The Little Questions – Details, episodes & analysis

Normally, we spend our days advising big organisations on how to rebuild trust, explain themselves better, and stop setting fire to their reputations. But today we've taken on a new client. A tricky one. With the sort of knotty challenge we love at Apella Towers. Legacy brand. Huge heritage. Slightly confused about what it stands for.

Name of the client: Britain.

It's a high-maintenance account, this one. Constant leadership churn, outdated assets, no clear narrative architecture, and absolutely no budget. So probably pro-bono then?

That's before you even get into the stakeholder relations — the EU, the US, the Commonwealth, the neighbours up North. It's a crowded contact sheet. Let's see what they've sent us. 

Brace yourselves. 

This episode is hosted by Matt Young and Andrew Brown.
Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.
You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

It's topical time again. The last few weeks have seen a potential bubble emerging in the markets as tech valuations soar. This time round central bankers have jumped in to provide warnings ahead of this potential crash.

In the UK, the Treasury has continued to fly taxation kites to see how the public and markets react - something that we discussed in episode 90.

It has been impossible over the last few weeks not to see pictures of a glum looking Prince Andrew (or should he plain old Andrew) across our TV screens. 

As usual our task, is to take a passionate, grumpy view of how things should have
been handled from a PR and flaks perspective. 

So, topics to discuss on this podcast include:
- When and how should those with the big roles (CEOs, Governors, Chancellors and so on) give warnings about market instability? Does saying it create more instability?

- If AI is going to take over the world of PR and Comms, are there some things we'd really like it to do?

- As the Royals garner all the media headlines (often for the wrong reasons), how would we advise the Palace?

- And why is Birmingham Council being so reluctant to rename its airport after one of the City's heroes? US cities do it all the time. 

This episode is hosted by Matt Young and Andrew Brown.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. 

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

 

 

By rights, the fly-on-the-wall workplace documentary should have died a death the moment The Office became a hit. At that time, BBC shows like Airport, set in Heathrow, and Life of Grime about environmental health workers attracted cult followings with their often banal interviews, wobbly camerawork and acerbic voiceover narrations. Ricky Gervais' masterpiece took these stylistic devices and turned them up to 11 with the fictional Slough-based paper company Wernham Hogg, where "life is stationery".

Since then almost every conceivable place of work has been considered – from registrars to zookeepers and cruise ships to police stations. Airlines, banks, butchers and bakers even a candlestick maker.

Their appeal lingers. It's not hard to imagine why: we all work somewhere, we're inquisitive (ok nosey) animals. We want to peer into others' lives, and imagine what it is like, or thank our lucky stars we don't work there. 

A question to ask then might be: who in their right mind would invite a camera crew into their business, with unhindered access? With minimal, if any, meaningful editorial control?

Quite a few firms it would seem. 

Clearly the Corporate Affairs Directors who signs off on this (or perhaps even came up with the idea in the first place) see more upside than down.

So. Why would you? And why would you not? And if you do manage to persuade your boss, and your ExCo and your board what do you need to think about? What controls need to be in place? What might cause you sleepless nights? 

These questions are answered, and more, on this edition of The Little Questions. Hosted by:

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. 

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Until the late 1980s, if the subject of engagement was raised at work, it was usually to sign a card and chuck in a quid for Terry in Accounts who'd just popped the question to Mandy in the typing pool.

This all changed in the mid 1990s when workplace academics began to opine on the idea that people could become engaged in their work. Fast forward a few years and a whole plethora of large consultancies and HR thought leaders had jumped on the bandwagon.

The theory goes that people will invest more physical, cognitive, and emotional energy when their work feels meaningful, safe, and supportive. This boosts productivity, lowers turnover and cultivates a better, positively reinforcing culture. They should also become strong external brand ambassadors. What's not to like?

There are clearly critical areas that we corporate communicators can and should be playing. Are we responsible, or important enablers? Where should we focus? How do you drive good engagement? What can we learn from when its gone wrong? Is it something you can measure?

These questions are answered, and more, on this edition of The Little Questions. Hosted by:

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. 

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Trump is back. And back with a bang.

Be it old age or the fog of Covid but Little Questions had forgotten quite how discombobulating the stream of consciousness from the 47th President of the United States really is. 

From waking up in the morning wondering, what has he said or done now, to then trying to work out what he meant, and if the latest u-turn was a u-turn or not. All before the coffee has properly kicked in.

There can be no question that his return has encouraged a wider shift to more conservative social and political stances and a celebration of capitalism. Across many sectors, businesses are either doing away with, watering down or simply trying to hide their DEI and ESG programmes – the find and replace function in Windows has surely never been busier. 

Some business leaders have gone further, speaking out on previously controversial issues, no longer afraid of being cancelled.

For some the shift is a breath of fresh air. For others a return to darker times.

How on earth do we Corporate Communicators, the last bastions of common sense in an increasingly mad and angry world, respond? Are we ducking and covering hoping for things to return to normal in four years? Do we pragmatically and gently reposition? Do we rail against the dying of the light and to hell with the commercial consequences? Or do we drill baby, drill?

