LEVICK | September 4th, 2020
10 imminent changes and challenges for communicators to anticipate

In PR Daily, Richard Levick shares ways to prepare your company or client for the new era of cyber breaches, risk management, and bold political stands.
“The future always comes too fast and in the wrong order,” the late futurist Alvin Toffler once wrote.
Mr. Toffler’s prophecy continues to vex corporations battling to manage risk and compete in today’s hyper-charged marketplace. What will the communications challenges of 2020 and beyond bring? No doubt there will be some surprises, but I’m willing to bet my old copy of Mr. Toffler’s “Future Shock” that a lot of general counsels and communications EVPs will be grappling with the following: Precedent-shattering cyber breaches and other cybersecurity calamities will not only jeopardize your bottom line, but threaten to permanently damage your brand.
1. Cyber breaches have increased 54% over the pace of a year ago.
If your organization hasn’t yet been hacked, it will be, if not in 2020, then soon. Plan on it. Soon, free credit reporting will no longer be ameliorative. Customers are going to demand more, putting far more attention on what your company did to prevent the breach.
2. Radical revisions to enterprise risk management (ERM) will become imperative as corporate challenges — from global warming and the sugar industry to #MeToo and cocoa farming — come from the grassroots, not from shareholders or institutional investors.
If you haven’t rebuilt your ERM based on this, then you are looking in the rearview mirror, not to mention subjecting yourself to activists’ investors, who will soon argue that the failure to do this is malpractice.
3. The number of companies being targeted by grassroots mobilizers has skyrocketed.
Issues and movements now emanate from the ground up, not from the top down. Do you track the fundraising letters of NGOs who cover your industry? Do you know the high-authority bloggers or other social commentators that criticize your company or industry? If you can’t identify these sources, you cannot measure risk and reward.
4. There will be a public relations backlash to the #MeToo movement.
Meritorious #MeToo litigation will proceed apace, but men will also file litigation over a perceived absence of equity. LGBTQ employees will be filing more charges against executives for bias. Companies will find that they are in a compromised position in what previously appeared equitable. Now is the time to review your policies and procedures so they are fair for all parties.
5. Litigation funding will continue its rapid growth, providing more funds for the defense while also equalizing the playing field for the plaintiffs’ bar.
The age-old strategy of papering a plaintiff to death is an increasingly expensive and fruitless approach when plaintiffs have access to large amounts of liquid capital.
6. A new generation will expect companies to stand for something political, with an assertive environmental, social and corporate governance footprint, beyond the brand.
This is an extraordinary change, when, for the past 70 years, companies were expected to be apolitical. For companies to navigate this new expectation, they must understand the rules, which include being transparent, consistent, selective and truthful.
7. The Department of Justice will crack down on perceived abuses of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), including going after foreign communications and public affairs firms, even though they are specifically not written into this pre-World War II statute.
Our interpretation is that new FARA senior enforcement director and Mueller investigation veteran Brandon Van Grack is using this statute to crack down on Russian election interference via social media. Don’t be caught up in the dragnet as an experimental case on how far he can use the long arm of this statute. Paul Manafort is serving jail time for violating FARA rules.
8. The criminalization of the boardroom will continue.
Meaning that your CEO, senior executives and board members will be subject to legal scrutiny, quite possibly changing everything from brand value to succession. Many of today’s convictions, settlements and investigations would have been unimaginable a few short years ago.
9. New unions will take two forms.
First, traditional unions are targeting Big Tech, while companies like Google and Facebook fumble their once-esteemed brand positions. Second are the nonunion “wildcat actions,” those spontaneous employee organizing efforts that lead to walkouts and company embarrassment. Google, Disney, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Delta represent only a handful of the companies grappling with First-Amendment-in-the-workplace issues.
10. Faith in democracy will decline further.
Today, in virtually every democracy, including the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States, our children are two-thirds less likely than our parents to believe in democracy as essential. This will have a profound effect on outreach toward millennial consumers and workers moving forward.
“You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction,” Mr. Toffler once opined. That’s not a bad sentiment to scribble on the whiteboard as you size up your communications challenges for the rest of 2020…Read more
LEVICK | September 4th, 2020
10 imminent changes and challenges for communicators to anticipate

In PR Daily, Richard Levick shares ways to prepare your company or client for the new era of cyber breaches, risk management, and bold political stands.
