One of the most important components of crisis response is effective communications, but to whom should you be talking and what should you be saying? That depends on which stage your communications efforts are in: Initial Stage Primary Stage Recovery Stage Let’s take a look at communications in these three stages. Initial Stage Making a [...]
From the world’s best golf professional to a politician to the director of a local charity, personalities at the top of their profession can engage in behavior that can damage or destroy their reputation and that of their organizations. Situations like these are some of the most difficult a communicator can face because they inevitably [...]
A crisis communications plan organizes your team into neat, specific roles and responsibilities to facilitate rapid and accurate response. But ask anyone who has responded to a crisis, even a “small incident,” and they will tell you there are myriad administrative events and developments that fall outside those roles that can overwhelm the communications team. [...]
Bright lights switch on. Microphones and tape recorders are thrust at you. Harried reporters ask brusque questions. What kind of person voluntarily steps into such mayhem? If you are a member of a Crisis Communications Team that person might very well be you. Even if you aren’t going to face the bright lights and microphones, [...]
For a variety of reasons many people don’t like to write. Whether it’s the trauma of getting started, struggling to find the right words or conquering writer’s block, writing isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Introduce the pressure, fear, panic and uncertainty a crisis creates and you’ll understand why writing crisis response communications is so challenging. [...]
In the last article we discussed the role and responsibilities of the communications team leader. This article covers the duties of the communications analyst, the person who ensures the response is effective. An Important Crisis Management Role The analyst gathers and interprets data about the crisis from several sources to determine the effectiveness of the [...]
The first step in communicating about an event that places your organization’s reputation at risk is a thorough understanding of the roles and responsibilities required for a successful response. Depending on your organization’s mission and the type of situation you’re facing some of the concepts discussed in this article will be appropriate, others not. You’ll [...]
Just as a pilot needs accurate information to navigate through clouds a communicator needs accurate feedback to navigate through the fog of a crisis. For most crises, that information can be obtained through media monitoring. Media monitoring provides a look outside your organization to learn what people important to it – your stakeholders – are [...]
I wrote When the Balloon Goes Up: The Communicator’s Guide to Crisis Response primarily for public relations/communications professionals and students who need crisis-tested strategies and tactics. The book contains some theory but mostly nuts-and-bolts suggestions and ideas for building and implementing a crisis plan. It doesn’t matter what size your organization is, or what its [...]
While many newsmakers bemoan 24-hour news cycles, savvy crisis communicators can use the microscopic coverage of events to evaluate an organization’s response. Pay attention to what the organization says and does and shortly you will know what they are defending. If they are defending the CEO’s decision their words and actions will be radically different [...]
