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On June 6, Sony President and CEO Jack Tretton opened the E3 Sony press conference with an apology about the company’s recent hacking incident, which compromised the security of 77 million PlayStation Network online-gaming accounts. He went on to thank Sony PlayStation’s loyal online-gaming subscribers for their 90% return rate, promising to continue to make sure the experience they have with the system continues to improve, and stating that they were the reason PlayStation is successful.

Sony President and CEO Jack Tretton presenting at E3.
[Photo credit: techland.time.com]

While he almost assuredly wouldn’t have chosen to have to begin the conference with an apology, Tretton stood out as an individual who does not take his customer base lightly. His speech didn’t outline exactly what Sony could’ve done better, and he didn’t make excuses or fumble through the incident – he painted a realistic picture of a technology-based corporate world, and served as a model of how to handle delicate and, unfortunately, sometimes unavoidable situations. The incident showed that even the most well-known organizations with great reputations are not immune to compliance challenges.

So what can other organizations learn from Sony about handling their audience when things go wrong? We chose our top five tips we feel they displayed and will display appropriately and efficiently.

1. Be honest. Tretton didn’t downplay the situation at all. He gave the facts about what happened within his company’s walls, and even acknowledged that it wasn’t the first time a similar incident had occurred. Customers – especially those of a technology-based company – don’t want to feel lied to or fed “Everything’s going to be just fine”-type information. Tretton knows his customers are smart, and that honesty is key to gaining back their trust.
2. Be calm and collected. Appearance and demeanor are extremely important in times of crises, and the face of Sony is no exception. Although Tretton was honest with his audience, he poked fun at himself and joked with the press, keeping a very conversational tone that managed to help him communicate effectively and positively with those who were affected by the breach.
3. Focus on the positives and remember the customer. Imagine if Tretton or anyone else at Sony had given off a glass-half-empty attitude about incident costs, reputation losses, etc. Instead of focusing on the fact that they lost 10% of their online gaming business, Tretton highlighted his appreciation for the 90% of business the PlayStation Network retained. By choosing to focus on people over dollars, bad situations can be reconciled much more quickly.
4. Make it up to the customer – tangibly. And by this, we mean give them free stuff. In Sony’s case, customers received compensation in the form of free game downloads as part of a “Welcome Back” package, free upgrades of a PlayStation Plus membership, and more, showing that even those customers who have already chosen to return and give their money are valued. Words can only go so far in a consumer society, so take a leaf out of Sony’s book.
5. Figure out what went wrong and right it quickly and deliberately. This one is pretty self-explanatory. No matter how much money or face your organization has lost, preventing the incident from happening again should be your No. 1 internal priority. Don’t hesitate to gather feedback from those most closely involved to make things right again.

While sound compliance management is always a great idea, it’s just as important to be prepared when things go awry. After all, that’s life, and no one – not even a technological giant – is perfect.