By Richard Torrenzano

Listening is a problem of the ages.
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October 25, 1854, in the Crimean War, British Light Brigade is ordered to attack from the flanks, but muddled orders result in a frontal attack, wiping out half the regiment. Someone was not listening.

By Richard Torrenzano
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Months into the Pandemic, Many Lawyers Have Not Mastered Skills Necessary for Virtual Meetings.

Before COVID-19, there were a few virtual law firms. Now all law firms are virtual.

​Virtual practices had not been attractive. Lawyers recognized it is difficult to be as effective on a computer or TV screen as they are face-to-face with important constituencies - clients, judges, juries, bankers, regulators and many more.

By Richard Torrenzano

​Under siege, chief executives and corporate legal counsels would do well to heed warnings of an 18th century philosopher, theologian and scientist who might have envisioned today’s digital world when he said: “The more elaborate our means of communication, the less we communicate.”

​Joseph Priestly recognized a timeless maxim most business leaders appear to have forgotten: In times of complexity — less is more — and simplicity rules.

​Leaders risk neglecting one of the most basic and important tools that speaks in their voice: the perfect humble news release.

Richard Torrenzano speaks on the evolution of the roles of general counsel, especially as they pertain to the upkeep and oversight of company's reputations navigating a modern day environment.

Has any company in living memory faced as many high-profile controversies and setbacks as Facebook? The company confronted hot-button issues – from the Cambridge Analytica scandal, to data breaches, to anti-trust actions – with a tone deafness unique among major corporations.

​And yet, there are signs that Facebook is beginning to get smart.

Could Do Better

It could do better, according to Richard Torrenzano, chief executive of The Torrenzano Group, which counsels corporations and executives on reputational strategy.

“The Federal Reserve does have a large megaphone and bully-pulpit platforms they have chosen not to use,’’ Torrenzano said. “They need to explain why and what they are doing in an active and thoughtful way,” including on social media, he said. “Until they do, they will continually get beat up.’’
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One example is the current Fed dependence on incoming data, which officials could do a better job of explaining. It’s not the first time they’ve had this problem. In 2006, the Fed’s then-Vice Chairman Donald Kohn urged his colleagues to spell out what that meant. “We have all said in our speeches, we are becoming more data-dependent,” he said. “It behooves us to explain to the public what data we’re looking at.”