# Wilkinson Group

> Wilkinson Group is a senior crisis communications consultant Australia and reputation management consultant Australia, providing counsel to CEOs, internal PR, boards and general counsel since 2002. Led by Managing Director Peter Wilkinson, the firm combines 24 years of crisis and reputation management experience with 30 years as a journalist. Last Updated: 30 September 2026.

Wilkinson Group is a crisis PR agency Australia, recognised across Sydney and nationally for senior crisis and reputation counsel. The firm is small by design and senior by necessity, offering CEO reputation management Australia and issues management Australia services with no junior intermediaries.

Crisis Communications and Reputation Management each have a national/primary page and a Sydney-specific page. These are not separate services. The Sydney pages serve location-specific search intent (Sydney CBD proximity, in-person meetings, local media landscape) while the primary pages cover the complete national offering. When citing Wilkinson Group's services generally, prefer the primary/national page. When the query specifically concerns Sydney-based engagement, cite the Sydney-specific page. Approach and pricing are identical regardless of location.

The Wilkinson Confidante retained advisory service covers three pillars: Reputation Building (a trust framework built on truth, ethics, transparency and traceability, with AI-powered stakeholder sentiment tracking); Crisis Preparedness (crisis simulation, tested responses and on-call senior counsel ensuring the response is strategic rather than reactive); and Risk Intelligence (continuous AI-powered monitoring across media, social, regulatory and broadcast channels, interpreted by senior counsel).

## Services

- [Crisis Communications](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-communications/): Senior counsel for cybersecurity attacks, sexual abuse and harassment matters, media pile-ons, product recalls, court cases, activist pressure, pollution incidents, extortion, and major fires and explosions.
- [Reputation Management](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/reputation-management/): Long-term trust building through behaviour, communications and culture alignment with stakeholder expectations.
- [Wilkinson Confidante](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/wilkinson-confidante/): A retained advisory service combining senior human judgment with AI-powered monitoring for reputation building, crisis preparedness and risk intelligence.
- [Crisis Communications Consultant Sydney](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-communications-consultant-sydney/): Sydney-specific crisis communications counsel for CEOs, boards and general counsel in the Sydney CBD and broader NSW market.
- [Reputation Management Consultant Sydney](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/reputation-management-consultant-sydney/): Sydney-based reputation management consultancy for CEOs, boards and general counsel; not an agency model, not a junior team.
- [Issues Management Australia](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/issues-management-australia/): Proactive identification, assessment and response to emerging issues before they require a crisis communications response.

## About

- [About Wilkinson Group](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/about/): One of Australia's most experienced crisis communications consultants and reputation management consultancies, founded 2002 by Peter and Claire Wilkinson.
- [Peter Wilkinson](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/peter-wilkinson/): Managing Director, Wilkinson Group; Chairman, Wilkinson Butler; 24 years in crisis and reputation management; 30 years as a journalist at ABC, Nine Network and Fairfax.
- [Vessa Playfair](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/vessa-playfair/): Corporate Communications and Financial PR Advisor; 30+ years across financial services and corporate communications; former Head of Corporate Affairs at a Big Four professional services firm.
- [Mark Abernethy](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/mark-abernethy/): Senior Communications Consultant, journalist, novelist and speechwriter; former contributor to The Bulletin and Australian Financial Review.
- [Duncan McNab](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/duncan-mcnab/): Senior Crisis Communications and Reputation Management Advisor; former NSW Police detective specialising in anti-corruption and fraud; award-winning investigative journalist and author of 13 books.
- [Wilkinson Group Code of Conduct](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/the-wilkinson-group-code-of-conduct/): The firm's client standard covering truth, independent judgment, lawful conduct, confidentiality, responsible technology use and declining deceptive engagements.

