something he just mentionedoh, these people are either
having an affair or they're veryshy.
Well, it turns out that theywere having an affair and what
(02:33):
we talk about is how to thinkabout it.
How do you deal with it?
Diane gives her perspective andwhat advice she would give to
people who are going through acrisis.
Communication of a communicatorwho started her career as a
(03:08):
reporter, as an editor, andreally built up her knowledge
and expertise and now has takenover the helm of the company
Reagan Communications, and Ibelieve you will get so much
great insight from thisconversation.
With that, I'm going to let youhear my conversation with Diane
Schwartz.
Here we go, diane.
(03:31):
Welcome to the show.
Hi, thanks for having me.
Well, I'm excited to talk withyou.
I want to get into this quicklybecause it is so timely that we
had last week the news that wason everybody's screens and this
was everywhere.
At first I thought, oh, maybeit's just in my feed, and then
(03:52):
my kids were telling me it wasin there, they were bringing it
up to me and I thought, oh myGod, this is everywhere.
Of course, we're talking rightnow about the crazy debacle that
was the Coldplay Spotlight Camor the Kiss Cam.
Is that what it's called theCrisis Cam?
Maybe the Crisis Cam Well,right, exactly the Crisis Cam
(04:14):
with the CEO of Astronomer andthe Chief People Officer of
Astronomer, kind of gettingcaught on camera.
Kind of getting caught oncamera.
And because you are acommunications guru, I want to
get your take on how this wouldyou would approach something
(04:38):
like this.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Well, in this situation, act quickly and
respond.
I mean, it took off like awildfire because of social media
, of course, like any crisis.
Well, these days and yeah Iwill say this is such a popular
crisis because we're in a timeof a whole other type of crisis
(05:01):
in our, you know, in the worldtoday, and this is kind of easy
thing for people to glom on tohave some fun with, even though
it's not fun for the peopleinvolved or astronomer.
It is a respite from thegeopolitical issues and a lot of
partisan chatter you know everyday, every minute.
(05:23):
So this is sort of a, in aweird way, a salve for people
and relatable for people to sortof make fun of it or have fun
with it, but it's not a funthing for an astronomer or for
the people involved, and itwould be.
I would have advised astronomerto come clean right away about
the situation which was clearlyon screen and that they were
(05:45):
doing everything to bothinvestigate it and take action,
which in the end, they did takeaction and both executives I
believe the CEO has resigned andthe head of HR as well, but
it's for other brands.
It's a big opportunity to sortof newsjack the situation and
(06:06):
get in the news with some clever, creative videos and other
content, but from a crisisstandpoint and from a leadership
standpoint, I'm not sure who'sleading HR right now.
Who's leading HR right now?
(06:27):
It's sort of the double thetrouble, because it's an HR
person who represents employeeintegrity and making sure morale
is okay and information's beingdisseminated, and in this case,
they have a void there.
But I would advise them to takeaction immediately.
I mean, everybody can see it onscreen.
So be honest and upfront, andit's not the brand's fault that
(06:51):
this happened.
I think you know an executivethat is committing adultery in
this case.
You know this is a.
This is.
It's clearly something that Ithink, in terms of internal
communications, employees wantto see that this is our leader.
What are you doing about this?
(07:11):
Customers may be less so,depending on you know the
business, but I think they hadno choice but to allow him to
resign.
Yeah, In the end, the rightthing took place, but it's not.
The story has not ended yet.
Yeah, In the end, the rightthing took place, but it's not
the story has not ended yet.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
No, and you know, I think you're it's so interesting
because I think you're right.
This is such a heavy time froma news perspective and what's
going on in the world, you know,in the United States, outside
of the United States.
I think that weighs so heavilyon people and this feels to
(07:47):
those not directly involved.
Obviously this feels like alighter topic for people to kind
of, you know, distractthemselves.
And I think what was reallyinteresting, you know, there's
sometimes, I find, that brandsget involved in something that
they shouldn't and in this caseI found that there were some
(08:10):
really clever ways that brandsgot involved in this and pushed
out clever, either whether itwas social media posts or even
billboards.
