Corporate Affairs is under pressure.
Not because it is less busy — but because expectations have changed.
Register and watch the webinar here
In the latest edition of the Expert Pack webinar series from epresspack, Greg Dawson, former FTSE100 Director of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability and now at Jackdaw Advisory, challenged a room of senior in-house communications leaders to rethink the role of Corporate Affairs.
His central question was stark:
If Corporate Affairs disappeared tomorrow, would the business genuinely feel it?
The uncomfortable shift at ExCo level
Greg drew on his 28 years in Corporate Affairs and 17 years sitting on executive committees to highlight a clear trend: influence is being questioned.
In a volatile, low-growth economic environment, CEOs and CFOs are increasingly focused on numbers. Around executive tables dominated by engineers and accountants, Corporate Affairs leaders are being asked tougher questions:
How are you contributing to growth?
Where is the commercial impact?
What levers are you pulling?
Managing issues remains critical. But, as Greg put it, issue management is “the day job.” The strategic opportunity lies elsewhere.
Beyond issue management: thinking like a business leader
Greg argued that too often Corporate Affairs professionals stop at protecting reputation. The more powerful mindset is to ask:
How can I help transform this company?
Every other executive around the table is thinking in terms of transformation. Corporate Affairs should be no different.
That means:
Understanding where the company is trying to grow
Building deep relationships with commercial teams
Speaking the language of numbers
Aligning narrative with strategic direction
Not by claiming to “deliver revenue” on day one — but by identifying and activating the levers that influence it.
The DS Smith case: turning narrative into revenue
Greg's experience at DS Smith provides a clear example.
When he joined, the business was a major B2B packaging company with limited visibility beyond its sector. But two global conversations were accelerating:
Climate and the circular economy
Urbanisation and digital transformation
Rather than shouting about packaging, DS Smith positioned itself at the centre of these macro debates.
One initiative focused on plastic replacement in European supermarkets. A study revealed a €7 billion opportunity in replacing unnecessary plastic with recyclable materials. Corporate Affairs elevated this from a communications campaign into a strategic business priority.
The result:
A formal commitment to replace one billion pieces of plastic in five years
Delivery of 1.2 billion pieces in four years
Significant profit contribution through higher-margin sustainable packaging
Corporate Affairs did not “own” the revenue. But it initiated, framed and accelerated the opportunity.
Measuring what matters
A key theme of the discussion was measurement.
Greg outlined a practical framework:
Activity – What are you doing? Who are you meeting?
Output – What content and coverage are you generating?
Perception – Is reputation shifting in the intended direction?
Impact – What tangible difference does that shift make to the business?
CEOs, he noted, “glaze over” when conversation stops at brand metrics. The critical step is linking perception to performance.
That might mean:
Policy decisions that protect margins
Recruitment efficiencies that save millions
Product launches that support revenue
Sustainability initiatives that unlock new markets
The leadership challenge
The session closed with a powerful challenge to senior communicators:
Corporate Affairs professionals are highly skilled. But to maintain influence, they must think beyond function and lean into commercial reality.
That means:
Spending time at the commercial heart of the business
Understanding distressed inventory as well as brand equity
Supporting sales conversations, not just storytelling
As Greg put it:
“We deserve to be recognised as true world-class business people. The question is how we tweak our talents to demonstrate that value.”
Watch the full webinar
If you missed the live session — or would like to revisit the discussion — the full recording is now available.