“The future always comes too fast and in the wrong order,” the late futurist Alvin Toffler once wrote.
Mr. Toffler’s prophecy continues to vex corporations battling to manage risk and compete in today’s hyper-charged marketplace. What will the communications challenges of 2020 and beyond bring? No doubt there will be some surprises, but I’m willing to bet my old copy of Mr. Toffler’s “Future Shock” that a lot of general counsels and communications EVPs will be grappling with the following: Precedent-shattering cyber breaches and other cybersecurity calamities will not only jeopardize your bottom line, but threaten to permanently damage your brand.
1. Cyber breaches have increased 54% over the pace of a year ago.
If your organization hasn’t yet been hacked, it will be, if not in 2020, then soon. Plan on it. Soon, free credit reporting will no longer be ameliorative. Customers are going to demand more, putting far more attention on what your company did to prevent the breach.
2. Radical revisions to enterprise risk management (ERM) will become imperative as corporate challenges — from global warming and the sugar industry to #MeToo and cocoa farming — come from the grassroots, not from shareholders or institutional investors.
If you haven’t rebuilt your ERM based on this, then you are looking in the rearview mirror, not to mention subjecting yourself to activists’ investors, who will soon argue that the failure to do this is malpractice.
3. The number of companies being targeted by grassroots mobilizers has skyrocketed.
Issues and movements now emanate from the ground up, not from the top down. Do you track the fundraising letters of NGOs who cover your industry? Do you know the high-authority bloggers or other social commentators that criticize your company or industry? If you can’t identify these sources, you cannot measure risk and reward.
4. There will be a public relations backlash to the #MeToo movement.
Meritorious #MeToo litigation will proceed apace, but men will also file litigation over a perceived absence of equity. LGBTQ employees will be filing more charges against executives for bias. Companies will find that they are in a compromised position in what previously appeared equitable. Now is the time to review your policies and procedures so they are fair for all parties.
5. Litigation funding will continue its rapid growth, providing more funds for the defense while also equalizing the playing field for the plaintiffs’ bar.
The age-old strategy of papering a plaintiff to death is an increasingly expensive and fruitless approach when plaintiffs have access to large amounts of liquid capital.
6. A new generation will expect companies to stand for something political, with an assertive environmental, social and corporate governance footprint, beyond the brand.
This is an extraordinary change, when, for the past 70 years, companies were expected to be apolitical. For companies to navigate this new expectation, they must understand the rules, which include being transparent, consistent, selective and truthful.
7. The Department of Justice will crack down on perceived abuses of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), including going after foreign communications and public affairs firms, even though they are specifically not written into this pre-World War II statute.
Our interpretation is that new FARA senior enforcement director and Mueller investigation veteran Brandon Van Grack is using this statute to crack down on Russian election interference via social media. Don’t be caught up in the dragnet as an experimental case on how far he can use the long arm of this statute. Paul Manafort is serving jail time for violating FARA rules.
8. The criminalization of the boardroom will continue.
Meaning that your CEO, senior executives and board members will be subject to legal scrutiny, quite possibly changing everything from brand value to succession. Many of today’s convictions, settlements and investigations would have been unimaginable a few short years ago.
9. New unions will take two forms.
First, traditional unions are targeting Big Tech, while companies like Google and Facebook fumble their once-esteemed brand positions. Second are the nonunion “wildcat actions,” those spontaneous employee organizing efforts that lead to walkouts and company embarrassment. Google, Disney, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Delta represent only a handful of the companies grappling with First-Amendment-in-the-workplace issues.
10. Faith in democracy will decline further.
Today, in virtually every democracy, including the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States, our children are two-thirds less likely than our parents to believe in democracy as essential. This will have a profound effect on outreach toward millennial consumers and workers moving forward.
“You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction,” Mr. Toffler once opined. That’s not a bad sentiment to scribble on the whiteboard as you size up your communications challenges for the rest of 2020…Read more
- Brand
- The Fifth Estate: A Business Guide for Surviving “The Troubles”
- Here We Come
- Corporate Revolt Over Campaign Donations Shakes Political World
- What Happens Next?
- CSR & Sustainability
- Public Perception & the Biden Transition
- WATCH: Reputation Management with PRSA
- Over the River and Through The Woods
- Why Non-Profits are so Vulnerable to Crisis Risk
- The Threat to Free Markets
- What Happens When Nonprofits Get Caught In The Klieg Lights?
