1. Communicating
in a crisis
march 16 - 20, 2015
When developing crisis management plans, one
of the most important elements is how to commu-
nicate during an incident. Whatever procedures
you have set up – telephone trees, automated
systems or pre-recorded announcements on an
incident line – your plans should include a method
of two-way communication, allowing employees to
confirm they are safe.
As an organisation you firstly need to be able to speedily alert
employees to an incident – such as an armed robbery at a branch,
failure of the company’s computer network or a fire at head office -
and, secondly, keep them updated on developments so they are
not forced to rely on external sources like the internet or TV news.
But your employees are only one of the audiences who need to be
considered. You also need to communicate with customers,
proactively informing them of the situation so they don’t hear the
news second hand and allaying their concerns about your ability to
provide goods or services.
Then there are your key suppliers, any partners and other stake-
holders who must be informed of any incident and its probable
impact.
As well as establishing clear crisis communication procedures,
organisations should consider the way they plan to communicate to
prevent negative public perception of the company’s response,
which can lead to untold reputational damage. For example, in what
must surely rank as one of the most public communications gaffes
in recent times, Tony Hayward, chief executive of BP at the time of
the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that killed 11 workers, notoriously
remarked, “I’d like my life back.”
TM

2. Resilience Guard GmbH, Kreuzplatz 2, CH-8032 Zürich, Switzerland
T +41 (0) 44 266 10 62, F +41 (0) 44 266 10 62, E info@resilienceguard.ch
www.resilienceguard.ch
One mistake many firms unwittingly make is to task their
lawyer with being the company spokesperson during a crisis
precisely because they are scared of making a hash of
things. This can backfire badly, particularly in situations that
involve loss of life, giving the impression that the company is
defensive, has something to hide and is more concerned
about the possibility of legal action than the welfare of its
employees.
So think carefully about who will be responsible for dealing
with the media, concerned employees and grieving relatives
and how your message will come across. Some companies
mistakenly assume that just because their senior executives
have reached the positions they have that they will instinc-
tively be good communicators but this is by no means
always the case. Seriously consider media training for those
who might be tasked with communicating in a crisis. Your
nominated spokespeople need to rehearse so they do not
have to learn how to respond to sometimes hostile question-
ing for the first time in a real-life crisis.
AirAsia chief executive Tony Fernandes got it absolutely right
as the story of the disappearance of flight QZ8501 to
Indonesia unfolded. Instead of being pictured on TV news in
a plush executive office (ivory tower) he was recorded at the
airport in Surbaya among the throng of desperately worried
relatives of the 155 passengers on board.
Wearing an ID card on a lanyard around his neck (just like his
employees) and clearly speaking from the heart, rather than
a pre-prepared press statement, he said, “We are very
devastated by what's happened, it's unbelievable. Our
concern right now is for the relatives and for the next of kin -
there is nothing more important to us, for our crew's family,
and for the passengers' families.”
Later tweeting, "This is my worst nightmare," all his actions
showed that he and his employees were part of one big
family and that they and the passengers’ relatives were ‘all in
it together’.
Demonstrating both preparedness and compassion, AirAsia
responded promptly to the terrible tragedy, mobilising a
support team to help take care of relatives' immediate
needs, including accommodation and travel arrangements.
Contrast this corporate behaviour with that of BP’s Tony
Hayward, who was vilified for a series of ill-timed comments
including the claim that the largest marine oil spill in history, a
tragedy for both the workers killed and sea life affected, was
“relatively tiny” compared with the “very big ocean”. Should
your business be caught up in a disaster, which company’s
approach would you prefer to emulate?
About the author
John Zeppos FBCI is managing parter of Resilience Guard
GmbH based in Zurich, Switzerland.
John.zeppos@resilienceguard.ch
www.resilienceguard.ch
TM