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Words Matter: Crisis Communications and the Value of Preparedness
By Chris Lukach, APR
Published in Public Risk, February 2012
“Unconditional support” – a simple, two-word phrase that also may be the runaway recipient of 2011’s “Most Famous Last Words” prize.
Faced with allegations that members of his administration had covered up accusations of sexual abuse, Penn State University President Graham Spanier issued a statement that, among other things, expressed “unconditional support” for the two administrators. Did he really mean to imply that his support for his executives overshadowed the protection of children?
We may never know what was in Spanier’s brain when his team issued this statement … or if they were even “his” words. But the careless inclusion did much more than he ever could have intended. It established a theme of insularity — that, culturally, self-preservation was paramount. With his statement the university’s highest ranking administrator fueled a perception that highest priority in combating the crisis was protecting the university’s own. It fed the widespread perception of impropriety, and may ultimately have contributed to Spanier’s downfall.
No matter what may ultimately happen to the Penn State officials in the court of law, these simple words dealt a serious blow to the university’s battle in the court of public opinion. The university will be combating this perception in virtually every aspect of its operation for months, if not years, to come.
Most organizations will not endure a crisis of Sandusky-esque proportions. But many will experience crises or serious issues of other kinds: fire, flood or other disasters; malfeasance or criminal activity on the part of an employee; injuries or deaths; even unfounded rumors that have the potential to damage an organizations reputation — and, thereby, its ability to operate or its financial security.
In every crisis situation, words matter; the first words often matter the most. Arguably the most important component of responding to crises is the initial response, which establishes the tone of your organization’s response all the way through its ultimate resolution.
Preparing statements in advance is just one component of crisis communications planning, a process that is too often overlooked and usually lacks sufficient investment from the organization.
Crisis Communications and Public Risk Management …
Because the practice of public relations relies on the often intangible link between reputation and bottom line, communicating a hard-dollar return on investment for preparedness is a persistent challenge. How do you quantify the value of proper communications? How do you assign a dollar-figure loss to insufficient communications?
Increasingly, incidents such as Penn State (and myriad high-profile crises before it) demonstrate and prove just how important an initial response and consistent communications with key audiences has become. Improper initial communications affects the credibility of your leadership (and, in turn, their ability to lead), can stimulate new lawsuits and legal challenges, and can ultimately alienate your advocates and the communities you serve.
Accordingly, the risk-management and crisis communications functions are proving to be inseparable. From the perspective of a crisis communicator, successful incident communications cannot exist without collaboration between these functions; at the same time, intelligent communications can lighten the load of the risk managers and the legal counsel.
Crisis Communication in Today’s Media Climate …
Another reason that crisis communications demands a seat at the emergency response table is the rapidly changing, near-instantaneous media climate. In recent years, the communications climate has been forever and irreparably changed by both the demands of the 24-hour news cycle and the rise of social media. This, primarily, in two ways:
First, the speed with which a thoughtful response to crises is needed. Just 10 years ago, crisis communications preparedness plans that my company — Anne Klein Communications Group — prepared for clients guided the communications response through the first day; 5 years ago, the first several hours; today, the first hour, if not the first 15 minutes. Why? The 24-hour news cycle and social media demand faster-than-ever responses. And if your organization isn’t prepared to establish a tone, someone else will do it for you: employees, antagonists, or the media itself. Nature abhors a vacuum.
At the same time, social media has become the great equalizer. Everyone with access to the Internet — including your organization — is given equal opportunity and position, and rumors and information spread at the speed of megabytes per second. This means that for your organization to be properly represented, you must be among the first to speak and do so with thoughtful, safe messaging. This, without proper investment in crisis preparedness, is risky and challenging.
Getting Started …
At our consultancy, we have a saying: “A crisis may be unexpected, but it should never come as a surprise.”
Does your organization have a crisis communications plan that complements your organizational crisis response plan? Do you review it and update it annually? Are the key people in your organization prepared to respond to social media rumors, or if the media call asking about the major problem that just surfaced? (You know which one I’m talking about — the one that keeps you awake at night, worrying!)
If you answer “yes” to those questions, “bravo!” If not, here are six helpful steps to get you started on crisis communications planning.
- Outline all of your key audiences. When crises strike, we tend to focus on interacting with the media, but so many other audiences who can actually impact your ability to operate or your bottom line. Those audiences include your staff, community members, social media commentators, volunteers, and so many more. List steps that can be taken to build trust among these audiences even before a critical event occurs.
- List every conceivable kind of crisis. If you currently have an operational crisis plan, use the scenarios covered in the operational plan as a jumping off point. Your list may turn out to be 100+ scenarios or far fewer; every organization is unique. Determine who within your organization will be the official spokespersons and how they will respond to the media and other key audiences should any of these incidents occur.
- Develop key messages and talking points for each potential incident. When responding to the media, deliver your key message up front before discussing anything else. Key messages force you to address situations from a positive standpoint, rather than a negative and defensive standpoint. “Sticking to your messages” also limits the risk of gaffes or “off-the-cuff” remarks, a la “unconditional support.”
- Along with your organization’s legal team, develop a pre-approved list of the statements and information you can provide to the media, bypassing the need to clear every word while the crisis is actually underway.
- Audit and understand your organization’s social media resources. Are you confident that, should a crisis strike, someone on the emergency response team will have the access and know-how to put social media to work for you? If not, now is the time to get your organization in that position.
In the realm of public risk management, social media should be assessed not only for its risks and vulnerabilities, but for its benefits. In virtually every public disaster of late — floods, earthquakes, hurricanes — local governments and nonprofits have harnessed the power and accessibility of social media to coordinate disaster relief efforts and direct volunteer resources.
As we often tell clients: The day the crisis strikes is not the day to learn how to use Twitter. Invest in creating and populating your social media channels, and build an audience. Important messages can spread instantly with even the smallest group of advocates and supporters already on plugged into your organization.
- During disaster or crisis training drills, be sure to include a communications component involving media and other key audiences. Drills are essential. Once you have a plan, you must try it out to see if it works and change what doesn’t. Drills also are the perfect opportunity for designated spokespersons to practice and sharpen response skills.
Because these steps touch on a number of functions within your organization, putting these steps into action require a broader commitment than just that of risk managers and communicators. Successful crisis preparedness requires a top-down commitment that the investment of time and resources has merit and value.
Perhaps supporting the preparedness function can be the most effective form of “unconditional support” your administrators can offer.
Christopher Lukach, APR, is Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Anne Klein Communications Group, LLC, a public relations consultancy specializing in issue and crisis preparedness and response.
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