This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Normally, we spend our days advising big organisations on how to rebuild trust, explain themselves better, and stop setting fire to their reputations. But today we've taken on a new client. A tricky one. With the sort of knotty challenge we love at Apella Towers. Legacy brand. Huge heritage. Slightly confused about what it stands for.

Name of the client: Britain.

It's a high-maintenance account, this one. Constant leadership churn, outdated assets, no clear narrative architecture, and absolutely no budget. So probably pro-bono then?

That's before you even get into the stakeholder relations — the EU, the US, the Commonwealth, the neighbours up North. It's a crowded contact sheet. Let's see what they've sent us.

Brace yourselves.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

It's topical time again. The last few weeks have seen a potential bubble emerging in the markets as tech valuations soar. This time round central bankers have jumped in to provide warnings ahead of this potential crash.

In the UK, the Treasury has continued to fly taxation kites to see how the public and markets react - something that we discussed in episode 90.

It has been impossible over the last few weeks not to see pictures of a glum looking Prince Andrew (or should he plain old Andrew) across our TV screens.

As usual our task, is to take a passionate, grumpy view of how things should have
been handled from a PR and flaks perspective.

So, topics to discuss on this podcast include:
- When and how should those with the big roles (CEOs, Governors, Chancellors and so on) give warnings about market instability? Does saying it create more instability?

- If AI is going to take over the world of PR and Comms, are there some things we'd really like it to do?

- As the Royals garner all the media headlines (often for the wrong reasons), how would we advise the Palace?

- And why is Birmingham Council being so reluctant to rename its airport after one of the City's heroes? US cities do it all the time.

This episode is hosted by Matt Young and Andrew Brown.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Are press events still a smart comms tool - or just a tired ritual some of us can't give up?

Press events used to be a pinnacle of communications activation. The moment you filled a room with hacks, told your story once, and watched the headlines roll in. Or at least that's the fantasy many executives still cling to.

The reality? Unless you're a prime minister, president, or possibly Elon Musk, the days of commanding an army of journos with a click of the fingers are gone. Most outlets barely have the staff to cover a presidential visit, let alone your widget factory in Walsall.

In this episode we'll look at what constitutes a press event - conferences, launches, visits, stunts and more. We'll explore where they still make sense, and where they increasingly don't. We'll remind ourselves what the media actually want and need in today's disaggregated, always-on world. And we'll talk about how you deal with a leader who wants that room full of media - and you know you've not got a "scoobie doo's" chance of achieving it.

We'll try not to moan and mither too much, and instead focus on a few top tips you can take back to the team.

This episode is hosted by Matt Young and Andrew Brown.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Is traditional business media dying? What's the best approach for handling a CEO whose bedroom antics have become newsworthy? What happens when a company tells the wrong story? And what have been some of the best placed PR stories from the last few weeks. All that and more coming up on this episode of The Little Questions.

This episode is hosted by Matt Young and Andrew Brown.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Is comms becoming a bit too corporate?

We still spot trouble before it hits. We still know what plays in the media, what won't land with the public, and how to read the room better than anyone else on the ExCo.

But when it comes to doing something bold and out there? When it comes to cutting through, not just smoothing over? Are we going a bit soft?

Swapping instinct for process. Gut feel for governance. Provocation for pre-reads.

Maybe — just maybe — all the time spent hanging around with our colleagues in Risk and Legal, we're starting to become a little too risk-averse ourselves.

So, are comms professionals becoming internal diplomats first and foremost — helpful, trusted, and entirely forgettable? Are we trying too hard to get along, not stand out?

Corporate affairs needs edge. Courage. Creativity. Spark.

This episode is hosted by Apella Advisors partners Andrew Brown and Matt Young.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Jenny Scott; Former Executive Director of Communications at the Bank of England and co-lead for Bank wide strategy. Advisor to the Governor, sat on the Bank's executive committee and risk committee. Formerly economics and politics correspondent for the BBC and presenter of the Daily Politics. Trustee of Pro Bono Economics.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Welcome to another meander through the stories, people and events that have caught our attention in the past few weeks. From creating new world championships, to doctored sweets, and the lambasted lollipop man, plus the odd politician or two making an utter idiot of themselves.

Our aim here is to discuss the small stuff, in the world of communications and sometimes beyond. That proverbial chat over a pint after a long day manning the soundbite manufacturing line.

These are our critical 'little questions'.

This episode is hosted by Apella Advisors partners Andrew Brown and Matt Young.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.