Reinvigorating culture after a crisis

Whether you’ve gone through a crisis, are currently managing one or see one on the horizon, navigating the issue with internal culture in mind can ensure you’re on a steady and strong path moving forward.

During last month’s Internal Communications Conference at Microsoft HQ in Redmond, WA, Nissan Vice President of Communications for U.S. and Canada Brian Brockman walked us through how the company instituted a substantial cultural transformation born out of crisis.

“It’s fitting that we’re in a room with Normandy in the name,” Brockman quipped. “I was thinking about a quote that may or may not be attributed to Winston Churchill: ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste.’”

Here’s what we learned.

In 2018 and 2019, the company was so focused on growth and hitting KPIs that it made some decisions that didn’t put it in the best place with key stakeholders. This included challenging relationships with suppliers and dealers, along with a scandal involving one of its former leaders in Japan.