Friend,

I may not like Pauline Hanson but I’m not too proud to learn from her success today, some A$950k (against a $1 million target) at the time of writing.

That's what One Nation raised today in a "Fire the Liar" campaign.

IMO this is more a reputation risk and social licence story than a political one.

It's an attack campaign approach to be ready for if you're a CEO or Board.

What you saw today was:

1. A self-interested group launched a platform and campaign across channels
2. Supporters piled in (fast) to raise money, create content, and amplify
3. The campaign become a trending topic in search, media, and socials, by noon.

What you didn't see also matters:

1. No media gatekeepers
2. No slow sign off (yes, you!)
3. No referee stopping this, at least yet.

This agility is a strength in war, or any fight for hearts and minds, and it's now “guerilla tactics” 101. With the crowd-funded attack model now working in politics, we can expect it hitting more companies.

Sure, it's One Nation v the ALP right now, but brands are next.  The big problem is most organisations are still preparing for the last war. Here's how you're probably exposed.

1. You're prepping for the wrong crisis

Most crisis plans assume a familiar sequence. Problem-> media inbound -> answer Qs or give a (often crap) statement -> story runs. This still happens daily, but often the warning sign is via Reddit, Glassdoor, or snipy TikToks. The story is created before it’s reported.

2. You're training the wrong skills

CEOs still spend time in media training learning how to handle journalists’ questions. That helps but not enough to develop the emotional and intellectual agility to lead through a criticism sh*tstorm (borrowing a movie title) about “everything everywhere all at once”.

Could any CEO and leadership manage this? Honestly, probably not solo, and not without training and experience.

3. You're assuming you have more time

Crowd-driven campaigns don't wait for legal, approvals, or board meetings. Organisations that respond well to crowd critique en masse won't be fastest to comment, but they’ll be fastest to understand what’s happening and why, to triage, decide and act.

A final so what?

A cranky crowd can now build attention, shape narrative and apply pressure without trad media.

That's a structural change and b8gger all to do with media.

I worry this is coming for organisations, and individual leaders, as it has in politics today.

Best we become leaders who understand the crowd, accept they will arrive before the media, and who keep building skills.

Which skills?

Lots, but start with analysis, fast decisions, campaign savviness, crisis co-responding, and the perennial: agile and sensitive strategic responses.

In a very different ecosystem.

Best,

Carden | she/her (here’s why that matters @work)

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