Matthew Kohut

If so, when, why, and how?

Absolutely.

Well, you have to do some really quick risk reward in your head when you're thinking about this, because you can really step in it when you're talking about a political or social issue in a way that can be very damaging to your reputation, to your leadership abilities, as well as to the organization and the company itself.

So you have to do some pretty quick risk.

calculating and peddling here.

And I don't mean to sound so conniving by using the word calculating, but I mean, you need to do some quick thinking on your feet and say, who's the audience here that really needs to hear from me on this?

Is it my employees?

Is it my customers?

Is it some other supplier?

Is it some key stakeholder that really needs to know I've got their back here?

And if that's the case, then you're probably going to find a place where there's a solid

ground from which you can say something.

But you also have to really quickly also say, what are the 10 different ways this could blow up in my face?

And be clear about that.

I mean, in reality, with the large Fortune 500 style company, this style of stuff is a team sport.

Now, as you said, if you're at lunch with a bunch of people and there are 100 people in the room, you could be put on the spot, of course.

But as far as taking a position more broadly or what happens in your conversation with a

journalist at an outlet, that stuff is, you know, like I said, there are a whole lot of people informing you about that and giving you perspective on where the landmines are.

But you do need to have that kind of nimble judgment.

So when some reporter surprises you or somebody asks that question in an all hands meeting,