3 causes of botched corporate apologies

When a company is forced to apologize multiple times for the same incident, it’s already blown it.

Think of this playground scenario: When a rambunctious child knocks another little one over, the parent of the rowdy tot generally intervenes and demands that the child apologize. If the apology comes off as insincere, a parent intent on teaching a lesson might say, “Apologize like you mean it, or we’re going home right now.”

Kids usually recognize the severity of the matter and offer a proper apology. Adult-run corporations, unfortunately, tend to be worse at apologizing than your average 7-year-old.

Why do businesses so frequently mangle mea culpas? Here are three reasons:

1. Lawyers see an apology as an admission of guilt. Attorneys are loath to cop to anything, lest it be used against the apologizer in a court of law. This hesitancy leads to vague non-apologies that frequently cause more outrage, which creates the need to apologize again. This time, with feeling— or we’re leaving the playground right now.

This is why PR people and attorneys should spend more time together. Most business leaders would prefer to swiftly rip off the apology Band-aid the first time around, rather than tugging it slowly and repeatedly, worsening the original wound.