21. Changes in Corporate Communication and Word Selection During and Following the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Analysis Based on the Earnings Calls of the 100 Largest S&P 500 Companies

As the COVID-19 pandemic evolved, executives became increasingly worried about the condition of the economy and their own firms’ perspectives. During the initial outbreak, it was only natural to be fearful and do as much damage control as possible, while during the following outbreaks and vaccine development, new unforeseen issues such as the great resignation and supply-chain challenges emerged requiring perseverance and problem-solving. The present research looks at the evolution of corporate communication in this period, particularly by analyzing the word choice and phrases used in yearly earnings calls of the top 100 companies in the S&P 500 for the fiscal years 2019, 2020, and 2021. The analysis aims to see what words entered and exited the vocabulary of such official calls during and after the pandemic. The study concludes that new words have indeed entered the vocabulary, while several words have increased significantly in usage. An increased use of words such as ‘flu’ or ‘virus’ was to be expected while words such as ‘meeting’ and ‘asymptomatic’ appeared likely due to unforeseen circumstances. Furthermore, there are clear examples of complete phrase changes caused by increased stress and danger during the pandemic. Also, particularly surprising is the ability of senior executives to remain calm and to mention the ‘coronavirus’ only 197 times in the 2020 calls which took place in the middle of the pandemic. While the pandemic changed the way companies work, such analyses of corporate communication provide insight into the topics that keep executives awake.