How to communicate when you’re banned from saying anything
Defence technology company Xtek’s Philippe Odouard explains how to communicate when, for security reasons, you’re banned from revealing all details of your company’s work.
The two most under-appreciated communications tools at your disposal are empathy for the media and trust in the audience. That’s the lesson I’ve learned from a career in the defence industry, because we often can’t say much about what we do.
Being a CEO of a publicly-listed company, you are constantly at the behest of parties wanting to know information. Investors, brokers, the media, family, friends. For most public entities, this is easily met: sign a new deal, announce all the details and everyone knows everything all at the same time.