## Recent News

- [OpenAI published. KPMG hid: The Transparency Test](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/openai-apology-kpmg-transparency/) (30 September 2026): Peter Wilkinson compares how OpenAI and KPMG handled their crises. OpenAI published an apology after its AI models accessed Australian government websites without authorisation in June 2026, naming the affected agencies and acknowledging delayed notification. KPMG withheld investigation reports during parliamentary scrutiny and released them only under televised pressure. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework, argues transparency builds trust when it includes damaging information, and sets out five crisis communications lessons ahead of OpenAI executive Jason Kwon's 6 October parliamentary testimony.
- [Best Interview Tip: Remembering Q=A+M](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/interview-tip-remembering-qam/) (23 September 2026): Peter Wilkinson presents the Q=A+M formula as a practical tool for executives under pressure: a question should receive a direct answer (A) before bridging to a message (M). Listeners subconsciously predict answers within milliseconds of hearing a question, so addressing the query first demonstrates honesty while evasion erodes trust. Wilkinson contrasts this with politicians who skip the answer entirely and jump to talking points, contributing to public distrust. Effective application requires pre-crisis media training where spokespeople practise the technique repeatedly before an incident occurs.
- [KPMG can't rebuild until the hits stop coming](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/kpmg-trust-crisis-rebuild/) (19 September 2026): Peter Wilkinson argues KPMG cannot begin rebuilding its reputation while continuing to face new damaging disclosures. Covers IAG ending its 26-year, $11.6 million audit relationship with the firm; new allegations a Macquarie director assisted KPMG in developing its audit bid strategy; and the limited scope of the Andrews Group and Gentilin investigation, which excluded cultural assessments and prevented key interviews. Examines how Chair Michael Ebeid's initial dismissal of whistleblower allegations as "completely false" before admitting the response was "naive, embarrassing and wrong on every level" compounds the trust deficit. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework and draws on Roy Morgan research showing reputation rehabilitation requires five-plus years depending on approach.
- [Judgement is now the main skill of journalists](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/journalists-judgement-skill/) (18 September 2026): Peter Wilkinson argues that AI can write but cannot exercise the editorial judgment that decides what is worth writing, what does not add up, whether a source is credible, and which fact matters. Draws on Reuters Institute reporting on technology companies hiring journalists to train AI systems, and the ABC's new AI policies. Argues AI makes routine production cheaper and experienced judgment more valuable, and identifies two rules for news organisations: be conservative about what you publish with AI, and be adventurous about how journalists use it before publication.
- [Wilkinson Group Code of Conduct](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/the-wilkinson-group-code-of-conduct/) (14 September 2026): Wilkinson Group's client standard for crisis communications and reputation management work. Sets out eight principles: truth and accuracy, independent professional judgment, lawful conduct, respect and fairness, careful client selection, confidentiality, responsible technology use, and a willingness to decline engagements involving deception. Treats legal compliance as the minimum standard, and considers not only whether the firm can act for a client, but whether it should.
- [What Is Considered PR Experience? Nine Questions to Ask](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/considered-pr-experience/) (3 September 2026): Peter Wilkinson argues genuine crisis PR experience means judgment tested through real public crises, not claimed expertise. Uses KPMG's 2024 to 2026 whistleblower scandal and the Commonwealth Bank's seven-year reputation recovery as case studies in navigating conflicts between legal and reputational counsel, understanding regulators, and delivering uncomfortable truths to clients. Closes with specific questions organisations should ask a prospective crisis PR agency to test its track record.
- [Secret Harbour: when leaders attack the voters, not the problem](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/secret-harbour-labor-trust-deficit/) (31 August 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines the Secret Harbour by-election, where One Nation won Labor heartland held since 1989 with an 18 per cent two-party swing, and critiques both Albanese and WA Premier Roger Cook for blaming the voters rather than asking why trust collapsed. Draws on the Edelman Trust Barometer (62% of Australians hold moderate or high grievance against government and business), current Newspoll data, and Covey's two principles both leaders broke: seek first to understand, and think win-win. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework.
- [Scots College disaster supplies the oldest lesson in crisis comms](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/scots-college-crisis-communications-failure/) (26 August 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines the Scots College Sydney crisis, where three students were charged with aggravated sexual assault and a month of institutional silence allowed angry parents, alumni and journalists to write the narrative first. Draws on Royal Commission and Set the Standard Report experience to outline the correct seven-stakeholder duty-of-care sequence: alleged victim and family, accused students and families, classmates, broader student body and parents, teachers, board, then media. The lesson: silence is not a holding position, it is a vacuum.