- You Took a PPP Loan. Now Get Ready to Talk About It.
- Communications
- The Fifth Estate: A Business Guide for Surviving “The Troubles”
- Here We Come
- The Ministry of Common Sense
- Why Should I Apologize? Lawyers vs. Communicators
- What Happens Next?
- CSR & Sustainability
- A Conversation with Abbe Lowell
- A New Year’s Resolution
- Public Perception & the Biden Transition
- WATCH: Reputation Management with PRSA
- Leveraging Legal Expertise in Communications
- Over the River and Through The Woods
- Company News
- Here We Come
- Recent Awards & Recognition
- Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
- What’s a Director to Do?
- LEVICK Announces Partnership with BCG
- A New Look
- Albert Krieger, 1923-2020
- LEVICK Announces Partnership with Jipyong
- Speaking to In-House Counsel
- Childhood Lessons
- LEVICK Announces New Webinar Series with Turbine Labs
- LEVICK Launches New Website
- Crisis
- The Fifth Estate: A Business Guide for Surviving “The Troubles”
- What to expect as the clock approaches midnight
- How to Stop the Madness
- Corporate Revolt Over Campaign Donations Shakes Political World
- A Remembrance of Tommy Raskin
- No ‘justice’ in rep’s vote
- A Call for Orderly & Peaceful Transition of Power
- Recovering from the Greatest Sacrifice
- The Cost of Government Regulation and the Threat to Free Enterprise
- What Happens Next?
- A Conversation with Abbe Lowell
- Covid-19: The Pandemic that Never Should Have Happened
- Finance
- Here We Come
- The Threat to Free Markets
- Advisory & Insurance Services
- WATCH: Revolutionizing Litigation Finance
- Litigation Finance: Revolutionizing Litigation
- Consumer-Focused Solutions for Financial Health
- Event: Consumer-Focused Solutions for Financial Health
- Sports: Power and Money in a New Age of Social Justice
- The Balancing Act: The Role of Whistleblowers in American Commerce and Government
- The Evolving and More Powerful FARA
- FCPA & Compliance in a Time of Uncertainty
- Shareholders vs. Stakeholders: Is the Paradigm Shifting?
- Guest Column
- Guest Blog: The Mainstream Media Gets an A for Intellectual Arrogance, an F for Journalism
- Buckle up Directors: Cybersecurity Risk and Bankruptcy Risk Are Not Mutually Exclusive
- Buckle up Directors: Cybersecurity Risk and Bankruptcy Risk Are Not Mutually Exclusive
- South Africa: The Slow Decline of the ANC
- Why CSR Fails and How to Fix It
- What to Expect Following the European Elections?
- Buhari Inaugurated. What Now for Nigeria?
- Marketing- It’s Up To You…
- Crisis Management lessons from the air-crash investigation model
- The Future of War
- Health
- Food Issues & the Biden Administration
- Covid-19: The Pandemic that Never Should Have Happened
- Pharma’s Post-Pandemic Policy Outlook
- Keeping Hope Alive
- Real Herd Immunity
- The Fiction of College Sports Amateurism
- Mac Summit: Crisis Communications in a Post-Covid, Post-Election World
- Travel Industry Communications in the Age of Covid-19
- Track of Time
- Is C-19 Taking Women Lawyers’ Careers Back to the 1950s?
- Post-Pandemic PR Strategy
- Bankruptcy: A Culture of Transparency
- In Memoriam
- Snider’s Super Foods: Locally World Famous
- Speak Truth With Love, Not Anger
- In Memoriam: Stephen Susman
- Letter to the Movement
- John Lewis’ Life Bridged the Best of America
- Albert Krieger, 1923-2020
- In Memoriam of Marcia Horowitz
- Jim Lehrer Passes Away
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Harold Burson Passes Away
- Interviews
- CommPRO: Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s Life & Legacy
- Richard Levick on “My Wakeup Call”
- Primerus Webinar: Into the Wind
- The Future of Baseball Post-Pandemic
- Webinar: The End of Brand Neutrality
- Thought Leadership & Organic Growth
- Man & Superman
- LEVICK Announces New Webinar Series with Turbine Labs
- Navigating Coronavirus Challenges in the Insurance Industry
- VIDEO: How to Anticipate & Avoid a Crisis
- What’s Next? with Julie Chase
- What’s Next?: California Electoral Behavior
- Law Firms
- Why Should I Apologize? Lawyers vs. Communicators
- You Took a PPP Loan. Now Get Ready to Talk About It.