I think Chipotle did abillboard which played on this
(08:46):
and it's everywhere.
It was all over the weekend.
Any sporting event you probablyget involved in and, I think,
by association, then I thinkthat's why maybe brands are
getting involved and maybe it isone of the easier things for
them to jump into in the newcycle versus other things.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Right, and the cycle is just what it is this week, a
week later or so.
It's not going to be funny orrelevant for a brand to latch on
to this.
I think it'll be referenced andpeople will know what it is.
I think this is good forColdplay as well, getting on
people's radar.
So there are some benefitscoming out of it, but it's also
(09:28):
indicative of how maybe you canrun, but you can't hide these
days.
Eventually you'll be caught.
You know most people get caught, so it's yeah, I think people
can relate to that.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
Well, and I think too , the other positive for it.
So there is that element of it.
But obviously you know it'sfunny because my initial
(10:07):
reaction was did astronomer dothis on purpose?
Because it was a brilliant wayfor people to get you know,
impressions and awareness forthe brand that no one probably
knew, and my understanding isthat they were they're in the
process of going public.
Maybe they've got investors andand looking to potentially go
(10:30):
public, which I guess obviouslynow this is probably not a
positive thing that two keyleaders in the company have, you
know, have, have, or at leastthe CEO I know is no longer
working there, but anyway, well,thank you for that take because
I think it is so timely andalso kind of goes into the work
you get to do day to day.
(10:51):
You are running and you havebeen running Reagan
Communications and PR Daily.
You are the CEO, but talk alittle bit about what you do day
to day.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
Reagan is a leading authority for communications
professionals and worldwide, sowe provide.
The two main things that weprovide are professional
development and community, andthese are for communications
professionals at all stages oftheir career.
And then, adjacently, we servemarketers and HR professionals,
(11:26):
and we do that through we'resort of content agnostic, if you
will so we do that through ourconferences, through our
websites.
We have a membership communitycalled the Communications
Leadership Council.
We do online training throughour Reagan training platform.
We have certificate programs oneverything from AI to media
(11:47):
relations to crisis, and sowe're all about advancing the
communicator within theirorganization, helping them to be
more influential and impactful.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
So you have run in your career many, many
conferences been a part of thatand I love that you described
Reagan first and foremost asprofessional development and
community, because in today'sday and age, where so much is
(12:20):
since COVID, so many things arenot in person, they are done
virtually.
Can you talk just a little bitabout in today's environment
what is the value of gettingpeople together and in community
in person?
Speaker 1 (12:37):
Yeah, there is nothing better than being in a
room with your peers and theinformal conversations that you
have with the people at yourtable, to be in real life with
subject matter experts on thestage and getting to meet with
them afterwards.
You know it's important.
There's nothing like bodylanguage.
You know that what you get incommunication from seeing the
(13:01):
full person you know, versuswhat right now you know from the
neck up.
So there's, you know, thelearning that can be had in
informal ways at conferences.
You can't really get that.
You mostly don't get thatvirtually.
We do offer like four.
We have 40 to 50 programsonline throughout the year.
That's learning and developmentonline throughout the year.
(13:27):
That's learning and development.
But you know we, our events,are time for also people to come
together as a community andthat's the other part of it.
There's a learning andcommunity.
It's just like any when you goto a concert or where you go to
a church or synagogue or amosque.
You know you're with your orany place where you're with your
community and talking the sametalk and learning from each
(13:48):
other.
There's nothing better thanthat.
And I guess a big change afterCOVID people coming together was
essential.
People need to get out of theirhouses, you know, or out of
their, you know.
Out of their even offices, youknow.
Houses, you know, or out oftheir, you know.
Out of their even offices, youknow into the community and
being together again.
Yet, at the same time, there'sa lot of innovation in online
(14:11):
learning.
We always have to answer thequestion well, why would
somebody need to come to thisevent if they could just learn
it online?