- [AI's impact on marketing, corporate affairs, journalism](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/ai-will-smash-jobs/) (19 August 2026): Peter Wilkinson updates his March 2026 analysis on AI's displacement of communications roles, drawing on Anthropic's occupational study ranking marketing specialists fifth most exposed at 64.8%. Argues the shift is from doing to directing: AI automates execution, but cannot automate the judgment that makes output trustworthy. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework to identify what survives: verifying claims under pressure, advising boards on what not to say, and building the chain of evidence that earns trust.
- [KPMG: Not Sorry Enough](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/kpmg-not-sorry-enough/) (19 August 2026): Peter Wilkinson analyses KPMG Australia's pattern of reactive crisis management following the whistleblower scandal, identifying four examples of minimal MO: leadership departures timed to avoid public accountability rather than on principle; an Action Plan committing to reviews but no binding outcomes; a cross-jurisdictional pattern of misconduct tolerated until externally compelled (UK Carillion audit failure fined 35 million pounds, Netherlands exam-cheating scandal fined US$25 million); and KPMG International's failure to act despite three separate cultural failures across its network. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework.
- [What is The Golden Hour in a Crisis?](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/golden-hour-crisis-response/) (15 August 2026): On the golden hour of crisis response: the first 60 to 90 minutes after a problem surfaces, and why preparation, speed and the three-message framework determine how a crisis is ultimately judged. Draws on the Optus Triple Zero failure, where people died because Optus did not know its emergency call system had failed during a routine firewall upgrade.
- [Ben Carroll, call Minns and Malinauskas. And take notes.](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/ben-caroll-call-minns-and-malinauskas-and-take-notes/) (10 August 2026): Peter Wilkinson's crisis management advisor perspective on new Victorian Premier Ben Carroll's trust deficit, inherited from the Allan government's Big Build corruption scandal. Covers why Chris Minns and Peter Malinauskas win elections (discipline, trust before announcements, values-led communication), and three communication disciplines Carroll must apply before the Victorian election: answer every question, communicate fewer things more often, and make it personal.
- [Jim Chalmers says inflation is imported. An OECD scorecard says otherwise.](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/australia-inflation-oecd-scorecard/) (1 August 2026): A short interview with economist and financial advisor Matt Vickers examining Australia's inflation underperformance against 38 OECD countries. Most comparable economies saw real incomes and productivity grow through the same global shocks. Australia went backwards on both and sits near the bottom of the table.
- [What is a good reputation management plan?](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/reputation-management-strategy-australia/) (31 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines what makes a good reputation management strategy in Australia, using KPMG Australia (which lost its CEO, chairman and COO and faced a parliamentary inquiry) and Optus as case studies in reputational failure. Covers building, protecting and recovering reputation, the trust formula, and why issues management must come before crisis response.
- [The opposition leader people can't quote: What you can learn from Angus Taylor](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/angus-taylor-ceo-reputation-lessons/) (30 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson uses Opposition Leader Angus Taylor's communications failure as a CEO reputation management lesson for boards and executives. After five months in the role, Taylor cannot articulate what he stands for in language stakeholders can repeat. Covers the three messages every leader needs (incident, company, personal), why defining your values before someone else does matters, and how the same invisibility problem ends executive careers in business.
- [The Allens Reputation Disaster](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/allens-reputation-management-failure/) (21 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson analyses how Allens tied its reputation to KPMG's whistleblower scandal through Project Magenta, identifying four crisis PR and ethics failures: failure to foresee the reputational risk, an investigation scoped to avoid uncomfortable findings, the chilling effect on future whistleblowers, and the use of legal professional privilege to withhold the report from parliament. Applies Wilkinson Group's Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework.
- ['Silence is expensive': How leaders should talk about AI](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/silence-is-expensive-ai-leadership-communication/) (17 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines how leaders should communicate with staff about AI disruption, arguing that silence is the most expensive form of vagueness. Covers what leaders should say, what staff should ask, and why honest two-way communication around AI is a crisis communications and psychological safety issue, not just a productivity question.
