Banducci and ‘that’ walk out

A lot has been said about the Woolworths CEO walking out of an interview on Four Corners last night.

Firstly, hats off to his media team who did everything right…your boss let you down.

1) His team got him in the chair in the first place. They knew that saying nothing or sending a statement would be damaging. CEO’s need to face these kind of questions and not hide away. This is why they get paid the big bucks! Good job for advising him to front up. 
2) His team obviously organised for him to do the interview in a store. Rather than behind a flashy desk in his ivory tower. Good job, it makes him more relatable. 
3) Did you notice he was wearing a casual polo? What a man of the people! Seriously though, he could have worn a shirt and tie but chose to go casual. Smart media advice to look more relatable and less ‘high flyer’. 
4) When it did eventually go to shit, the media team member calmly asked the reporter to wait. He didn’t try to impress the boss with some macho ‘turn the cameras off’ stuff (that never works btw). Instead he asked for a few minutes to talk to the boss. 
5) The best thing the media team did, is get the boss back in the chair. It would have been a tricky conversation to have. ‘Look boss, you already look pretty bad. Your walk out will be all anyone is talking about. You can choose to go back and try to claw back some ground – or leave and look like a complete tosser’. That’s a media adviser who realises they shouldn’t just tell the boss what he wants to hear. But should actually give him sound advice.

My guess is his media team are former journos. They get it. They know that if you walk from an interview…you become the story. Every time.

Almost every report I’ve heard today talking about last night’s show, talked about the walkout first. Not what the Coles CEO said, or what the cherry farmer said, or the issues with a non air-conditioned warehouse. Nope, they’re taking about the Woolies CEO.

My advice? If you say something you realise you shouldn’t…. fess up. Say something like  ‘you know what, I admit that was unfair’ then move on. Tbh if Banducci had said that, it would have been a non-event and Four Corners wouldn’t have had the massive publicity boost it did today.

As for the social media scribes I saw saying that Four Corners shouldn’t have used it, pfft. The way Angus Grigg handled it, by reminding Banducci he was on the record, was brilliant. Then when Banducci sat back down after his walkout, Grigg didn’t try to squeeze the awkwardness for more than it was, but instead opened with  let’s just move on’ – classy.

If you’re a leader, you will need to speak to media or front an audience. Hire a good team around you, listen to them. Be honest if you’ve made a mistake, and never ever walk out. Learn how to handle the tricky questions.