As companies grapple with the complexity of returning to the office – and the gap between employee and employer expectations on return timelines – an evolution in communications is required. Inspiration, however, can be found in an unlikely place: the world of negotiations.

• Make your case
• Keep the conversations dynamic
• Be adaptable in the face of changing situations

Leaders are in a perfect position to recognize the toll a year of uncertainty has exacted on employees while also pointing out what it’s bought: a resilience that will help all of us succeed in a future we can’t yet see.

If you want truly engaged workers, a factor that correlates with performance outcomes such as profitability, productivity, customer perceptions and retention, you need strategies for picking up on all frequencies.

I have deep admiration for the artistry of a great consumer ad. But the bulk of marketing’s work is less visible. Public service announcements, corporate learning materials, social media copy, intracompany emails, nonprofit communications, even the words in the margins of a government form — all these, too, are the work of marketers.

• In this time when all of our institutions are being tested, we can and should set higher standards for the use of our creative and strategic powers. Even if we don’t always succeed,  our work will be the better and the more effective for this effort.
• Those who take the time to communicate with their stakeholders, especially their employees, and who are speaking with full awareness of the cultural context of the pandemic and the social unrest in the US and the rest of the world are getting a substantial boost in their reputations.
• For any marketer to raise themselves up to this new, higher standard, the first step is to take on a service mindset.

A new set of challenges arise when engaging a remote workforce in times of stress, but the principles and values that underpin all good management are likely to hold true. We just have to find new ways to put them into practice

• Formalize your brand narrative and align on what your team stands for in this new era.
• Deliver a regular cadence of content, whether it’s a website, a byline or a large campaign, that connects brand with employees
• Don’t wait for your competitor to take action—be the pioneer in your space and the standard that others look to for how they should act in this new era.

The CEO as a brand is the longtail of a company’s reputation. Our CEO Leaderboard proves that long-held philosophy with quantifiable data. COVID-19 has upended our world, with no corner of life untouched. The pandemic has effectively created a macro-narrative — all industries around the globe are focused on the same thing at the same time.

• Our latest report takes the first objective look at a CEO’s actions in the opening weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Those who fared the best on our rankings have handled this crisis with humility, empathy, and direct and repeated communications that connect with employees, customers, and stakeholders on a human level.

The growing momentum around the Black Lives Matter movement is prompting workplaces around the country to make Juneteenth a paid work holiday to celebrate Black history and culture.  

• Celebrated on June 19, Juneteenth marks the anniversary of the day the last enslaved African Americans, in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free. 
• Though not an official federal holiday, the recent shift to commemorate Juneteenth in the workplace is part of an ongoing reckoning with corporate culture.  
• To better understand Juneteenth, we’ve put together a brief overview of its history, along with a number of approaches that corporate leaders and institutions are taking to honor this significant day. 

On June 19, SJR for the first time commemorated Juneteenth, joining Twitter, Spotify, Nike and many other U.S. businesses in observing the historic holiday as a paid day off—and as part of an evolution in corporate culture amid the Black Lives Matter movement.

•  Juneteenth, also referred to as “Freedom Day,” pays tribute to June 19, 1865, the day that enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned that the Civil War had ended and they were free.
• While pledging to honor Juneteenth every year, we encouraged our employees to pause on Juneteenth and reflect upon and celebrate Black history, culture and freedom—and to add their voices to the call for racial justice in America.
• In honor of Juneteenth, we’ve put together a brief snapshot of how some of our staff observed the vital holiday, in their own words and images.

In recent days, we’ve seen brand after brand put out messages calling for racial equality and condemning hate…but do brands words match their actions? If not, they leave themselves open to public backlash, not to mention damaged employee morale.

How do brands pursue real action over performative allyship? Here are a few areas to concentrate on:

• Show compassion to those struggling by giving time and space to grieve to employees traumatized by news of police brutality and racist violence.
• Facilitate education and important dialogue about bias through organized programs and casual, if uncomfortable, conversation.
• Bring diversity to the top through ongoing initiatives to position people of color in executive posts, both through internal development and external recruiting.
• Embrace advocacy by donating to social justice groups and philanthropic organizations, lobbying Congress, encouraging and celebrating employees who participate in peaceful activist movements and strategically applying economic pressure.

In conjunction with Axios, SJR recently hosted a discussion around the importance of executive leadership during times of crisis, featuring a chat with our CEO Alexander Jutkowitz and interviews with Larry Merlo of CVS Health and Accenture’s Julie Sweet.