Right, and so that haschallenged us to get into more
of the experiential component ofconferences.
So it's not just about sittingin a room looking at a
(14:31):
PowerPoint, someone's PowerPointdeck.
It's about interactive sessions.
It's about the stuff you dooutside of the ballroom or the
classroom, things that you dotogether, fun things, networking
, that sort of thing.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
I love that.
I mean I think that also, asyou're talking, I was thinking
to myself that it is not asurprise that Reagan is really
still and very much forging intothe in-person.
You have so many great eventsand they're well attended,
because if you think about thenature of what communications
(15:08):
professionals do, when you weretalking about body language, I
mean that's a big part right ofunderstanding that if you're a
communications professional, oneof the things that you're
probably taught when you'restudying in school is to think
about body language as part ofwhat you're communicating.
It's a big part of what you'recommunicating and in today's day
(15:30):
and age we have so much onlinebut there is this nuance that
in-person gives you.
That is a big part of what iscommunicated and it's
interesting because I wonder howmuch that has affected the
industry.
There is so much that'scommunicated through how you
(15:52):
move your body and what ishappening when you are speaking.
That happened from below yourhead, let's say, down right, and
it's interesting to think abouthow that has impacted
communications just generally,and I don't mean the industry,
but just how we communicate.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
And one of the fastest growing areas of
communications is the internalcommunications practice, which
is more about employeecommunications versus PR and
external comms.
And so the need for employee,the struggle that companies have
(16:31):
now to retain especiallyyounger generations of employees
and to have them feel engagedwith the company that they work
with.
Some of that from a virtualenvironment and remote working,
where it's harder to communicateand really take the pulse of
employees when you're just likeseeing them on screen and they
(16:53):
don't feel as connected, youknow that's a real struggle on
the communications front.
So that's, we can get more intothat in a second.
The other thing I was thinkingabout with our events and what
we do for our community is onany given conference, we have
like 50 speakers or so.
A lot of them are communicators, and allowing them to get on
(17:14):
stage and to do somestorytelling and presenting
really helps them.
You know.
Strengthen that communicationsmuscle you know that
storytelling muscle.
So, we give them the stage.
You know, a lot of timesthey're behind the scenes and so
being able and mostly they'rebehind the scenes, but they
(17:35):
should be at least so givingthem that chance to be on stage
and be better at, you know,learn how to convey messages
more concisely, clearer, youknow, is something I think we
helped do as well.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, well, reagan's been around for 57 years and you
are the first female CEO in the57-year history of the company.
Can you talk a little bit abouthow that came to be and what
you feel like has maybesurprised you about that journey
to CEO?
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Backgrounds in journalism and I was running a
media group that had acompetitor in it, a brand that
was competing with ReaganCommunications.
So I got to know Mark Reagan,who's the owner of Reagan
Communications now.
I got to know him 20 some yearsago, so over two decades.
(18:28):
We built a relationshipsomewhat competitive, but it got
to the point where about sixyears ago and he was obviously
thinking about moving away fromthe bit, you know maybe
semi-retiring handing over thebaton.
So he literally asked me thequestion what do you think about
(18:48):
running Reagan?
And I kind of laughed at officeat first because of our casual
conversations we've had aboutbusiness, and then I had that
aha moment or question like whynot?
So that was sort of that pinchme moment and we've had such a
strong relationship and trustedrelationship over the years.
(19:11):
So it seemed natural, you know,to take this over and it gave
me the chance to not only coverthe communication space but to
run a company, which I had neverdone before, and so I got to
learn a lot of new things.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
For people listening who have an interest in, at some
point, making the leap to CEOor running their own company.
What do you think is the mostimportant thing for someone to
think about when they move intothat role in terms of how they
look at the business?
(19:48):
I know there are probably a tonof things, but is there one
piece of advice or importantelement that you think people
should know?
Speaker 1 (19:56):
Well, first, in thinking about how I got here, I
think one of the key things forme was I focused a lot on the
work itself, the work thatneeded to be done.
