The initial hours of any event are typically disorderly. This period is marked by uncertainty, when a prompt reaction can be crucial. A crisis communication plan is created to make initial communication decisions in advance, allowing your organization to respond promptly and adapt quickly in the event of a crisis. While each event is different, there are certain universally applicable crisis communication steps that can assist your organization in effectively handling most emergencies.
Build a crisis management team
These individuals are responsible for developing and implementing your crisis communication strategy. Each team member should be designated with a particular role, ranging from updating employees to fostering connections with media channels.
When considering the steps, it is necessary for a crisis management team to consist of senior executives, including the CEO, head of PR or CCO, heads of departments, and legal counsel.
If your in-house team lacks expertise in crisis management, it would be beneficial to consider hiring a consultant or agency that specializes in crisis communication and management.
To conclude, it is essential to always involve a subject matter expert when addressing a crisis. Additionally, depending on the nature of the crisis, it is crucial to include an employee with expertise in the relevant field.
After identifying a spokesperson as their initial task, a crisis communication team should proceed to the next step.
Name a spokesperson
During a crisis, having a spokesperson is crucial as this individual is responsible for representing your organization externally. They are the ones disseminating information about the company to the public, stakeholders, and media, and managing the flow of such information. It is imperative for a spokesperson to ensure the accurate and unambiguous delivery of your organization’s message.
This is the reason why it is important for a spokesperson to:
- Be trained
- Have good communication skills
- Be empathetic and genuine
- Have in-depth knowledge of the situation
- Be quick and resourceful
- Be authorized to make decisions (regarding the communication process)
An aforementioned crisis management team should always be in place for a spokesperson to rely on. This team, consisting of individuals chosen for their expertise and specialization in various aspects of the business, supports the spokesperson. They must be accessible around the clock during a crisis, in case the spokesperson requires guidance or information to be communicated to stakeholders.
Identify common crisis scenarios, i.e. anticipate a crisis
Although it is impossible to foresee the specific crisis that may occur in the future, there are certain crisis scenarios that have occurred frequently enough for you to develop your crisis communications strategy around. Furthermore, it is crucial to have a thorough understanding of your product or service in order to be able to anticipate any potential problems. In reality, no product or service is flawless and completely immune to malfunctioning.
One useful approach in this situation is to carry out a premortem analysis.
The premortem analysis, as explained by Harvard Business Review, is described as a hypothetical counterpart to a postmortem analysis in the medical field. Instead of occurring after a project has ended, the premortem analysis takes place at the beginning of a project to identify areas for improvement rather than dissecting what went wrong. Unlike a typical critique session where participants discuss potential problems, the premortem analysis assumes that the project has already failed and asks participants to determine the reasons behind its failure. The team’s objective is to generate logical explanations for the potential failure of the project.
In a premortem analysis, the first step involves identifying potential crisis scenarios and considering them as actual events. Following this, each scenario is carefully examined to determine the causes behind them. Every conceivable reason, whether reasonable or unlikely, is considered in order to understand the factors that contributed to the crisis. Finally, the information gathered is utilized to enhance and modify the crisis response plan.
If you had reacted immediately, would the crisis have been prevented from getting out of control? Ensure you have a prepared statement ready to be released as soon as you become aware of a problem, and assert your control over the situation.
The CEO should avoid speaking impulsively and exacerbating the situation. It is advisable to have well-prepared statements and ensure that any communication from the CEO goes through a crisis management team beforehand.
Did you fail to be transparent from the start and then got caught lying? Make sure to emphasize the importance of transparency in your response.
Including a premortem analysis in your crisis communications plan will condition you to identify the initial signs of trouble and potentially eliminate the necessity for a postmortem.
Obtain Feedback and Conduct Crisis Evaluation
Immediately after a crisis begins, it is crucial to conduct an assessment of your organization’s response, taking into account feedback from important audiences and media coverage. This feedback and coverage can provide valuable insights for refining messages and resolving any issues.
Conduct Public Education
Provide educational opportunities aimed at enhancing the public’s comprehension, endorsement, and readiness for forthcoming emergencies.
Monitor Events
Continuously monitor communication activities, such as media, social media, and responder interactions, in order to assess opportunities for enhancing both messages and the overall communication strategy.
To ensure an effective response using Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC), the most crucial step is planning. Developing and maintaining a crisis communication plan requires significant time and effort. However, it is important to note that the plan should not aim to provide all answers or make all decisions; instead, it should outline a process. Understanding the elements of a plan, including the necessary information and relevant questions, is crucial for the success of a response.
Common crisis types & crisis communications plan examples
There are certain crisis scenarios that occur frequently and deserve their own categories and examples. Having knowledge about these scenarios will assist in developing an efficient crisis communications plan.
Tech crisis
In our technology-driven society, it is impossible to ignore the significance of a technological crisis. Our daily business operations heavily rely on technology, making any malfunction or failure extremely disruptive. This is particularly true for software companies, who should remain vigilant against hardware and software issues.
Tech crisis communications plan example: Heathrow airport
In 2020, technical problems at London’s Heathrow caused flight disruptions, impacting the departure boards and self-check systems. As a result, passengers experienced extreme disorder, with some facing delayed flights, others missing their flights entirely, and overall, a lack of reliable flight information. In fact, any information passengers received often turned out to be incorrect.
British Airways acknowledged that the flight cancellations occurred due to both Heathrow’s technical problems and the disruption caused by Storm Dennis. Responding to a customer’s tweet, they acknowledged the IT issue at Heathrow Airport, which affected multiple airlines, and assured customers they were working closely with the airport to resolve the problem promptly and apologized for any inconvenience caused.
Our next common type of crisis is natural crises, which serve as examples of how natural occurrences like storms may require a crisis response.
Natural crisis
If your offices are situated in a region that is prone to extreme weather conditions, such as wildfires, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, and more, it is essential to be proactive and informed. It is crucial to consider weather conditions even during the construction of the offices to ensure their durability against natural disasters. In case a natural crisis occurs and renders your offices uninhabitable, it is necessary to have a contingency plan in place to continue your business operations.
Product recall
To effectively handle a potential product defect or safety concerns, it is imperative to prepare for such a situation. If the need arises, it is essential to remove your product from the market, considering the welfare of both your customers and your own company. Reacting promptly and addressing customers’ concerns while safeguarding the company’s image are highly crucial in such circumstances.
Product recall crisis communications plan example: Tylenol
The case of a cyanide-laced Tylenol in ‘82 is widely known. While it served as a lesson in effective crisis communication planning today, it was a challenging time for both Chicago citizens and Johnson & Johnson back then.
In 1982, seven individuals from the Chicago area lost their lives after consuming Tylenol capsules contaminated with cyanide. Officials from the FDA speculated that the perpetrator purchased Tylenol without a prescription, injected cyanide into the capsules, resealed the bottles, and stealthily returned them to the store shelves. The mystery of who committed these murders and their motive remains unsolved, potentially holding Tylenol solely responsible. Consequently, Johnson & Johnson, the parent company, would have also been implicated. However, in a costly decision, they withdrew all Tylenol products from the market to prevent further harm. Furthermore, they advised the public against using Tylenol and established a helpline for concerned customers seeking information and assistance. Ultimately, these actions led to regaining the public’s trust and reestablishing the brand’s reputation.
