In the News
Playbook 2025: Top 10 challenges to master
21 January 2025
Echo Advisory Board members stress the need for 'informed optimism.'
Every year, Communications leaders are told that their organisations face reputation risks that are unprecedented in their size and severity. 2025 is no exception.
Certainly, the New Year has brought great turbulence to the business environment -political, economic, social, technological. Many of the issues are not new. But the sheer scale and speed of change is bringing new complexities.
We asked the members of Echo’s Advisory Board on both sides of the Atlantic (all recognised experts in corporate reputation, with backgrounds as leaders in business, academia and non-profits) what will be keeping CCOs awake in 2025.
Here is their Top 10. It’s quite a to-do list. As one Advisory Board member put it:
“Never has there been a greater need for Communications leaders and functions, both internal and external, to help with risk management, building and sustaining reputation, and supporting all parts of the company in addressing these issues.”
1. Geopolitical flux
2025 promises competing power centres, era-defining elections, the rise of populism and the rebirth of protectionism.
Geopolitical uncertainty is also pinpointed as the biggest risk facing businesses in 2025, by the 330 C-suite execs, analysts and city commentators who took part in Echo’s Britain’s Most Admired Companies survey.
Businesses which are best prepared to manage the impacts on market access, supply chain security and the wellbeing of employees will secure a reputational, as well as competitive advantage. And there is a key role for CADs and CCOs.
“Corp Affairs & Comms leaders need to be the faces of calm and resolve, helping to lead their organisation's focus on near, mid and long-term strategic priorities. I think this, as always, places the right leaders in our function where they should be, right next to the Chairmen, CEOs and Boards, whose priorities they are there to support and drive.”
2. Turbo-charged technologies, especially AI
This is the single biggest opportunity for businesses in 2025 to get ahead and channel growth, according to our Britain’s Most Admired Companies Study c-suite respondents. But a multitude of challenges – mis-and disinformation and fake news, data privacy, ethical concerns around AI – will demand a communications response.
3. Slowing momentum for ESG
Advisory Board members see growing scepticism around ESG and sustainability initiatives, and not just in the U.S. At the same time, ESG reporting requirements, especially in Europe, are growing apace.
Add to that the need to manage – or at least monitor – ESG performance across complex supply chains, and CCOs/CSOs will have their hands very full.
4. The materiality challenge
Businesses are having to engage with a whole new range of stakeholders and navigate the gamut of culture war issues, anti-woke pushback and rising expectations.
Materiality assessments need to address these changes in stakeholder expectations and look forward to trends and likely issues in the future, not just the present.
“Tomorrow’s material issues may well differ from today’s.”
5. KYS: Know Your Stakeholders
Communicators have a key role to lead company-wide ’KYS’ (know your stakeholder) initiatives. These serve to identify new and trending stakeholders (as well as existing ones) and evaluate their changing interests, values, expectations and priorities.
And, of course, ensure that this analysis is integrated into policies, plans, decisions and actions throughout the company.
6. No company is an island
Some Advisory Board members think that businesses will need to participate in collective action, pooling resources to improve the perception of corporate ESG initiatives and overcome accusations of ‘green-washing’ or corporate hypocrisy.
7. What is ancillary vs what is core?
Echo’s Advisory Board members are already seeing some leaders focus more on the ‘business fundamentals’, leaving what some may regard as ancillary on the doorstep.
Among those ‘ancillaries’ are DE&I, ESG and other initiatives that don't paint a direct and clear line to their bottom-lines, and shareholder value and returns. "
Making the case that these initiatives do, in fact, have a tangible, long-term impact on business success will be a critical message for CCOs.
8. Dealing with hostility and mistrust
With the gap in income inequality continuing to widen, growing public hostility toward businesses (especially large, visible multi-nationals) will place continued strain on the public faces of leadership and business.
Showcasing positive reputation attributes – social contribution, ethical standards and values, environmental credentials – will be increasingly important to employees, customers and the wider public.
“Be prepared. This will get uglier and Comms leaders need to be ready”
9. Building resilience in comms teams
Advisory Board members are unanimous that the demands on Communications leaders are only going to get greater.
“A tsunami of responsibilities as CEOs turn to their comms professionals given the complex multi-stakeholder and multi-channel world we live in, which is putting new accountabilities on the C Suite”
This will require agility, flexibility and above all resilience:
“The ability to shift focus, adjust to changes in organisational priorities and even leadership changes at the top of the house will be critical. No different than in the past, but still a critical skill set.”
10. The power of optimism
US President Harry S Truman put it well: “A pessimist is someone who makes difficulties of his opportunities, and an optimist is someone who makes opportunities of his difficulties.”
At the Britain’s Most Admired Companies awards, hosted by the London Stock Exchange in partnership with Echo Research, our panel of CEOs from the likes of Berkeley Group, Greggs, Mitie, Rentokil Initial, and Business and the Community were united in their view that business leaders are defined by their optimism.
Each of these challenges carries with it an opportunity for business leaders to build reputation and competitive advantage – if they are well prepared. And in that, communications leader will play an ever-more important role:
“These are just some of the major challenges. They result in many potential opportunities as well as constraints. A positive response by Communications leaders will enable the company to take advantage of the opportunities, enhance its reputation and gain competitive advantage. An exciting 2025 ahead of us!”
With thanks to the Echo Advisory Board for their expertise.
If you would like to know more about how Echo can engage the Advisory Board to help address the insight needs of your business, please get in touch.
