We had a disagreement in the office on Monday.
Like much of the country, we started the day by talking about the weekend’s biggest story – the Coldplay concert and the downfall of Astronomer’s CEO.
These kinds of conversations are a regular part of our weekly internal meetings we’ve dubbed C3 for “Communicate, Collaborate, and Create.” The meeting kicks off with an industry news item like the Astronomer story. Our initial discussion focused on the company’s response timeline and whether saying something sooner would have helped protect its reputation. We generally agreed that speed is critical — and is almost always what we recommend. That said, we also understand the reasons for delay: lawyers need to weigh in, especially in HR matters, and for public companies, boards may need to be convened and stakeholders consulted.
But that’s not where the argument started.
I made the point that this publicity might actually help the company. Bad for the CEO, sure—but possibly good for the brand. Others disagreed saying that it damaged the brand. But here’s where I was coming from. Before this, I’d never even heard of Astronomer. Last Saturday, I got curious and then the weekend Wall Street Journal had a long piece about the company, and I learned that they help businesses figure out how to integrate AI. Interesting, I thought—maybe they could help us.
So, when I walked into Monday’s meeting, that thought was still on my mind. I wondered aloud: How many others, like me, had just learned about Astronomer for the first time?
And that’s my point. The old saying “all publicity is good publicity” isn’t always true—but in this case, it just might work out for the company in the long run.
That is, if anyone still remembers any of this two weeks from now. Tell me what you think. Oh, incidentally, the New York Post had this story, seemingly agreeing with my side of the argument.
Devine + Partners is a Philadelphia public relations agency. We offer a full range of communications services – from message and content development and media relations to issues management and employee and community engagement.
