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BMA-Minnesota Welcomes You! Crisis Communications
BMA-Minnesota Welcomes You!
Crisis Communications
Upcoming Events• Feb. 14 – What’s New In Search Marketing?
• Mar. 13 – Using Video In On-line Marketing • April 17 – Top Marketing Trends
• May 15 – Give Yourself An On-line Makeover
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“They’re All Drunk in Singapore”
Paul OmodtPadilla Speer Beardsley
Jon AustinJ. Austin & Associates
“Why Organizations Need a Crisis Plan Before They Have a Crisis”
Or
“Don’t Be a Dinosaur”
The Real Title
Consider the Mighty Dinosaur
• Massive• Powerful
• Dominant• Awesome
Dead
Dinosaur, Inc. – A Flawed Model
• Slow• Cumbersome• Bad communications• Inability to anticipate and adapt
Dinosaur, Inc. – A Flawed Model
In other words, by the time its pea-brained consciousness receives, understands and
responds to a threat, it’s dead
Consider the Humble Mammal
• Fast• Adaptive• Aware• Slightly paranoid• Plans ahead*
*OK, we’re stretching here, but you get the point
Evolutionary Box Score…
70,000,000,000
0
Welcome to Jurassic Park…
An employee of your company – heavily
armed, wearing his uniform – takes
hostages at the elementary school and
is demanding access to the media to tell
the world about the integrity of your
operations and your efforts to silence
him.
In the next 20 minutes:
Things Start to Happen…CNN starts taking a live feed from a local TV station
50 Tweets go out to 20,000 followers, re-Tweeted to millions more
Three people are posting pictures from their phones to their Facebook pages, one guy is
streaming live video
MSNBC reports receiving an e-mail from a second employee that appears to corroborate
these allegations
A union trying to organize your employees announces a webcast press conference to detail
your “poor working conditions”
Fox News interviews an “expert” who says factories “are breeding grounds for violence”
Your web site crashes from the surge in hits
Your phone system crashes
CBS cuts into its daytime programming to broadcast live a caller on a cell phone claiming to
be inside the school
In Other News…Your phones are so jammed that even internal calls can’t get through
Because of vacation, travel and illness, your three senior managers are out
Your offices are mobbed by media, family members, reality show participants. The very nice lady at the front desk has locked herself in the bathroom.
Your lawyer is having lunch somewhere in town but she never turns on her cell phone and her secretary is gone;
The CEO has made an ironclad rule that – no matter what the situation – he must personally approve all comments to the media. Unfortunately, he and his family
are in Singapore and not in their hotel room.
In Short, You’re…
Dead
C’mon, Guys, THAT Couldn’t Really Happen…Could It?
So, the Question to Ask Is…
Are we dinosaurs or mammals?
If You’re Feeling a Little Jurassic…
Then it’s time to start working on a crisis communications plan
(That’s what the notepad is for)
Don’t Panic…
Develop, test, rehearse and follow a response plan that covers not just communications but every aspect of your operations.
“What Should Be Included In Your Crisis Management Plan?”
Excellent Question!
• Central coordination• Clearly defined roles• Guided by risk assessment• Redundancy• Regular test and review
Things That Keep You Up at Night
• Accidents, Incidents, Injuries
• Recalls
• Financial Issues
• Media or Government Investigations
• Loss of Facilities, Personnel, Capabilities
• Misbehavior/Malfeasance/Criminality
• Community-Wide Incidents
Speed Kills
• More than ever, the media –
traditional, social and digital
– is 24/7 and its appetite for
news is growing
• Because of this, you have to
be on-call and ready to
respond at all times
It Really Is a Global Village
• What happens in one part of the world is effectively instantly known everywhere. A story about your organization will reach all of your stakeholders.
• Remember, too, that not all stakeholders view things the same way.
Don't Guess…
Don’t speculate, theorize or
hypothesize
In a crisis situation, credibility is built and sustained by sticking
to what you know
Gather Facts
• The best way to counter rumor and gossip is to develop an effective fact-gathering mechanism:• A monitoring mechanism
for Internet, social and mainstream media
• Outside media monitoring agencies
• Contact with personnel on the frontlines
Share What You Know
Use all the tools at your disposal – regular meetings, e-mails, audio recordings,
intranets, etc. – to keep your employees, your board, families and other key
stakeholders informed
Been There, Done That…
Call on experienced counsel in developing crisis communications plans and for assistance during events
A Good Crisis Shouldn’t Be Wasted…
• For once, all of your stakeholders – customers, employees, shareholders, partners – are paying attention; what do you want to say to them?• Honest emotions – empathy, grief, anger, resolve• Facts• Sincere commitments to future actions• Openness
On Your Communications Team…
• Coordinator• Inbound “call answerers”• Outbound communicators• Writer(s)• Researchers• Administrator• Tech support
All This and Your Regular Job…
• “Rule #1: Fly the plane!”• Assigned roles• Specific duties• What to do with your senior executives?• The difference between being informed
and being a decision maker
Tell the Truth
The media and your other stakeholders
know when they’re not getting the full story from a company. Don't lie to them.
Ever.
LiesHalf-Truths
Fibs
You Can Run, But…
It's better to tell bad news yourself than let somebody else define the narrative
But if you're going to tell it, tell it all and make sure your facts are solid
You’re Playing Defense…
A crisis is almost never a “winnable”
event.
Quit pretending it is.
Know Your “Friends”
Beware of sweeps and politicians – including those
called “analysts,” “experts” and “consultants”
“What’s a 5-Step Process For Tackling A Crisis That I Use Today?”
• Planning• Practice• Teamwork• Execution• Adaptability
And a bonus…• Analysis
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So…In Conclusion…
• Be a mammal…• Move fast• Plan• Understand your environment• Be adaptable• Create a crisis communications plan
Homework Assignment
Chapter 1 of theNational Commission on
Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Ch1.pdf
Thank You
www.BMAMinnesota.org
