The Problem Of Crisis Communication Management

Information and the effectiveness of communication are key to the success (or the survival) of a business. For example, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 continues to have serious implications for the business.

This study conducted gives a good view on crisis communications within the work place. This type of communication is important to ease tension and allow for a positive working environment. Without companies being aware of positive crisis communications strategies, there would be a much greater risk involved. Knowing the proper tactics for conveying bad news makes your organization better.

A company always needs to issue information to another organization or a group of people it is imperative the company knows their audience. When information regarding a accident or disaster, it's important for the company know their audience. For instance, the San Esteban Mining Company needed to know how to respond to each of the audience (families, employees, and the stakeholders) in the case of the Chilean copper mine in South America. It was on Thursday, August 5, 2010, a shaft collapsed in the Chilean copper mine trapping 33 miners 2,300 feet below ground. Immediately a rescue

The individuals or groups that will be communicating inside and outside the organization during this crisis situation

Organizations bear economic, legal, and ethical obligations to provide useful information about the risks and benefits of their products, policies, and services. Failure to fulfill those obligations can be costly. Financial analyst estimate that 70% of a typical private firm’s assets are intangibles, like goodwill, that can be lost when communication fail. Public institutions’ reputations often depend on their ability to communicate (Fischhoff).

According to our textbook public relations plays a critical role during chaotic situations. It is of great importance to confront the unfavorable incidents to the public. Crisis communication is a four-step process consisting of: risk assessment, crisis communications planning, response, and recovery. Going back to the NIU shooting incident we can see the steps that were followed to cope with the aftermath. Assistant Vice President for Public Affairs said “the term crisis management is something of an oxymoron, implying as it does that events bringing sudden shock, panic, and chaos can submit to project “management.”Of course, it is imperative for us to have crisis plans in place and for those plans to be practiced on a regular basis (Guth and Marsh, pp.390). She was also awarded the Public Relations Society of America’s “Best of the Silver Anvil” (Guth and Marsh,

The media attention will focus on providing tips leading to arrest of the culprits, any useful information from the public that may assist in the investigations, informing the general public to be aware of the situation and hold back to allow authorities to perform their duties, calming the population down with truthful and sensible reporting rather than showing the gore and victims of the disaster.

Organizational behavior plays a vital role in the success of an institution. It is essential for a leader to be knowledgeable on organizational behavior and how to manage conflict. Often times, conflict arises from the absence of or poor communication. Social media has become one of the leading means of communication.

Communication is also very critical in the case of a catastrophic event. Thus, the first respondent need to be a good communicator for communication is an essential part in response to a catastrophic event (Pope, 2005). It is also the responsibility of the first respondent to have a practical plan to implement in case an emergency erupted following the catastrophic event. The aftermath of a catastrophic event is highly unpredictable and emergencies cannot be overlooked. It is, therefore, the

Each member should only communicate approved messages. The primary group of participants that should be informed about the crisis are internal stakeholders, such as students, faculty, staff, and trustees. Secondary groups would include parents, alumni, elected officials, and the media. The following lists these groups in notification priority and the specific person responsible for crisis communication:

Zaremba (2010) points out that “crisis is any unanticipated event, incident, situation, or development that has the potential to damage or destroy your organization’s reputation”. (P.234) This definition indicates two attributes of crisis: unexpectedness and destructiveness, so effective communication is crucial to manage a crisis. The Nuance Group, a successful management consulting company, with a reputation of experienced and highly educated consultants, was facing the crisis brought by its great “reputation”. As a consultancy, it’s their profession to market themselves. A glossy brochure with specific introduction of consultants’ information, which is the highlight of the company’s reputation, is a fabulous method to market

During a crisis, one of the roles of a leader is to create and sustain the organization 's credibility and trust among crisis stakeholders for example like management, employees, customers, suppliers, partners, communities, investors, media, and government. Depending on the crisis situation, a leader 's goal is to assist the organization in returning to productivity. Overall, it is important to protect and sustain the organization 's reputation, brand and value in the marketplace As a HR department, they have a ways to prevent and overcome the impact of crisis management. So one of the HR strategic roles is to focus on leadership qualities such as strategic thinking, communication, empowerment, trust and integrity, considering a succession planning for crisis management and others. For example like human resource functions that will be applied to the crisis management planning. According to the SHRM 2005 (Strategic human resource management) disaster survey report, 65% of HR professionals believe that their organizations are well or very well prepared to face the crisis or disaster. On the perceptions of employees, only 50% of them think that their organizations are well or very well prepared. 85% of HR professionals indicate their organizations have some form of a formal disaster preparedness plan, and 15% do not. Organization must create a plan to make sure

The company eBay Inc. is an American multinational Internet consumer-to-consumer corporation. Founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar in San Jose, California, it is now a multi-billion dollar business with operations localized in over thirty countries including China and India. It’s main enterprise is eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website that allows people and businesses to buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services internationally. Millions of collectibles, décor, appliances, computers, furnishings, equipment, domain names, vehicles, services, intangibles and other miscellaneous items are listed, bought, or sold daily on eBay. Anything can be auctioned on the site as long as it is not illegal and does not violate the eBay’s Prohibited and Restricted Items policy.

According to Lillibridge and Klukken (1978), crisis is an event or situation that cause " 地n upset in equilibrium at the failure of one's traditional problem-solving approach which results in disorganization, hopelessness, sadness, confusion, and panic" (62). In the face of crisis, there is an urgent need to swing to action and communication is the only vehicle that can convey this message to everyone concerned. When crisis occur, communication challenges becomes worsened because the

This report outlines the current crisis situation and provides a range of crisis communication strategies and methodologies that are suggested for use immediately.