TCC Insights

A Party Done Right

  By Cait Zulewski, Account Manager


Western New York is a generous community, and as a result there is no shortage of black tie fundraisers throughout the year.  They are always for a great cause and a tremendous amount of planning goes into each.

But the truth is that the majority of these events have the same setup.  And if you’ve been to one, you’ve been to them all.  Cocktails and a silent auction start the night, moving into a four course dinner with presentations & awards, followed by dancing.  By the time the dancing starts, everyone is full from dinner and pretty much finished with the night, and so 60% of the crowd leaves before the music starts.

And as good as the cause undoubtedly is, this type of event can be – well, kind of boring.

Rite of Spring

By Jeff Schoenborn, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations

There’s little in life that I’m certain of, but two things I know for sure. 

Number one, if you have to fly and don’t have access to private aircraft -- I don’t care how small your carbon footprint is or how many times you voted for Barack Obama last November – you are green with envy.  If the topic comes up and you’re unwilling to admit your jealousy, you might say, “Corporate aircraft are a symbol of the gross wage and class disparity between wealthy CEOs and the average working American, they’re gas-guzzling environmental abominations tearing a hole in the ozone, and there’s no legitimate need for anyone to use them.”  Plenty of people would say they agree with you, but they’re lying.  They’re jealous.

Number two, if you do have the ability to fly corporate, you’d sooner give up a kidney (maybe both) than choose to fly commercial airlines.  To anyone who doesn’t fly corporate, you might say, “it’s an important business tool that allows me to remain highly productive when traveling for the company.  Plus, my board and security personnel require me to use it.”  All true.  For any company that needs to move executives and

Innocence is no defense

By Jeff Schoenborn, Senior Vice President

April’s congressional hearings featuring former A.I.G. CEO Hank Greenberg and last month’s testimony by current chief Edward Liddy are the latest examples of how bizarre it can be for a powerful private-sector executive to step into a weird world that suspends logic, intellectual rigor, common sense and anything remotely resembling (for you lawyers out there) civil or criminal procedure.

Certainly, some legislators use the power of Congressional or statehouse investigative hearings to deepen their knowledge of industries and issues, and for exposing evidence of wrongdoing.

Of course, many politicians instead use hearings as a platform to raise their profiles, pander to constituents and advance their legislative and political priorities. 

Unfortunately too many private-sector witnesses cling to the illusion that these hearings might be forums for exposing the truth, having a vigorous debate, offering their side of the story, and refuting allegations about them, their companies and their employees.  Having prepped CEOs and other private citizens for Congressional testimony and analyzed unedited and uncut coverage of many others’ proceedings, it’s clear that many are not nearly as well prepared as Liddy and Greenberg were. 

In addition to exhaustive preparation and dress rehearsals, what can execs expect and what should consumers of news coverage consider when day-long testimony is summarized in a sound bite, a blog entry or an article?

1.    A draw is a win.  The CEO will not outperform the politicians, no matter how intelligent, articulate or prepared he is.  He’s in the pols’ house, they made the rules, and this is how they make their living.  Well prepared CEOs respectfully but firmly address questions, stay on message and avoid saying anything that will make the story bigger or drive it into multiple news cycles, all while trying not to perjure themselves or make statements that could bite them in subsequent legal matters.

2.    It’s not about “the truth.”  For many legislators, it’s about grandstanding and pontificating, and the witnesses’ answers are frequently irrelevant to the messages they will deliver.

3.    Innocence is not a defense.  CEOs are not subpoenaed to testify because they’re guilty of a crime, malfeasance or negligence (though they may be).  They’re compelled to appear because their testimony (or their invocation of their 5th Amendment rights) will provide a political benefit to the majority and committee chair, Republican or Democrat.

4.    It’s not what it looks like on T.V.  If you’ve ever sat through these hearings in person, you’ll see legislators continually coming and going from the room, off camera.  It’s very common for a congressman or senator to walk in during hours-long testimony, sit down, be recognized by the chair, and ask the very same question that the witness just finished answering.  Some busy legislators simply cannot or will not be well informed on the subject matter before launching into questions that make absolutely no sense.  It’s silly.  It’s unproductive.  It’s Congress.