Crisis planning is a priority
A malfunctioning thermostat causes a tumble drier to overheat, sparking a house fire. A mislabelled snack that inadvertently contains traces of peanut triggers a wave of allergic reactions from allergy sufferers. A defective component shows up in a car braking system, but not before it’s blamed for series of traffic accidents.
We’re all to a certain degree familiar with these types of news reports. Each piece usually balances hard information with what can often be mere speculation, and each fresh angle, as it emerges, is consumed avidly by an audience that’s keen to know more.
While journalists have long understood the power of negative headlines to maximise traffic to their content, it’s important to dig deeper to consider how each business at the heart of the story is responding to the crisis that’s just engulfed them.
Appliance makers focus on their supply chains when a sourced component fails. Food companies review their production processes to trace sources of contamination, and car businesses look to their engineering teams to rectify a part’s design fault.
The unmentioned dimension in this analysis is the vital importance of internal communications, not just in crisis management, but also in crisis planning.
In a world where access to news — whether credible or otherwise — is instantaneous, it’s all too easy for employees’ understanding to be formed around half truths and rumours.
The critical challenge here is that in these circumstances, many team members will be struggling to absorb what just happened, and that can lead to a range of negative emotions, from concern to fear — for their own future, and for that of the company.
This is where the IC function can come into its own.
Ensuring that there is clear dialogue between the ExCo, the crisis resolution team and the business’s message deliverers is key. With a robust platform in place, it’s possible to determine what to say and what not to say, how to share information, how to help people understand what has happened, and when and how to keep them updated as the situation changes.
As with many scenarios, the maxim “hope for the best, but plan for the worst” is an important one to remember.
By preparing proactively for the internal communications component of crisis management, an organisation puts itself in the best possible place to handle future issues responsibly and effectively. Ensuring that senior colleagues value the investment in time and resources to map IC scenarios alongside the other factors that are at the centre of recovery is a vital first step on that journey.
Learn more about how Brighter supports Australian businesses with their workforce communications at Brighter.com.au
