COM 620 Crisis Communications and Management

1. COM 620Crisis Communications and Management

2. No organization is immune from crisis. Crisis occurs more frequently now than ever before, due to an increased reliance on technology, complex corporate structures, the industrial and information revolutions, and terrorism. The need for crisis managers and crisis communicators has never been greater.

3. Ulmer, et al., argue that a crisis presents not only a danger or threat, but also an opportunity. They reference the Chinese symbol for crisis, arguing that it contains elements of both danger and opportunity: 危机 Please see the Wikipedia entry that suggests that this usage of the Chinese is erroneous:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_translation_of_crisis.

4. Communicating in crisis is critical to crisis management success. Effective communication helps create positive images and turn danger into opportunity. We’ll talk more about crisis as an opportunity for renewal later in Week Four.

5. Crisis involves three critical elements: • Surprise • Threat (or perceived threat) to core business • Short response time

6. Key Definitions Crisis • “An organizational crisis is a low-probability, high-impact event that threatens the viability of the organization and is characterized by ambiguity of cause, effect, and means of resolution, as well as by a belief that decisions must be made swiftly” (Pearson & Clair, 1998, p. 60). • “An organizational crisis is a specific, unexpected, and non-routine event or series of events that create high levels of uncertainty and threaten or are perceived to threaten an organization’s high-priority goals” (Ulmer, et al., 2007, p. 7).

7. Key Definitions (cont’d) • Crisis management is the systematic effort of organizations to avoid organizational crises or to mitigate the effects of crises that do occur. • “Crisis communication concerns the processes whereby organizations create and exchange meanings among stakeholders regarding the risk of crisis, cause, blame responsibility, precautionary norms and crisis-induced changes in the organization and its relationship to stakeholders” (Seeger & Ulmer, 2001, p. 131).

8. Types of Crisis • Intentional vs. Unintentional Intentional crises are initiated by intentional acts designed to harm an organization. • Terrorism • Sabotage • Workplace Violence • Poor Employee Relationships • Poor Risk Management • Hostile Takeovers • Unethical Leadership

9. Unintentional crises are not caused by the intentional acts of people. Rather, they are unforeseeable or unavoidable. • Natural Disasters • Disease Outbreaks • Unforeseeable Technical Interactions (Systems Failure) • Product Failure • Downturns in the Economy

10. Sudden vs. Smoldering Crises Sudden Crisis:“A disruption in the company's business which occurs without warning and is likely to generate news coverage and may adversely impact our employees, offices, revenues and reputation.” –Institute for Crisis Management Smoldering Crisis: “Any serious business problem that is not generally known within or without the company, which may generate negative news coverage if or when it goes ‘public’ and could result in more than a predetermined amount in fines, penalties, legal damage awards, unbudgeted expenses and other costs.” –Institute for Crisis Management

11. Crisis Communication Demands • Managing Uncertainty • Responding to the Crisis • Resolving the Crisis • Learning from the Crisis

12. Every crisis contains uncertainty, typically regarding what happened, who is to blame, and who is affected. • Herein lies the great challenge for crisis communicators: Although the crisis situation is defined by uncertainty, stakeholders and the media want answers to questions, and they want them to be immediate and accurate.

13. Lessons on Managing Crisis Uncertainty • Organization members must accept that a crisis can start quickly and unexpectedly. • Organizations should not respond to crises with routine solutions. • Threat is perceptual. • Crisis communicators must communicate early and often following a crisis, regardless of whether they have critical information about the crisis. • Organizations should not purposely heighten the ambiguity of a crisis to deceive or distract the public.

14. Lessons on Managing Crisis Uncertainty (cont’d) • Be prepared to defend your interpretation of the evidence surrounding a crisis. • Without good intentions prior to a crisis, recovery is difficult or impossible. • If you believe you are not responsible for a crisis, you need to build a case for who is responsible and why. • Organizations need to prepare for uncertainty through simulations and training. • Crises challenge the way organizations think about and conduct their business.

15. Crisis leadership is a newer development in the field of crisis management, started notably by Ian Mitroff at USC. • Poor leadership during a crisis can make things worse, as many crisis events have demonstrated. • One key to successful crisis leadership is transparency, which builds trust, credibility, and stakeholder support.

16. Lessons on Effective Crisis Leadership • Effective leadership is critical to overcoming a crisis. • Leaders should be visible during a crisis. • Leaders should work to develop a positive company reputation during normal times to build a reservoir of goodwill. • Leaders should be open and honest following a crisis. • Leaders who manage crises successfully may create opportunities for renewal.

17. Lessons on Effective Crisis Leadership (cont’d) • Leaders should cooperate with stakeholders during a crisis and should work to build consensus. • Poor leadership can make a crisis much worse. • Leaders must adapt their leadership styles and contingencies during crises. • A virtuous response to a crisis by the organization’s leaders may be the most effective in generating support and renewal. • Leaders have specific communication obligations for managing and learning from crises.

18. Spokesperson Tips Suggestions for dealing with the media and other stakeholders during crisis: • Remain calm • Avoid speculation and don’t be baited by the media • Express concern for victims • Avoid “no comment” • Admit when you don’t have the answer, but try to find it

19. References • Pearson, C. M., & Clair, J. A. (1998). Reframing crisis management. Academy of Management Review, 23(1), 59-76. • Seeger, M. W., & Ulmer, R. R. (2001). Virtuous responses to organizational crisis: Aaron Feuerstein and Milt Cole. Journal of Business Ethics, 31, 369-376. • Ulmer, R. R., Sellnow, T. L., & Seeger, M. W. (2007). Effective crisis communication: Moving from crisis to opportunity. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.