You know versus, you knowputting a woman in place as a
CEO or just sort of posturing inany way it was really about.
(20:17):
I knew that I brought a lot ofstrength to the to this role
because I knew the, I knew aboutcommunications, I did the work,
I came in with knowledge and Ialso knew a lot about employee
communications.
You know, sort of like eat yourown dog food kind of thing it's
(20:38):
.
You know we cover this space.
So I knew that listening wouldbe really important coming into
this role.
And even when I think back whenmy first year leading Reagan, I
knew that listening would bereally important coming into
this role, and even when I thinkback on my first year leading
Reagan, I probably should havelistened even more carefully to
some of the things that theexisting employees were saying.
You know, when I asked fortheir advice, what would you do
(21:00):
in this case or that case, as Iwas getting to know everybody?
In retrospect I'm like I thinkthat person was right.
I should have X, y, z, you know, but you kind of have to make a
few, you have to make decisions, you have to show that you can
make decisions.
So when I knew some of themmight've been the wrong
decisions, but I've alwaysprided myself on being able to
(21:23):
fail fast, move on, learn fromit.
So that's the other part of it.
The sky isn't falling, you know, if I do something wrong.
I think that's a key thing toremember.
Almost about you knoweverything, except for unless
you're a doctor and you'resaving people's lives or
something like you know, you'resaving people's lives In other
(21:44):
communications.
Nothing is sort of life livesIn communications.
Nothing is sort oflife-threatening.
I'm a generally calm person soI think that served me well and
I was surrounded by reallytalented people and I needed all
these great people around me tobe successful in my role.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I think that we grow up and go through a schooling
system that that teaches usfailure is bad, failure is bad.
And then you get dumped intothe working world and you are
fearful of failing.
But I think as you grow in lifeand in career, you realize that
(22:21):
you're going to make mistakes,mistakes are going to happen.
It's all about understandinghow do I learn from that mistake
and how do I move forward, andit's the recognition that you're
going to make mistakes andthat's okay.
In thinking about this podcast,this podcast is called Women of
(22:45):
Influence.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
I would love if you could talk about what influence
means to you, to me it meanspositively impacting the
community that I serve and thestakeholders around me so that
they have also the courage andconviction to take action in
meaningful ways.
Influence is something you earn.
(23:09):
You can't tell people you'reinfluential.
You have to.
You know you earn it throughmerit and through trust and we
try aside from how I see it formyself we try really hard at
Reagan to help communicatorsgain more influence in the roles
that they're in.
(23:30):
You know, and a lot of that hasto do with listening.
A lot of that has to do withthe courage to speak up.
You know, because people can'tread your mind.
So you're not going to have alot of influence if you're not
speaking up and just spendingall your time listening.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
I can remember sitting in meetings earlier in
my career and a woman would saysomething and it would kind of
be like, okay, and then a guywould raise his hand and say
almost the same exact thing thatthe woman just said, but he'd
say it differently.
Say almost the same exact thingthat the woman just said, but
(24:10):
he'd say it differently, and thewhole room would go, oh, oh,
that's a great idea.
But I say that, yes, I'vedefinitely seen that happen
between women and men, but Ithink it also happens within.
Like you know, a woman will saysomething and another woman
will pick it up and say it in abetter way.
A woman will say something andanother woman will pick it up
and say it in a better way.
I just want to get yourperspective as a communications
(24:34):
professional and an expert onwhat can people do and how
should they think about a coreof how do they communicate.
When they have an idea, thenthey raise their hands in that
room, what is important for themto think about when they're
communicating, whatever it isthat they want to say.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
I would start with the idea I mentioned before,
which is know your stuff right.
If you understand the subjectmatter, whatever it may be,
whether it's a recent currentevent or it's something you know
(25:11):
, some intense topic that youneed to study up on If you know
what you're about to talk about,if you truly understand it and
comprehend the subject matter,then you're going to have a lot
more confidence to speak up.
