Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003 Crisis Communications Chapter 12 Public Relations: A Values-Driven Approach This multimedia product and its contents are

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003

Crisis Communicatio

nsChapter 12

Public Relations:A Values-Driven

Approach

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A New “Day of Infamy” Approximately 3,000

died in the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

That day should also be remembered for what went right.

Crisis plans played a critical role.


September 11, 2001 The first job was to

assess the human toll. Letting key

stakeholders know what was happening was another priority.

Even in the face of crises, life goes on.


Crises Can Happen to Anyone Just when you think: “it

can’t happen here...” ...it does.


The Lessons of Dallas Dallas police shouldn’t

be faulted for the death of President Kennedy.

They should be blamed for the murder of JFK’s accused assassin.

Key lesson: The DPD forgot its mission during the crisis.


Crisis Planning

Crisis planning has become an imperative for 21st century organizations.

Surveys: Many organizations are not adequately prepared.


“Problem” or “Crisis”? Problems:

commonplace; predictable; quickly resolved; and may go unnoticed.

Crises: less predictable; time-consuming; costly; and bring unwanted public attention.


Crises Run the Risk of: escalating in intensity. falling under close

scrutiny. interfering with

operations. jeopardizing image. damaging the bottom

line.


A Crisis:

is a major event that has potentially negative results.

may significantly damage an organization and its employees, products, services, financial condition, and reputation.

The Warning Stage

Warning Stage


Point of No Return

Warning Stage

Point of No Return


Cleanup Phase

Warning Stage

Point of No Return

Cleanup Phase Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003

Things Return to Normal...But Have We Learned

Anything?Warning Stage

Things Return to Normal

Point of No Return

Cleanup Phase Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003


Crises Can Bring Opportunity

Heroes are born. Change is accelerated. Latent problems are fixed. People can be changed. New strategies evolve. Early warning systems develop. New competitive edges appear.


Step One:Risk Assessment Involves identification of

threats. Seeks to eliminate or

minimize those threats. Is where values play an

important role. Can be done by a

consultant or a Crisis Planning Team.

The Crisis Plotting Grid

Crisis Impact Value (CIV)

Crisis Probability Factor (CPF)

0

10

0% 100%

High/High

(red zone)

Low/High

(gray zone)

High/Low

(amber zone)

Low/Low

(green zone)



Step Two:Developing The Plan1Develop a precise

definition of what constitutes a crisis.

2Develop a Crisis Management Team (CMT).

3 Identify the stakeholders.


Step Two:Developing The Plan4Identify the Emergency

Operations Center (EOC).

5 Identify the Media Information Center (MIC).

6Train employees.


Step Three:Response This is the stage in

which the crisis plan is executed.

Like any other plan, a crisis communications plan must be flexible.


Step Four:Recovery Were our actions

consistent with our values?

What aspects of the crisis did we anticipate?

What aspects of the crisis did we fail to anticipate?

How well did our employees perform?


Step Four:Recovery What are the lingering

effects of the crisis? Have stakeholders’

views of us changed? What actions should we

take next?


Crisis Planning Ethics Organizations have an

ethical responsibility to plan for the worst.

Solving the crisis isn’t enough—organizations must communicate with important publics during crises.

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Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003 Crisis Communications Chapter 12 Public Relations: A Values-Driven Approach This multimedia product and its contents are