• According to Jutkowitz, the way brands join the conversation matters and that during times of social change, they need to get comfortable being uncomfortable.
• Julie Sweet shares her best advice for new CEOs and why it’s so important to invest in your people.
• Larry Merlo emphasizes that working during a crisis cannot be business as usual, even if you’re staying open.

An assessment of the leadership and values of CEOs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here’s what we know:

• The CEO as a brand is the longtail of a company’s reputation.
• Direct and repeated communications with your talent, partners, and customers is essential in today’s environment.

Copy chief, Clouse notes one of the biggest writing mistakes she see in her role — the use of jargon instead of simple, recognizable terms. Take note:

• Studies show that writing that contains industry jargon, whatever the industry, is off-putting and actually makes the material less approachable—and ultimately less trustworthy.
• Go easy on idioms, euphemisms and metaphors. When used in abundance, they make language more vague, which gives the reader license to make assumptions.

The coronavirus outbreak is changing how we work, and faster than anyone anticipated.

• Organizations that move quickly to meet the needs of a remote workforce, put their people first and find new ways to work will come out of this stronger and more united.
• Disruption creates swift and sweeping change, whether we’re ready for it or not.

How long will this pandemic last? When will we be able to go back into the office? Will we have to wear masks for the rest of our lives?

• Unfortunately, there is one true answer to these questions: time will tell.
• Your company doesn’t have the luxury of time, which is why you should be asking the questions that only you can answer. Doing so will help you create content that is worth everyone’s time.

Like a black hole, the internet’s gravitational force can be so powerful that even the strongest-willed among us get pulled in.

• For storytellers, there is a way out, and it starts with being intentional and deliberate about the content we create.
• Time is our most valuable commodity: currency we can never regain after spending it.

Time discrepancy was once a nuisance for Naomi Barnett.

• With ‘spring forward’, Barnett realizes that achieving true synchronicity with all of her timepieces is a race against time.

The author shares his five-year journey on mastering a dish that thrilled him, challenged him, confounded him, rushed him, and used up every ounce of his culinary skill and every second of his time.

• King Louis XIV adored it. Anthony Bourdain savored it. The author obsessed over it.
• Lièvre à la Royale, wild hare stuff with foie gras and truffles, is a French delicacy that is as decadent to eat as it is difficult to cook.

Flipping a fried egg in a pan without compromising its shape and yoke is an exercise in skill.

• Like all art, with great care and intense focus, perfection can be achieved.

For Tom O’Reilly, time was a limited commodity at SXSW. So, too, were tacos.

• At SXSW, there are so many panels to attend, so little time to do so.
• But it was “time” that was his guiding light — he attended events explored the idea “time” — and in doing so, learned what “time” will look like in the future.

Time has treated Mark Pabst’s sextant differently. The sextant, a gift from his uncle, was an instrument of great utility in the past. Today, it remains in his closet, collecting dust from years of negligence.

• For Pabst, time is a “prism, with its beams shooting toward where my clients await my deliverables—I’m the factory. I’m the distribution center.”
• The sextant is a reminder of time when time was told not by computer screens or smartphones but by the instruments that told time through a calculus that has long since become obsolete.

We are fascinated by pop-up because they feel like they’re letting us in on a secret.

• It feels like everyone, in every industry, in every city, has a pop-up shop these days.
• Tom Krantz considers the appeal of pop-up shops, what makes the good ones worth it, and when it’s time to move on.

When every second counts, Sophie Mancini wonders if there’s a faster way to accomplish our everyday tasks.

• From ziplining between rooftops parties to eliminating the space bar, Mancini suggests practical solutions to life’s biggest timewasters.
• In New York City, life moves a mile a minute.

Creativity is a social process; conversations birth innovations

• But if writers and visual artists can’t communicate, potentially brilliant ideas will languish in some kind of sad, crowded waiting room.
• The takeaway: once creative people learn to expertly navigate design and editorial zones, they’ll save time and energy

In this interactive piece, we give you the sounds, emotions, and sensations of a regular trip from home that feels anything but.

• The human brain absorbs and outputs sensory information at a fast and continuous clip.
• Content in any form is a fully-fledged sensory experience.

The average American spends roughly 700 hours on social media — the same amount of time it takes to read the complete works of Shakespeare.

• Fortunately, symbols of longevity persist in world where so much content is impermanent and quickly forgotten.
• Explore just a few vaunted examples of these legendary works that continue to impact our world today.

The internet swallows up our most precious commodity: Time.

• What if you had to think more carefully about how you spent your time, like making a deliberate choice from a vending machine?
• How we spend our time matters, so here’s why you should choose content that’s worth your time.