(June 27, 2008) — The tragedy at Atlantis Plastics Inc. in Henderson, Ky., serves as an unfortunate reminder that a disaster or crisis situation can strike at any time, without warning. Sadly, the Atlantis crisis involved the most unfortunate scenario: the loss of life.
There are dozens of situations that can trigger a crisis situation. Fires, strikes, natural disasters, explosions, chemical spills and manufacturing accidents can threaten a firm's stability and even its survivability.
Your ability to react to a crisis effectively can have an immense impact on the future of your company and the perception of stakeholders, customers, suppliers, the media and the community at large.
A sound crisis communications plan prepares you to deal with potential disasters. It provides a map to get you through a situation, while minimizing potential damage.
Unfortunately, few companies acknowledge their risk and invest the resources necessary to develop a plan.
Getting started
Work with your communications team to outline a crisis-response protocol. Get the necessary resources aligned. Work through possible contingencies and conduct a crisis audit.
The team should include the chief executive officer, department managers, public relations people, legal representatives, security and human resources personnel.
Identify the audiences you will need to address and how you will do it — face-to-face, telephone, electronically, etc.
Establish time frames for communicating with your stakeholders and audiences. Proactive communication is essential.
Anticipate the most common questions and prepare responses in advance. Those responses can then be modified based on the nature of the crisis or situation.
Work with the media
Always address the media in a proactive manner. Never provide a “no comment” response in a crisis. That will imply you have something to hide or are not in control of the situation.
Share what you know and let them know you'll provide more information as soon as it is available. Always be completely truthful with the press. And don't speculate.
Project a calm and in-control image. Your demeanor can directly affect public perception of the situation and your company.
Being well-prepared for a crisis can reduce the negative effects exponentially. Don't wait for that unexpected disaster.
Scheibel is a principal with Scheibel Halaska Inc., a Milwaukee public relations firm.