- Beyond Black Swan: Positioning the law firm for the new normal
- A Salute to Personal Courage and the Rule of Law
- Cyber Risk Institute Expands Its Profile
- When a client becomes a law firm’s PR nightmare
- The General Counsel’s Dilemma
- A First Look at the Google Antitrust Suit
- The Latest Top Class Actions
- Trust on Trial: How Communicators Succeed in a World No Longer Trusted
- The Latest Settlements, Class actions, Investigations & More
- Managing Legal & Communication Advice in a Crisis
- Litigation
- Why Should I Apologize? Lawyers vs. Communicators
- A Conversation with Abbe Lowell
- Leveraging Legal Expertise in Communications
- You Took a PPP Loan. Now Get Ready to Talk About It.
- Beyond Black Swan: Positioning the law firm for the new normal
- A Salute to Personal Courage and the Rule of Law
- Cyber Risk Institute Expands Its Profile
- When a client becomes a law firm’s PR nightmare
- The General Counsel’s Dilemma
- WATCH: Revolutionizing Litigation Finance
- Litigation Finance: Revolutionizing Litigation
- A First Look at the Google Antitrust Suit
- Our Work
- Recent Awards & Recognition
- The Cyber Bad Guys Are Getting Worse
- Crisis Communications & The Age of Cancel Culture
- Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
- Video: Conversations with American Legends
- Staying Ahead of the Crisis
- A New Era of Insurance Marketing
- Infographic: Judgment Free Zone
- Infographic: Barriers to Entry
- Infographic: History Meter
- Assistance for Law Firms Engaged in Pro Bono
- Webinar: The End of Brand Neutrality
- Public Affairs
- The Fifth Estate: A Business Guide for Surviving “The Troubles”
- What to expect as the clock approaches midnight
- How to Stop the Madness
- Corporate Revolt Over Campaign Donations Shakes Political World
- No ‘justice’ in rep’s vote
- A Call for Orderly & Peaceful Transition of Power
- Recovering from the Greatest Sacrifice
- Food Issues & the Biden Administration
- The Cost of Government Regulation and the Threat to Free Enterprise
- What Happens Next?
- CSR & Sustainability
- A Conversation with Abbe Lowell
- Risk
- Ingredients of Decency
- ESG Performance and Credit Markets
- The Coronavirus Saga is Just Beginning
- No. 1 Risk of the Decade
- The Risk Evolution of Corporate Risk
- Extend Risk Management Reach
- Collective Action
- Risk Identifying Software
- The New Risk of Doing Nothing
- Political Unrest In Hong Kong
- High-Profile Kidnaps in African National Parks
- Cyber Resilience
- Social
- The Ministry of Common Sense
- How to Stop the Madness
- A Remembrance of Tommy Raskin
- No ‘justice’ in rep’s vote
- A Call for Orderly & Peaceful Transition of Power
- Recovering from the Greatest Sacrifice
- CSR & Sustainability
- A New Year’s Resolution
- Dropping the Mic
- Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
- Crisis, Covid, DEI & the Election
- MLK’s Memphis Address
- Technology
- Constella Intelligence Announces Hunter for Improved Investigation Capability
- Cyber Risk Institute Expands Its Profile
- Digital Politics: The Future of Voting Technology
- Ethics in Electronics
- The Cyber Bad Guys Are Getting Worse
- A First Look at the Google Antitrust Suit
- The Pause
- Cybersecurity Incidents of the Summer
- The Changing Digital Economy and Cyber Risks
- The Future of U.S. Manufacturing
- Tech CEO Summer Superbowl hearing
- Technology & Privacy Alert
- This Week
- A Remembrance of Tommy Raskin
- A New Year’s Resolution
- Over the River and Through The Woods
- Dropping the Mic
- Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
- The Cyber Bad Guys Are Getting Worse
- What We Hear
- Track of Time
- Video: Conversations with American Legends
- Conversations with American Legends
- A New Era of Insurance Marketing
- American Legend