News & views.
A collection of stories about data, public opinion and politics and news about our firm.
Ray McGuire's Take on the Global Landscape
In a fireside chat with Bloomberg last week, Lazard president Ray McGuire outlined five trends shaping the world today: generative AI, the energy transition, de-globalization, aging and cyber security.
Patagonia and Brand Politicization
How do we reconcile conventional wisdom about the risks brands run when they take a political position with the news that Patagonia is America's best-loved corporate brand?
Communicating in a Time Like No Other
We’ve compiled a checklist of questions for engaging the public in our present, chaotic era.
Peloton and the Power of Asking Questions
To understand someone's values and priorities, you have to ask the right questions.
A West Texas Roadmap for Mitigating the Impacts of Energy Development
If Americans are going to make a dent in reducing carbon emissions — and polling suggests they want to — they are going to have to grapple with the tradeoffs required. An effort in West Texas offers a roadmap for helping people work through the issues.
Leadership Lessons from the Coronavirus Crisis
We’ve settled on several examples of crisis leadership which we find most instructive. These span different areas of civil society: business, government and NGOs alike. Our analysis suggests crisis leadership falls into three broad categories: preparing for a crisis, managing through a crisis and seizing opportunity in a crisis.
A new age of brand marketing
In this new age, the public prizes transparency and authenticity, and content distribution is radically democratized, with teenage influencers and global brands operating on a level playing field.
Expanding the "Win Pie" in Sports and Business
Few areas of life are more zero sum than sports and business. If your opponent wins then you lose – it's as simple as that. Maybe not, says Wharton psychologist Adam Grant. Collaboration with a rival can boost your performance, Grant argues.
Restoring Public Trust
When a company breaks trust with the public, its performance suffers. How can the company restore trust? By fulfilling the promises it makes to different audiences, argue Sandra Sucher and Shalene Gupta in a recent Harvard Business Review article.
Extreme Views Can Amplify Polarization
Public opinion data plays a central role in venture capital legend Mary Meeker's annual Internet Trends Report, and this year is no exception. For example, her analysis of Internet usage reveals deep ambivalence with living our lives online.
What Business Leaders Can Learn from the Amazon-NYC Saga
The debate over Amazon's NYC expansion continues, with the latest salvo a show of support from a group of business, civic and labor leaders. Rather than focus on the deal's death and possible resurrection, we distill three key findings to help other companies grow in cities.
Varsity Blues and Boeing: Trust and Transparency in America
The unfolding scandals over university admissions and air travel safety are best understood along the tragic arc of declining trust in America. It's an arc that goes back, at least, to the Vietnam war, when Americans tipped sharply into cynicism and distrust in institutions of all kinds.
Voices from West Texas
Energy development is as much a part of Texas culture as football in the fall. But Texans doubt that developers can extract oil and gas resources while also protecting the communities, land and water.
On Strategic Thinking
Yale history professor Beverly Gage offers a thoughtful analysis of the meaning and application of "strategy," a term more widely used than understood. In her view, a strategy outlines how you move toward a goal in the face of obstacles and with limited resources.
The Power of Mary Meeker's Internet Trends Report
We love diving into Kleiner Perkins' Internet Trends report, prepared each year by venture capital legend Mary Meeker. Without fail, the report is full of insights into how society is grappling with technological change.
Is Facebook Better Off Regulated?
With every new revelation about how Facebook has failed to shepherd its users’ data, Americans’ feelings toward the company have become a bit more chilly.
Letter to the Editor: A Social Compact for Gig Economy Workers
In response to a New York Times editorial, Andrew and his frequent collaborator, David Beier, issue a call for redefining what it means to be a worker. The new definition must include a set of shared principles which address both worker and company concerns, spanning healthcare, education and training.
Are Consumers Willing to Pay the Price for Healthier Foods?
Amber and Murali, Strategy Director at Publicis, present the findings of research on people’s perceptions of healthier, less processed and animal-friendly foods. They find that consumers want and are willing to pay more for “better-for-you” foods, but people see improvements in the industry stemming from consumer demand rather than leadership on the part of food companies.
Choosing a Communications Analytics Tool
Figure out what you need to accomplish, who you need to deal with, what questions you need to address. The answers will flow from there, and you’ll find the research tools which suit your needs.