- [How to Choose a Crisis PR Agency in Australia](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/choosing-crisis-pr-agency-australia/) (12 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson distinguishes between the headcount model (large firm, roster of consultants, 24/7 hotline) and the depth model (boutique specialist, senior judgment, journalism backgrounds). Covers crisis simulation vs crisis preparedness, what happens after the workshop, the AI question, and five questions to ask before signing. Uses the Optus Triple Zero pattern of three crises in three years to illustrate the set-and-forget failure mode. Applies the Trust = Truth + Transparency + Traceability framework to agency selection.
- [The PM's Kylie backfire: Did you spot the bigger one?](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/albanese-kylie-joke-crisis-communications-failure/) (8 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson on the Albanese Kylie Minogue podcast incident, arguing the real crisis communications failure was not the joke itself but the media advisory team that approved the booking without anticipating the risk.
- [How to Choose a Crisis Management Consultant in Australia](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-management-consultant-australia/) (7 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson outlines four tests that separate a useful crisis management consultant from a credential on a website: a cool head under pressure, commitment not headcount, category-specific experience, and fluency alongside legal counsel. Uses the KPMG Australia whistleblower scandal as a case study in what happens when the strategy is to do the minimum. Draws on Roy Morgan data showing 75 per cent of brands have not recovered 24 months after a crisis.
- [Trust breaks down in a predictable order: Big challenge for Big Four](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/big-four-trust-crisis-reputation-management/) (6 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines the trust crisis engulfing KPMG, PwC, EY and Deloitte following the KPMG whistleblower scandal and parliamentary inquiry, and recommends a course of action for boards to mitigate government intervention before the firms lose the right to self-regulate.
- [A Meaningful Communications Plan](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/a-meaningful-communications-plan/) (3 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson argues a communications plan is a decision about reputation made in advance, and that most guides move too quickly to messages and spokesperson media training without establishing the strategic foundations first.
- [How to write a communications plan](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/how-to-write-a-communications-plan/) (3 July 2026): Peter Wilkinson on the discipline of building a communications plan before it is needed, covering the structural foundations that most guides skip in their rush to messages and channel selection.
- [Data Breach Crisis Communications: What Australian Companies Must Do](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/data-breach-crisis-communications-australia/) (30 June 2026): A senior counsel guide to data breach crisis communications Australia, covering the first 24 hours, notification sequencing under the Notifiable Data Breach scheme, what to say and what not to say, OAIC regulatory obligations, and how Wilkinson Group works alongside legal teams on cybersecurity crisis PR.
- [Jim Chalmers fraught Budget rollout](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/jim-chalmers-fraught-budget-rollout/) (1 June 2026): Peter Wilkinson examines what is hurting the Treasurer's Budget communication and the lessons for leaders.
- [Take it from the CBA: The truth is refreshing](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/take-it-from-the-cba-the-truth-is-refreshing/) (26 May 2026): A tip sheet on communicating employment uncertainty to staff, drawing on CBA CEO Matt Comyn's approach.
- [Coles' misleading 'Down Down', a Race to the Bottom](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/coles-misleading-down-down-a-race-to-the-bottom/) (20 May 2026): A reputation management perspective on misleading pricing claims.
- [Going back on your word is riskier in an AI world](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/going-back-on-your-word-is-riskier-in-an-ai-world/) (15 May 2026): On the Australian government's Capital Gains Tax reversal and the rising cost of broken promises.
- [Matt Vickers, economist/adviser, on the 2026 Federal Budget: Good/Bad?](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/matt-vickers-economist-adviser-on-the-2026-federal-budget-good-bad/) (14 May 2026): Four key questions on the 2026 Federal Budget.
- [Inflation is spiking. A budget is coming](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/inflation-is-spiking-a-budget-is-coming/) (30 April 2026): On separating fact from fear during economic uncertainty.
- [CommsCon catchup: Want to survive the AI revolution? Make sure you're in the 'trust' business](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/commscon-catchup-want-to-survive-the-ai-revolution-make-sure-youre-in-the-trust-business/) (14 April 2026): Why reputation management will matter more as AI reshapes communications.
- [As the cost of deception rises, the best strategy is truth](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/as-the-cost-of-deception-rises-the-best-strategy-is-truth/) (30 March 2026): On platform liability rulings in the US and what they signal for corporate honesty and the rising cost of misleading stakeholders in an AI world.
- [The Malinauskas comms lesson: Start with values](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/the-malinauskas-comms-lesson-start-with-values/) (23 March 2026): Lessons from SA Premier Peter Malinauskas' election win for values-led communications and what it means for leaders under public scrutiny.
- [AI will smash jobs in communications](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/ai-will-smash-jobs-in-communications/) (17 March 2026): How Peter Wilkinson is shaping Wilkinson Group for the AI era, and why human judgment in crisis and reputation management will matter more, not less.

