eport, 80 per cent of leaders think their internal communications are “clear and engaging”, but only 50 per cent of employees agree. The cost of getting it wrong is significant. A Gallup poll found 21 per cent of employees globally are engaged at work, meaning a whopping 79 per cent are not, with poor communication consistently cited as a key driver. In frontline-heavy industries like retail, the challenge is clear – 29 per cent of deskless employees say they are satisfied with internal communication, according to the Staffbase 2025 International Employee Communication Impact Study. Badly delivered bad news doesn’t just feel uncomfortable; it destroys trust, weakens engagement and ultimately impacts productivity and retention. Bad news, done well Here are five fundamentals that make the difference: Make your values work in the bad times, not just in the good. Values aren’t just words on a poster on the back of a loo door. They set expectations for leaders and employees alike. When bad news lands, your people will measure everything you do against what you said you stand for. When software company Atlassian recently laid off staff, an employee took to the company’s Slack to call out how it had been handled, using Atlassian’s own value of “Open company, no bullshit”. Rather than acknowledge it, Atlassian fired her. She is now suing them. The message it sent to remaining employees was loud and clear: speak up at your peril. Your values are a promise, and your people will hold you to them. Before you communicate anything difficult, ask yourself: Does this reflect what we stand for? And can we stand by this? If you can’t, it needs a rewrite. Build hard conversations into your culture The best organisations don’t avoid hard conversations; they build them into how they operate. That means creating an environment where honesty is the norm, not the exception. Where leaders don’t wait for a crisis to be transparent – they practise it every day. As McKinsey highlights, one global manufacturing CEO made difficult conversations a regular part of leadership. Engaging directly with people, addressing issues early and creating space for open dialogue led to better decisions and greater trust. If your culture avoids discomfort, your communication will too. Prepare in advance Think of hard comms as part of your operational risk planning. Draft them in advance. That way, they’re on hand to edit, refine and send when you need them. Writing in advance also helps to write in your brand’s voice. Without the additional pressure of time, they’ll be less formal and corporate, giving you more room to be more human. Communicating with customers and employees with empathy, not euphemisms. When Google announced layoffs in 2023, many employees were notified via email. Some overnight, and some only after losing access to their systems. The abruptness made it feel like no thought or planning had gone into it. It made bad news feel even worse, leaving people distraught and the company’s reputation diminished. As one employee put it, “We took the people out of people operations today”. Prepare the message and the tone. But also the experience – the way it makes people feel. As the saying goes: Fail to prepare, prepare to fail. Empower your managers to be your best comms channel In difficult times, people want reassurance, authenticity and someone they can turn to who has their back. Bunnings has built its model around empowering local store leaders to make decisions and engage directly with teams and communities. The business empowers and trusts its managers to do what’s right locally, with Bunnings’ chief operating officer Ryan Baker telling The Australian: “There’s no rule book for the stores”. Local teams on the frontline know your people and your customers better than anyone. Help them communicate tough news in ways that feel authentic and right. Equip your managers with the right training, trust and honesty, and they become your most credible voice on the ground. Say the actual words Get straight to the point. In comms land, we’re used to building a narrative and setting a scene. But this can backfire when sharing bad news, making it seem like you’re stalling for time or spinning the real bad news. Back your message and share it boldly. What do people need to know? What next steps do they need to take? How are you going to answer FAQs? When KFC ran out of chicken in the UK in 2018, it owned the error, creating a campaign centred around a clear apology – “A chicken restaurant without any chicken. It’s not ideal.” The #KFCcrisis was softened with humour and the unforgettable FCK image, an apt rearranging of the letters of the brand – but the apologetic message remained consistent throughout, helping internal teams and the supply chain feel as supported as consumers and ultimately increasing the brand’s impression score. The good news Most organisations have a crisis comms plan, but far fewer build the culture, habits and preparation to deliver it well. Embedding values and empowering managers enable bad news to be delivered better. Ashling Withers is an associate strategy director at branding agency Principals, and Emma Saunders is a senior writer at brand language studio XXVI, part of the Principals Group.