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H e S S e l b e I n & C o m P a n Y

by Jane Jordan-Meier

aPPearaNCeS do Matter: LeaderSHIP IN a CrISIS

W e like to think that we won’t be judged by our appearances—our actions and our visual image. But we are. appearances do matter, and nowhere is this more evident for leaders than in a crisis. Successful performance in times of stress turns leaders

into household heroes, indeed statesmen and women. Failed leadership in times of high stress turns leaders into scapegoats, and their failures will haunt them and their organizations forever.

Leaders need to be seen and heard. they need to be visible. In a crisis, it is all about how things look. Just think of BP’s tony Hayward and President George W. Bush. Both got it very wrong. the hapless Hayward clearly misunderstood the meaning of “how things look” when he chose to go sailing (with his son) rather than focusing (and being seen to focus) 24/7 on the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. and Bush also got it wrong in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina; he took a full three days to respond properly. He wasn’t there, and his misjudgment of priorities looked bad.

alternately there is rudy Giuliani, who became a hero and household name the world over as New York mayor on September 11, 2001. He inherently understood that a crisis is a defining moment. although he had been under fire for aspects of his mayoralty, the post-9/11 Giuliani won national and international acclaim as a leader. He was everywhere, all day long, answering every question. He was highly visible, accessible, sharing New Yorkers’ grief yet reassuring the city that “we’ll come through the tragedy, together.” a combination of resolve, reassurance, courage, and compassion rallied the city and the United States.

Many long-time Giuliani critics were moved by the mayor’s performance, praising him for the “right emotional tone” and, most important of all, providing the right sympathetic vibration. the question is, then—how will you stack up? Will you provide that reassur-

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Crisis is a defining moment.

day in and day out, appearances slowly shape our reputa-tions as leaders. How you react in a crisis will determine if your career and leadership are destined for greatness or if your report card will be marked with a failing grade. You need to be smart about it (that is, prepared), and not trust it to luck or act like it doesn’t matter. It does matter!

Simply knowing and understanding about how things look and being visible is not enough; you have to feel it. It is visceral. audiences literally react at a very deep gut level to a leader, particularly in a crisis, and will in-stantaneously make a decision whether to trust or not.

Not only does it take a nanosecond to make a judg-ment based on body language, but people are con-stantly making those decisions when the stakes are high. Carol Kinsey Goman, author of The Nonver-bal Advantage: Secrets and Science of Body Language at Work, says that people are “continually processing a continual cascade of nonverbal cues that they use as a basis for evaluating trust and credibility.”

Sometimes it is the clothes you are wearing, the color of your tie or suit, or the ways your eyes move up or down, or your stance that leads the audience to make a less-than-flattering decision about your leadership.

People are much quicker and more judgmental at spotting inconsistencies when times are tough. Leaders should not underestimate that every twitch of facial muscle is interpreted consciously and unconsciously. When people look at leaders they are constantly trying to interpret cues that are often subliminal.

and today the perils of subliminal and nonverbal lan-guage are there for all to see, thanks to the digital age. Huge flat-screen televisions make every expression larger than life; smart phones snap our every move and sud-denly the holiday shot becomes an Internet sensation.

Quite frankly, it is easy to look unimpressive. Keeping up appearances takes time, careful thought, deliberate

ance, compassion, and support in a crisis? Will you be seen and heard? Will you provide the right vibrations or be inert? What will people say? Will they still be talking about your ill-conceived comments like tony Hayward’s “I want my life back” or praising your lead-ership? What will be your legacy?

Bush’s delay and Hayward’s time-out, not to mention his now infamous comment, are indelibly on their re-cords—forever.

Leadership in a crisis is as much about managing appear-ances and perception as it is about the actual management of the crisis. research from the Human dynamics Group at the Massachusetts Institute of technology’s Media Lab, as well as research centers at Xerox and Intel, shows that people are more likely to be convinced by the sort of signals most leaders overlook—tone of voice and body language—than by the content of the words spoken.

those signals are interpreted and judgments are made at lightning speed; it takes just a staggering 115 milli-seconds for people to make a judgment based on body language. “Phony expressions usually do not fool us,” says Professor Beatrice de Gelder, a cognitive neuro-scientist at tilburg University in the Netherlands and Harvard Medical School.

