Role identity tactics of CEOs in public apologies on twitter and user sentiments

ABSTRACT The public statements of CEOs (such as apologies) should be periodically evaluated to understand the role identity tactics of the CEOs play in navigating through a crisis. While a CEO may exhibit many distinct role identities, studies on the specific identity that is dominant and activated in a crisis are lacking. Thus, we adopted a deductive, qualitative, and interpretive approach, employing content analysis to examine how 30 CEOs apologised on social media to manage organisational identity. We also used the well-tested and reliable typology of image restoration strategies, along with the Koehnian Framework for Assessing the Ethics of Corporate Apologies as theoretical anchors. The results provided two CEO apology categories (the public relations style or personal style) and four discrete identity apology tactics: Humility, caretaker, problem solver, and defensive. Our findings and role-enactment strategy are relevant to both corporate communication managers and CEOs who wish to be more persuasive in their apologies for faster and more positive results.