Keeping Your Head in Times of Crisis

How to influence the outcome of a crisis situation.

"Crisis management" is a misnomer. It is quite impossible to manage a crisis. By its very nature, a crisis erupts unexpectedly and in a flash, rages out of control, taking on a life of its own. A crisis cannot be managed. One can, however, influence its outcome and the effect that it will have on an organization and its personnel.

The operative word is "influence." Public opinion can and must be influenced if an organization is to emerge from a crisis situation with a minimum of damage to its reputation. This is because the way a company is perceived of handling a crisis is just as important as how it actually handles the crisis. Handled badly, a crisis can linger on . . . and on . . . and on . . . and on . . . and on.

Every manager, and every employee should know what to do in an emergency. Here is the order of priorities:

Ensure the health and safety of customers and employees.
Prevent destruction of other peoples' property.
Prevent further destruction of company property.
Assure the public that the company is still in business.
Correct problems and prevent future occurrences.
Before anything else, the worker with highest authority on site must make sure that everyone is safe. Everything else is secondary. Get those emergency services on the scene. They will take care of the first three priorities. Their job is to ensure health and safety of people there, and to prevent further destruction to the organization's -- and neighbors' -- property.

So, the drill is (in this order):

Make sure everyone is out of immediate danger.
Call emergency services (chances are someone else nearby has already done that).
Call the company person designated as first contact.
Tend to the injured.
Let emergency services do their job.
Don't be distracted by the news media.
Remain authoritative and in charge until relieved by a superior, or a member of the crisis team.
Once headquarters learns that an emergency situation exists, the crisis team should be quickly assembled. The team's job is to assess the situation and the possibility of further damage to physical plant, as well as to the mental and emotional well-being of customers and employees directly affected by the emergency. It must also plan and coordinate logistics for taking care of casualties and meeting their psychological needs in the time of heavy stress.

The team also provides information to the public, while it simultaneously protects the information flow so that rumors and untruths are not reported as fact. Candid, timely information is the only thing that will diffuse rumors. If the news media cannot get answers to their questions from management, they will seek the information elsewhere -- from employees, from eyewitnesses, from other reporters, from anybody they can think of. The ultimate validation of proper information dissemination is when everybody else confirms what the company has been telling the news media.

Questions that need to be answered:

What happened?
When did it happen?
Who was responsible?
Who was affected?
Were there any injuries?
What was the cause?
What went wrong?
How much damage occurred?
What is the cost of the damage?
Is more damage possible or expected?
What does the company plan to do about it?
When will more information be available?
"Speak with one clear voice."

The designated spokesperson will speak for everyone. As the emergency diminishes, the spokesperson's role can be assigned to someone else. But at least in the initial stages of the emergency, all inquiries and questions -- from the news media or otherwise -- must be referred to the spokesperson. It is important that the spokesperson be perceived as unflappable, confident (but not arrogant), and trustworthy. Someone who perspires profusely is not a good candidate.

The news media needs to be fed. And their nourishment consists of "the facts and the story." Because crises and emergencies are such gripping events, they make good copy. Tragedy ranks right up there in the list of stories most likely to lead off the evening news, or dominate the headlines in the early morning newspaper. So expect the news media to come swarming like sharks in a feeding frenzy.

Company employees must be instructed never to speculate on what might have caused the emergency. The facts must speak for themselves -- and they will. Communication should clarify rather than offer speculation. No one, except the designated spokesperson should comment on what may have caused the emergency.

It's possible that the crisis occurred because of something the organization did, or did not do. The consequence of this is the existence of "bad news." Management typically exhibits a siege mentality when they find out about the bad news, but public relations counsel should be firm in insisting that all bad news be given out.

The overriding rule is to get all of the bad news out first, quickly, and at the same time. Don't try to hide information, mistakes, bad decisions, legal problems, or anything else that tends to make companies and individuals look bad. Tell it all, as soon as possible. Take the lumps now, all at one time, instead of having the company's problems dribble out over a number of weeks, creating even further damage to its reputation.

Through it all, every company representative must exhibit their concern and compassion for the situation and those affected, their respect for -- and cooperation with -- those trying to help, sensitivity to the emotional stress being suffered, and a commitment to find out what went wrong, to admit mistakes and to make sure it never happens again.