Martin Newman, author of the 2008 “Shaken Not Stirred” report, says, “People are much quicker at spotting inconsistencies when times are tough. Ceos should never underestimate that every twitch of their facial expression is interpreted. When people are look-ing at leaders, they are constantly trying to interpret them in ways that are often subliminal.” the report (from the Company agency in London) was based on interviews with Ceos and communication strategists on skills needed in a downturn.

the bottom line is that leadership requires more than solving problems, taking action, and being account-able. Being crisis-ready today means being very aware of your image and how your body language and actions will be interpreted. Words alone are not enough; the body and the words need to be in sync, to be congru-ent. to be credible today means you must think out-side the speech. Being body aware is being crisis-aware; it takes crisis planning to a whole new level.

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appeared on his video in an unpolished state—un-shaven, dressed in a t-shirt, as that reflected the “real Geoff.” He argued that if he had looked polished and handsome, the sincerity of the moment would have been lost. Livingston says that the genuine acknowl-edgment of “things gone wrong” is what won the day.

as Livingston and others have demonstrated, leaders with an in-depth history and knowledge can share that confidence effectively through anecdotes and personal experiences—more effectively than charts and graphs could ever do. even with controversy concerning their approaches, they displayed conviction with their com-munication and in their appearance. Such confidence, together with compassion, is critical in a crisis.

then you have so-called superhero Ceos like Go-daddy’s Bob Parsons, who thought that it would be a good idea to post a video of himself hunting and killing an elephant in Zimbabwe, posing smil-ing beside the downed animal. the reaction from conservationists and animal protection organizations was prompt and completely predictable. However, the reaction of Bob Parsons was somewhat less pre-dictable. Instead of the conventional apology, he launched a detailed justification of his action. No amount of explanation was going to justify a Ceo standing triumphantly beside the dead elephant with a gun in his hand, even if he had been asked by the locals to shoot the rogue beast.

What about akio toyoda, the Japanese head of toy-ota, who seemed to have been caught off-guard by the extent and severity of the carmaker’s massive recall crisis in 2010? toyoda, normally smooth with his en-glish, appeared uncertain and struggling when he tried to rush out of a hastily organized press conference.

and then there is the case of bad judgment by the chief executives of the detroit car makers. What were they thinking flying into Washington for their Congres-sional appearances in their corporate jets when they were about to argue for a bail-out? It behooves leaders to remember that perception equals reality. What did their actions say?

Style does matter as much as substance. Make sure in a crisis that you, as the leader, have been thoroughly

strategy, and diligence. Queen elizabeth I (1533—1603) understood this. as timothy Pascoe, a noted international business strategist and leadership coach, has observed, “Few better understood the importance of projecting leadership than the Virgin-Queen.” Her management of her court, her dressing, and her pres-ence were all part of protecting her majesty—and that of england.“Her clothing for State occasions was not costly drapery,” says Pascoe, “but strategic investment.”

Leaders, particularly in a crisis, need to manage their appearances as strategically as the late, great Queen elizabeth I did so well. If you look unimpressive in a tV interview, on Youtube, or the company website, the crisis will be certain to escalate—and at alarming speed, thanks to social media. the discussion runs ram-pant and the pictures go viral—just ask former U.S. Congressman anthony Weiner.

Communication StyleCommunication Style

a crisis is a single moment in time when something happens that stops the show and draws negative atten-tion and the media spotlight to the brand, the organi-zation, and the leadership.

Geoff Livingston, Ceo of Livingston Communi-cations, had his moment of public scrutiny when a proposed and well-publicized takeover went awry. Liv-ingston came under fire for his approach when the her-alded acquisition of his company (by the Social Media Group) would not be happening after all. Livingston, who counsels companies on crisis communication and knows firsthand the perils of mismanaging appear-ances, says that that moment was one of the toughest of his career. He thought about not communicating—at least a dozen times.

the two companies wanted to appear “real”—to tell it how it was, so Livingston decided to front the cameras in what he describes as “authentic and genuine.” He

Words alone are not enough.

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Premier Bligh not only understood being visible, she understood the need to lead, to provide support, com-fort, and to step into the shoes of her constituency. at press conferences, Bligh seemed to know every tiny town in every valley, aware of who would face the next threat and how high the rivers would rise. She was like a rock in the midst of the tragedy, drama, and confu-sion. Bligh got it right. She did extremely well with a combination of appearing to be in control but of caring deeply. She supported her followers.

Bligh and Parker, like New York’s Giuliani in the aftermath of that city’s great tragedy on 9/11, in-stinctively understood that crises are defining mo-ments and that appearances actually do matter. they were there, leading with predictability, empathy, yet a firmness that inspired trust and respect. Will you earn that trust, or be chastised, or forever have a bad report card?

as leaders, we need to remember that people want to go into battle or into the unknown following someone whose ability, clarity, determination, and stamina are beyond doubt. their lives may depend on it.

