Individuals or organizations – we all have a platform! How we define and use our platform hits right to the core of our purpose. Smart companies now realize purpose motivates individuals to strive toward their potential and organizations to innovate and drive long-term value.
After 20 years helping companies develop and maximize their platforms, I’ve found there is a formula to success. I’ve observed one shining example this past year: the NBA's efforts to get out the vote.
The 2019-20 NBA season concluded on Oct. 11 when the Lakers defeated the Heat to win their 17th NBA championship. Now, after an unprecedented season that mixed a pandemic with historic racial tensions, the NBA's platform is stronger than ever.
I applaud the NBA’s smart strategy and strong sense of purpose in owning its platform. Here’s my recommendation on how to take the learnings from the NBA and apply them to your organization:
Listen first. As you likely recall, the NBA players walked off the court in late August in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The players felt the weight of the moment and the importance of using their voices. They wanted the power of the league behind them (in many ways, the WNBA players paved the way for this action). Play resumed only after a set of closed-door meetings where the league committed to converting arenas into polling centers for the 2020 election. Although it was a roller-coaster 48 hours, the Houston Rockets’ Russell Westbrook came out of the meetings saying, “Our voices were heard.”
Find your sweet spot. So, what happened in those meetings? How did they find a way forward? Bringing out the vote in the upcoming election was something everyone in the room had passion for. In 2016, only 56 percent of Americans voted, according to the US Census Bureau. According to the players association, only 26 percent of NBA players voted. Some teams had already started to announce plans to use their arenas for polling stations and, by the time the meetings were over, the league agreed all teams would do it. As is often the case, the big idea was already there, it just needed the executive sponsorship to scale for impact.
When your organization thinks about where to place time, money, people, and energy, look for your sweet spot. This is the place where the organization’s values and unique resources meet a particular societal need. When you get this right, the results will tick off more boxes than any one corporate responsibility effort, HR initiative, brand campaign, or strategic sponsorship ever could. In the case of the NBA, a focus on getting out the vote combined their values around social justice and racial equality with a very specific resource that each team already possessed – the large arenas that would normally be sitting empty on election day.
Be willing to take risks. Although the NBA’s voter mobilization efforts are officially nonpartisan, many would say that wading into politics creates a lightning rod for criticism. This is where leading organizations differ from the rest of the pack. They recognize the role they can play in society and their stakeholders are rewarding them for it. According to the 2020 Edelmen Trust Barometer, 73 percent of employees say they want the opportunity to change society and nearly two-thirds of consumers identify themselves as belief-driven buyers.
Go big and bring others along. The NBA needed smart partners to maximize their platform. They quickly joined forces with organizations such as Civic Alliance, More Than A Vote, The NAACP LDF and Power The Polls. The NBA and WNBA players were encouraged to use their star power and were given the flexibility to use their creativity and passion. For example, several teams held contests to register fans to vote and LeBron James teamed up with Barack Obama to increase black voter turnout. The momentum created by the NBA and WNBA quickly extended to other leagues as well. The NFL, for example, has also been encouraging fans to vote and recently announced that 90 percent of their players have registered.
Tell the story. In addition to the impact the NBA can measure and publicize for turning more than 20 arenas into polling sites and training more than 10,000 poll workers, there is a bigger story to tell. Players, coaches, fans, arena staff, poll workers, and the community-at-large became part of a movement across sports that channeled frustration with racial injustice toward a tangible and positive contribution for our communities and our country.
2020 has been a difficult year for professional sports, and the NBA is no exception. Multiple factors contributed to a financial loss that affected the NBA, just as it did for so many other businesses amid the pandemic. This makes the NBA's efforts even more commendable. Its leadership during this unprecedented time will be remembered – and rewarded – for years to come.
You can maximize your own platform by taking guidance from the NBA’s playbook.
Holly Humphrey is the owner of HH Communications & Consulting LLC which helps to activate and accelerate purpose driven brands. Prior to starting her consulting business, Holly led strategic brand programs for EY in the Americas.
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