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In today's environment, crisis communication plans and strategies have never before been so critical. We can't just rely on what's in place, because we may not have those tools available for contacting employees, customers and other constituents. We need a plan that will help use ensure we can relay information in a timely manner and for how we will deal with the media, if that is an issue. You may find this week's articles valuable toward putting that plan in place.

Here's what not to do when communicating about a crisis. (Item #1) Here's what one company learned about crisis communication from a tragic situation. (Item #2) A crisis communication plan is a type of insurance policy for the long-term health of an organization. (Item #3)

In the event of a crisis or a security breach, the media will come calling; here's how you can make them allies, not antagonists. (Item #4) Your senior management team has their heads in the sand when it comes to crisis communication planning; how do you get them to listen? (Item #5) You can't handle a crisis well if you don't have the tools in place. (Item #6)

As always, we look forward to hearing about your concerns with regards to business continuity. If you have a topic you'd like to see covered, please email me at [email protected]

Best Regards,

Bob Mellinger
President
Attainium Corp

Quote of the Week

"If you don't have a crisis communication plan, you have a disaster waiting to happen."
- Jerry Brown, Corporate Advocates LLC -

Articles

1. The Biggest Mistakes in Crisis Communications
All businesses are vulnerable to crises. You can't serve any population without being subjected to situations involving lawsuits, accusations of impropriety, sudden changes in company ownership or management, and other volatile situations on which your audiences -- and the media that serves them -- often focus. The examples given of inappropriate crisis communications policies, culled from real-life situations, will provide a tongue-in-cheek guide about what NOT to do when your organization is faced with a crisis.
http://www.hodu.com/crisis-management.2.shtml

2. Crisis communication strategies that work
While the author was working as a public information officer for an Ohio utility company, the unthinkable happened. A nine year old boy stepped behind a chain link fence on a bridge under construction and touched a decades-old street light standard. Within seconds, a young life was snuffed out. This may not happen to you, but almost anything can. Here are some strategies to guide your communication efforts.
http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Sites/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=9123097AE12B457E8BFAE71123CF6C9E&SiteID=1024D4F726624F1A8D0FDDA4AD1065AA

3. How Crisis Communication Plans Work
The success of any business, utility or organization rests firmly on its reputation. But that reputation can be destroyed by one poorly handled crisis. Crises can cost organizations millions of dollars to repair or can potentially put them out of business for good. Crisis communication is a critical part of any crisis management plan.
http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-crisis-communication-plans-work.htm

4. Crisis Communication: How To Stay Cool on the Hot Seat
When something really bad happens, such as a natural disaster that forces a company to evacuate headquarters or a security breach that results in lost or stolen data, the media will come calling. How organizations deal with the blitz could affect the long-term impact of the crisis. Here are some things organizations should and shouldn't do when dealing with the media after a security incident or business-interrupting event.
http://www.csoonline.com/article/221301/Crisis_Communication_How_To_Stay_Cool_on_the_Hot_Seat

5. How to get senior management to take notice of your crisis communication plan
It's not easy to get senior management to actively support crisis communication plans. Most of them don't want to know about crises. They know the chance of being caught up in a crisis is tiny and they don't want to take time away from their daily work priorities to deal with something that just might happen one day, and then again, it might not. And crisis preparation costs money in staff time, in equipment and other resources.
http://www.cuttingedgepr.com/articles/senior-management-notice-crisis-plan.asp

6. Crisis communications - readiness checklist
Al Czarnecki's top ten items that should be in place for crisis communications prior to an incident.
http://www.continuitycentral.com/feature0517.htm