Change communications lessons from President Biden’s decision

Last weekend, the nation and the world reacted to the stunning news that President Joe Biden dropped his bid for another term in the White House. In doing so, he became the first incumbent commander-in-chief to withdraw from the race since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.

The decision created waves not only for its political implications but for how it was communicated as well. Some early reports claimed that top staffers were unaware of the decision until it was publicly stated.

This historic event has far-reaching impacts on communicators. When you’ve got an important message to share, getting across to your internal stakeholders at the outset can help keep things aligned from both a cultural and operational standpoint, facilitating smoother transitions going forward.

Contingency in communications and decisive moves

Despite the best-laid plans, life and work don’t always follow a tight script. That’s why it’s critical to have contingency strategies in place for various outcomes, particularly when it comes to leadership changes.

Lindsay Singleton, executive vice president at Rokk Solutions, emphasized that communicators don’t always get time to react—even when plans are in place. In this case, she said, internal stakeholders needed to hear from President Biden. That, combined with the timing of the announcement, ultimately left some staffers in the dark until the news reached external audiences.

“The internal messaging cascade could have been stronger,” Singleton said. “It does make sense because the president wanted this message to come from him. But this didn’t give certain internal stakeholders the time to implement any contingency plans that were in place since everything happened very quickly.”

Despite this, Biden got his desired communications result out of the process, which was control of the narrative upon bowing out of the race.

“He got everything he wanted except the nomination,” she said. “He drove the story and he named his successor, and I think that was important to him.”

Scott Thomsen, director of communications and public affairs for the Ventura County Fire Department, said that despite the challenges of the announcement, the president and his team handled the situation relatively well given the gravity of the moment. Thomsen added that ideally, organizations should share as much as they can with their employees ahead of time.

“While a company or organization should want to give employees a heads up, you still want to break the news, so you can’t start sharing that information much before you make the announcement,” Thomsen said. “In this case, the President was making his final major career announcement. Sharing his decision with anyone outside the First Lady likely would have led to someone leaking the story. Instead, the President smartly controlled the message and made the announcement when he wanted to.”

Maintaining the narrative

While  Biden’s withdrawal didn’t come as a complete surprise to many outside his campaign, many reports state that the announcement took some of Biden’s most trusted confidants off guard.

What wasn’t shared publicly (but has been speculated on greatly) was the exact reasoning behind Biden’s decision to drop out of the race. Though concerns about his age and cognitive abilities were widespread, no specifics were given. What matters here is the internal narrative and how it was shared with his staffers.

Singleton explained that the top-line priority should be a consistent reason as to why a leader is stepping away, and communicating a clear path forward for those who will remain in the organization.

“You need a really strong narrative to share about why the incumbent or leader is stepping away to share with employees,” she said. “If you position the leader in the most faithful way you can, you can help limit gossip around the change and maintain focus on the goals of the campaign or organization and chart the way forward.”

The central throughline of the leadership change should center on the accomplishments that the organization as a whole wants to achieve, and how both the outgoing and incoming leaders are aligned. In this case, that means agreement between Biden’s policies and Vice President Kamala Harris’ platform at the top of the ticket, which shows through Biden’s endorsement of Harris for the nomination.

“The new leader should focus on the accomplishments and goals of the old one and share how they’re going to continue them,” she said.

This sentiment was echoed by the president himself in his address to the nation last night.

Nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy.

And that includes personal ambition.

So I have decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation.

That is the best way to unite our nation.

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 25, 2024

Singleton feels the Biden-Harris campaign was successful in its transition at the top of the ticket by showcasing a united front despite this historic event.

“The vision isn’t changing, just the name at the top of the ballot,” she said. “By leading with continuity, they can continue to build on their accomplishments.”

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports and hosting trivia.