Caitlin Girouard on Taking Risks and Navigating Change
On the WomenHeard podcast, host Julie Hochheiser Ilkovich speaks with Caitlin Girouard, Head of Crisis Communication and Director of Corporate Communications at PayPal. Girouard had an unconventional path to her current role: She began her career in politics, eventually managing campaigns and leading communications for several prominent political figures. And the risks she took there ultimately set her up for her success today. The discussion explores what it means to take a chance on yourself and how to navigate the new corporate landscape in a post‑Covid world. Here are some of the topics you can expect to hear about.
FINDING OSMOSIS
Covid-19 has led to major shifts in the corporate world, and Girouard believes many challenges women face today stem from those changes. The biggest issue, she says, is finding an office policy that truly works. Remote work offers flexibility, helping women stay in the workforce while balancing other priorities—yet being in the office keeps you part of the conversation and strengthens the connection. Girouard feels both options have benefits but also create new disadvantages for women. She hopes that in the next 5 to 10 years, a new kind of osmosis will emerge, with a natural balance that supports everyone.
TAKING RISKS
Girouard doesn’t think she’d be where she is today if she hadn’t taken a risk at 23 and moved to New York City to pursue a new direction in her career. She had always imagined becoming a lawyer, but after working as a litigation paralegal, she realized that path no longer felt right. Drawn to the news instead, she applied for a political campaign that brought her to New York and launched her corporate communications journey. Girouard believes her political background shaped her for success in the role she’s in today, and she encourages young women to trust their instincts, take risks, and be a little impulsive.
NAVIGATING CHANGE
The world of crisis communication has evolved faster than most other areas. When Girouard first started in the early 2000s, she remembers physically cutting media clips out of newspapers. There was a set rhythm for press releases, and you could anticipate a crisis more easily—but all of that has shifted now. Media clipping is gone, media writers publish multiple stories a day, and there are countless types of reporters to consider. One of the most important things now, she says, is figuring out who the audience is and who’s actually reaching them. Anyone entering crisis communication should know how to gather accurate information, admit when they don’t have every answer, stop miscommunication before it spreads, and manage everything within a single news cycle—which is why gaining trust with the people who release and shape the news is so critical.
Thank you, Caitlin Girouard, for joining us! For the full interview, listen to NYWICI’s WomenHeard podcast.