This episode is hosted by Andrew Brown. Formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

And this time we're joined by Apella colleague James Kirkup, former DG at the Social Market Foundation. James spent over 20 years in high-profile Westminster roles including Political Editor of the Daily Telegraph and Director of the Social Market Foundation. Extensive experience of thought leadership and advocacy work, with a particular focus on the relationship between business, politics and public policy.

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

You can picture the scene - you have spent the last three months speaking to your ExCom and corporate finance team about your company's biggest acquisition to date. This will fundamentally transform the shape and operations of the company, you are raising a large equity and debt package to finance the deal, and your leaders are excited about this next stage for the company.

Then, the dreaded happens - you take the call from the journalist, and they have the story. You feel weeks of planning slipping through your fingers, with limited time to respond and stakeholders panicked. 

We know from experience that leaking is part and parcel of the communications world. So, where exactly do they come from? And what can you do to make sure – if they do occur – you are best prepared to deal with them? This is what we're unpacking on this episode of The Little Questions. 

This podcast was hosted by:

Elizabeth Mobed, who joined Apella as a Senior Associate in November 2023. She spent the last three years at Teneo advising clients on a range of reputation and communications mandates. She has extensive capital markets and financial communications experience, advising on international M&A transactions and IPOs with FTSE 100 and private equity firms. She has also advised clients on ESG, issues campaigning and crisis communications. She joined Teneo in 2021 from FTI Consulting's Energy and Natural Resources communications team. She holds an BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. 

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

2025 marks our 4th year providing hopefully useful snippets of wisdom for all things Comms, Corporate Affairs and PR-related. Given the New Year, we decided to look forward and consider who has some of the trickiest Comms challenges in 2025 and given, we're also solution-focused, how we'd go about fixing them.

Some of the organisations and subjects in our Little Questions crosshairs this time include HM Government, NATO, Hollywood, UK housebuilders and infrastructure, Net Zero and ESG, car makers and the London Stock Exchange. 

This podcast was hosted by:

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review.

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Welcome to the third annual Little Questions PR heroes and villains. This is our excuse to look back over the year that almost was and consider who nailed their comms and who jumped straight into the proverbial pile of steaming.

In previous years we've considered caterpillar shaped cakes, Union leaders, ferries taking on German auto giants, some famous pieces of stone, the odd city, a book shop and a veritable confusion of politicians. Indeed, I'm sure you're already wondering – will Matt Hancock make it three years in a row?! 

Joining me to consider and cogitate are Father and Mrs Christmas of Apella, Matt Young and Jenny Scott. 

This podcast was hosted by:

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Jenny Scott; Former Executive Director of Communications at the Bank of England and co-lead for Bank wide strategy. Advisor to the Governor, sat on the Bank's executive committee and risk committee. Formerly economics and politics correspondent for the BBC and presenter of the Daily Politics. Trustee of Pro Bono Economics. 

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

Well into our fourth year of podcasting here at The Little Questions, we've been fortunate to have some excellent guests visit our virtual broom cupboard and share with us a little of their wisdom. From FTSE100 CEOs to Climate Campaigners, neuroscientists and actors, it's been an extensive and eclectic group. Deliberately so, for ours is nothing if not an eclectic trade. Or is it a profession? Scroll way back to our first ever episode to hear our debate on that little question. 

What it does give us of course is a licence to get involved in everything, everywhere. 

And yet, while our guests have been as different as different can be, when it comes to our chosen specialist subject – comms – we're beginning to notice some strong themes that connect them. 

So, this episode is an attempt to highlight some of those themes for you. Or is it just an excuse for Matt and Andrew to reuse some of those brilliant interviews? You decide. If you're enjoying this episode please consider leaving us a review to help other like minded individuals find us.

This edition of The Little Questions is hosted by Apella partners Andrew Brown and Matt Young. 

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.

In this episode we consider why it's so difficult to define a working person (as our government is finding out) and we consider if the days of PRs doing 'dodgy' desk research is over.

We'll discuss the praise Macdonald's has been enjoying in the way it handled the visit of one Donald Trump and how Airbnb has been going into Comms battle with the residents of Primrose Hill, or as it's better known 'the place where Paddington Bear lives'.

And of course, it would be remiss of us not to tackle this Autumnal topical episode without mentioning the Budget. Has this Budget been a process that has been more heavily trailed, discussed, dissected, and fought over than any before?

This edition of The Little Questions is hosted by Apella partners Andrew Brown and Matt Young. 

Andrew Brown; formerly Director of Communications and Public affairs at Ageas Insurance, Andrew has more than ten years' experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global, listed, multifaceted firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors. He has considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management as well as reputation sentiment analysis and insight. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.

Matt Young has 25 years of experience across media relations, public affairs, regulatory development, employee engagement, brand development, competition and CSR. Group corporate affairs director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA. You can get in touch by emailing podcast@apellaadvisors.com and please consider leaving us a review. 

Find out more at apellaadvisors.com.

This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.