The year 2021 was supposed to be one of positive change. Or so we thought. The year delivered large doses of frustrating virus protocols and political turmoil along with hefty doses of mistrust, disinformation and reputational gaffes. Classic PR blunders continued to generate headlines where leaders failed to learn from history. Here are a few cautionary tales for business leaders as we look to the new year.

A textbook response is not always enough. At least 88 people were killed and many more injured in the early morning hours of December 11, 2021 after tornadoes blasted through western Kentucky and southern Illinois. Among the victims were six Amazon warehouse employees in Edwardsville, Ill. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was preoccupied with the launch of one of his BlueOrigin rockets and finally issued a generic statement Saturday evening. An Amazon spokeswoman had earlier issued a textbook statement that fell far short on the empathy scale. Statements of “thoughts and prayers” are expected, but what stakeholders need to hear in a disaster are true compassion and specifics about what the company is doing to help.

What you say can and will be used against you. After the same tornado, a spokesman from candlemaker Mayfield Consumer Products denied an accusation that employees were told that they would be fired if they left during the storm. A newly filed class action lawsuit alleges “flagrant indifference” and that the company ordered workers to stay on the job despite storm warnings.

Changing your name won’t clean up a bad reputation. Amidst far-reaching new whistleblower allegations, Facebook restructured and created a new parent company called Meta. Whatever they call themselves, though, the company continues to deny and deflect rather than face self-inflicted problems head-on and take steps to rebuild trust. Instead, CEO Mark Zuckerberg stubbornly sticks to a strategy of tone-deaf resistance and indifference.

Address rumors and incorrect information head-on. Quickly. Lies, speculation and rumors move at lightspeed and if not met quickly with facts and transparency, they will take root and become difficult to overcome. Leaders must act quickly to share facts as a crisis unfolds or risk losing control of the narrative to adversaries. You will be forgiven a few missteps in the name of transparency, but if stakeholders believe you are stonewalling, they can turn against you, often publicly.

Victim blaming never works. The truth will come out, one way or another. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski faced angry backlash and calls for his resignation after making text comments in a text message to Chicago’s mayor that appeared to blame grieving parents for the shooting deaths of two children. Kempczinski’s callous remarks were uncovered by an activist who filed a public information request.

These are just a few lessons that leaders were offered this year. Let us not lose the learnings in 2022.