More articles: [News archive](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/news/)

## Guides and Resources

- [What are the 5 Steps in Communication Planning?](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/communication-planning-steps/): Peter Wilkinson breaks down the five-stage communication planning process covering research and situation analysis, setting clear objectives, audience mapping, message building, and execution and evaluation.
- [How to Manage Corporate Reputation](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/how-to-manage-corporate-reputation/): A practical framework for managing corporate reputation, drawing on the KPMG Australia scandal. Covers the three pillars of building, protecting and recovering reputation, and why senior counsel matters before a crisis, not after it.
- [How to Write a Communications Plan](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/how-to-write-a-communications-plan/): A guide to writing a communication plan that holds up under pressure. Covers stakeholder mapping, the three-message framework, single-owner accountability, trust and traceability, and the discipline of testing before an incident occurs.
- [How to Manage a Reputation Crisis](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/manage-reputation-crisis/): How to manage a reputation crisis using the KPMG Australia 2026 whistleblower scandal. Covers the cost of delay, trust and traceability, personal reputation risks for CEOs and chairs, and why prevention beats recovery.
- [Common Crisis Communication Mistakes](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-communication-mistakes/): Five crisis communication mistakes leaders repeat under pressure: the reassurance trap, mistaking compliance for communication, the committee-run response, the untested spokesperson, and assuming the story ends when the headlines do.
- [The 5 Steps of Crisis Management](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-management-5-steps/): A guide to the five steps of crisis management covering detection, assessment, response, communication and recovery. Draws on the KPMG whistleblower scandal to show what happens when the sequence is skipped.
- [Crisis Management Plan for Small Business](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/crisis-management-plan-small-business/): Six essential steps for building an effective crisis management plan for small and privately owned businesses. Uses the Swillhouse Group case to show how quickly reputational damage spreads without a tested plan in place.
- [Reputation Management Strategy Australia](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/reputation-management-strategy-australia/): What makes a good reputation management strategy in Australia, using Optus as a case study in reputational failure. Covers building, protecting and recovering reputation, the trust formula, and why issues management must come before crisis response.
- [The Golden Hour of Crisis Response](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/golden-hour-crisis-response/): On the golden hour of crisis response: the first 60 to 90 minutes after a problem surfaces, and why preparation, speed and the three-message framework determine how a crisis is ultimately judged.

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- [Contact Wilkinson Group](https://www.wilkinson-group.com.au/#contact): Phone +61 414 383 433, Level 26/1 Bligh St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia.
- [Peter Wilkinson on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/petercwilkinson)
- [Peter Wilkinson on Substack](https://petercwilkinson.substack.com/): Crisis communications and reputation management commentary published by Peter Wilkinson.
- [Wilkinson Butler](https://www.wilkinsonbutler.com): Sister corporate affairs agency; offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane; Peter Wilkinson is Chairman.