StrategiesStrategies

In a crisis leaders always need to be thinking about the images and symbols that are portrayed. as much as we might hate to admit it, what we wear and how we look does matter. We need to pay careful attention to all those elements, as much as we would to the more cerebral strategies and actions.

Generally speaking, there are seven basic rules about what to wear. (these rules apply to anything visual, including Internet appearances such as Youtube or your company website.)

inoculated so that you can better predict not only how you will react but how an affected audience may react to you, and, most important, whether they will take the required action or not. reputation and share price are on the line, and maybe your job, or bigger still, lives and your license to operate.

It is also very important to dress for the part. dress ac-cording to the situation and the impression you want to create. For example, if you want to give the impres-sion that you are in the middle of the crisis fixing the problem, caring for your customers and employees, then show that by having your sleeves rolled up or at least, without a coat and tie. If you wear a safety helmet or other safety gear when working or appearing at an emergency site, wear that at a tV interview or for the video blog or Youtube presentation, as long as we can see your face and the whites of your eyes.

In a Crisis, Effective Leaders SupportIn a Crisis, Effective Leaders Support

What leaders sometimes forget is that we want our leaders to do well. We want to be able to put our trust in our leaders. We cannot survive without leadership; indeed the need to be led is hardwired into our collec-tive consciousness, and in times of crisis we need that support more than ever.

How you support others is critical in a crisis. day after day—sometimes in the face of great adversity—you have to face the people, supporting them through their ordeal with information, honesty, and comfort. the ability to connect in a compelling, compassionate man-ner is paramount.

Bob Parker, mayor of the New Zealand city of Christ-church, demonstrated just this after his city had been devastated by earthquakes in early 2011. He faced the (international) media, community leaders, concerned residents, and visiting dignitaries in orange (rescue and safety) garb. His calm and authoritative words were “a beacon providing reassurance, hope, and confidence in the future.”

Similarly, anna Bligh was widely praised for her lead-ership during the equally devastating floods in 2011 when she was premier of the state of Queensland in australia.

We know a phony when

we see one.

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• Can I trust you?

• are you committed to excellence (and to making sure that this does not happen again)?

Will you rise to the occasion like Giuliani, Parker, and Bligh or will you languish on the failed list? take ac-tion today and do a self-assessment of your crisis lead-ership capabilities. Lead on with your words, actions, and, yes, your whole body.

• avoid wearing pronounced stripes, checks, or small patterns, and anything shiny.

• Gray, brown, blue, or mixed colored suits and dresses are best.

• Gray, light blue, off-white, or pastel shirts or blouses are best; avoid visible buttons, which flare in the camera lights, distracting from your message.

• Women should wear neat jewelry or none at all, depending on the circumstances.

• take your keys, phone, and pen out of your pockets.

• avoid having a haircut right before the interview.

• If makeup is offered, use it, particularly if your in-terview is in a studio.

If in doubt consult a stylist or at least your spouse, and always your communication adviser.

and finally, to help you further develop your leader-ship style, consider this:

Crisis demands superior, thoughtful communica-tion—how do you rate?

resist the temptation to stay quiet and hope that it will all blow over (it won’t).

Never deny nor blame—that strategy will backfire.

Nothing does more damage in a crisis than double-talk or downright dishonesty.

Get the world off your shoulders and build a team—bring people into your confidence, ask for ideas, gain commitment, and involve your frontline.

Know what success looks like—someone will look you in the eye and ask you “how does this end?” You need to know that answer!

Crises are not only defining moments for leaders. They are a test of your values and those of your organization—what do you stand for and how will you articulate that in a crisis?

and remember the three big questions your audience, your followers, your team will want answered:

• do you care about me?

Principal of Jane Jordan & Associates, a boutique training, coaching, and advisory firm, Jane Jordan-Meier is a high-stakes communication and media coach with more than two decades of experience in working with executive management in both gov-ernment and the private sector. Most of her work today is in crisis management training with senior and executive management. She has taught at mas-ter’s and undergraduate levels at prestigious com-munication schools in Australia and is a frequent guest lecturer and speaker at conferences, workshops, and seminars in North America. Her book on crisis media management, “The Four Highly Effective Stages of Crisis Management: How to Manage the Media in the Digital Age,” was released in May 2011. She can be reached through LinkedIn and on Twitter @janejordanmeier.