The landslide election of Barack Obama as the 44^th President of the United States was a watershed moment in American history – and one that demonstrates just how radically the communications paradigm has shifted in 2008. The rules are changing before our very eyes. Americans have voiced their frustration with business as usual and the bitter partisanship that was beginning to define 21^st Century politics. They are hungry for answers to our most pressing problems, no matter who they come from – and they expect them in short order. 

What does all of this mean for business? It means that a newly-empowered President and Congress will be eager to identify villains that justify their reforms. It means that the plaintiff-dominated blogosphere, which is poised to replace traditional media before Obama’s first term is up, will be all the more aggressive. It means that regulators and attorneys generals who are eager to renew waning watchdog credentials will be lobbing more darts at new targets. And it means that companies are going to have to start thinking differently about their approach communicating with all of their key constituencies.

In a post-partisan political environment, corporate messaging needs to be more solution-oriented and less ideologically-driven than it has been in the past. This is a time for publically-articulated leadership that comes in the form of fresh ideas, compromise, and groundbreaking policies that offer concrete solutions to concrete problems. Whether the issue is skyrocketing executive compensation, a windfall profits tax on oil companies to pay for renewable energy programs, or negotiated prescription drug prices, solutions are coming. And if companies don’t offer them themselves, politicians, regulators, and bloggers will fill the vacuum.