If you're faking it just to saysomething, or you're using AI to
(25:31):
tell you what to say, forexample which I think we might
see happening more and more thenit's going to show and you're
going to not feel right.
It's not going to feel right andthe more confidence you have in
this, in the work that you'redoing, the easier it is and the
more authentic it's going to beto speak up and you're going to
(25:53):
get that positive reinforcement.
And so it goes back to you know, like doing the work and there
are a lot of shortcuts we cantake and there are a lot of
great tools now at our disposalto tell us how to think and what
to do and how to say.
But if you, you know you'restill a human being with a brain
and just like, use it, and thatwould be my best advice, cause
(26:16):
I am.
I can guarantee you that if youknow what you're talking about
and you raise your hand andyou're able to share it in a way
that proves you know you haveknowledge, you're going to just
it's a multiplier effect for you.
You're going to continue to dothat.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
I love that.
It's great advice and I thinkcertainly earlier you're growing
your career, understanding whatyou're talking about, the
subject matter and really beinga sponge and absorbing as much
as you possibly can.
Can you just share a little bit, because I do think that this
(26:55):
is such a hot topic in this dayand age?
One's thinking about gettingpeople back to the offices and
how jobs should work.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat you think employees are
expecting from their employersin this environment?
Speaker 1 (27:13):
I would say the number one and this bears out in
our we just were coming outwith our salary survey and
culture report workplace culturereport and the number one thing
that employees say that theywant more of is flexibility.
It's almost like 60% said thatthat is what is most satisfying
(27:35):
about their job, is theemployer's flexibility, and that
pertains to mostly, you know,working in the office or the
work hours in the office remoteand just being flexible.
I think you could extend thatto other types of flexibility
and trusting the employee.
We have at least fivegenerations in the workplace
(27:57):
right now, so what Gen X wantsand what Gen Alpha wants are
often going to be very different.
So, obviously, understandinggenerational differences and
meeting them where they're at tosome extent, I also think that
employers can be too flexibleand people like, I think people
(28:21):
like roles and some guardrails,you know, within an organization
, so some companies can go toofar, you know, on that front.
But I would say flexibility,transparency from senior
leadership.
That has not changed.
I mean.
You asked me that question 20years ago.
It should be the same answer,right?
(28:43):
Maybe flexibility would havebeen less of the top of the list
, but I'd say transparency,diversity of opinion.
I mean I the word diversity isnow a very charged word, but I'm
talking about different kindsof opinions and that means
having different kinds ofbackgrounds in your
(29:05):
organizations of all different.
You know, I can, we can definethat in a lot of different ways.
And then the last thing isrecognition.
Employees want to be publiclyrecognized.
They, you know, they, they, insome ways, you know, we say they
say people leave their manager,you know if they leave a
company.
(29:25):
So recognition by their manager, recognition by their peers, by
senior leadership.
Speaker 2 (29:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
Same thing 20 years ago, so a lot of the same best
practices.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
I love that, and I'm glad that you said that about
the recognition, because I wouldagree that, like transparency,
it is the thing that isconsistent over many years of
work.
I think it is so important tomake sure that people are being
told, hey, you did a good jobhere, and being told that in an
(30:00):
environment that helps them feelgood about it, and I love that.
Well, my last question for you,diane, as we wrap up, is if you
could go back and give youryounger self one piece of advice
, what would that be?
Speaker 1 (30:18):
Less second-guessing myself and overthinking how to
be liked versus how to be heard,Going back to having a voice in
the room.
You know, I would wish I hadcared less about what people
thought of me and more about howto make a difference and make
(30:44):
things happen.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I love that.
What great advice and what agreat way to end this
conversation.
Thank you so much for spendingthis time with us today.
If people want to follow you orthe work that you are doing at
Reagan, what is the best way forthem to do that?
Speaker 1 (31:01):
Yeah, I'm on LinkedIn under Diane Schwartz.
My email is dianes at reagancom.
So I'm on all the most of thesocial networks, so I hope that
you will connect with me andthank you so much for having me
today, my pleasure.
Thanks for doing this today.
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