“We’ve Always Been Lucky” Is Not a Crisis Communication Plan
This year, the old adage “April showers bring May flowers” should really read “April tornados breed agitated Texans.” In the past two weeks the Dallas-Fort Worth area has been assaulted by spring storms, the likes of which we don’t often experience. We closed the office early on Tuesday of last week under massive tornado warnings. Employees were forced to take cover later that night to dodge the path of a twister. Early on, one of the employees didn’t realize the seriousness of the situation because she couldn’t hear the sirens going off. But fortunately, the City of North Richland Hills has a fabulous crisis communication plan; city officials contacted residents by phone and left automated messages warning everyone to get to safety. Fortunately, the tornado did not carry Rachel away to the Land of Oz, but thanks to back-up communication from her city, she was prepared just in case.
Typical? Hardly.
According to the research done in the aftermaths of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, FedEx serves as a model in crisis communication. They brought together a team of managers from several departments to coordinate both internal and external messages during the storms. They used e-mail, an internal satellite TV network, press releases to the public, Web posts, and telephone hotlines to update employees and customers alike and to keep operations running.
They also set up another stream of communication to take care of their affected staff in the area: what benefits they could access, how to get their paychecks cashed, how to access relief funds collected. Executives visited the areas to have face-to-face time with employees.
Specifically, getting information out fast helps you take care of people’s immediate needs, address the rumors and concerns, and maintain morale. Delay can turn crises into disasters. And if the delay doesn’t kill, maim, or destroy, at the very least, it infuriates people. If you have a plan, you’ll use it. If you don’t, people reap the consequences of poor planning.
What are your plans to communicate in the midst of crisis—at home, work, or play? Success stories, anyone?
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