crisis situations

Crisis situations

Whatever the cause, crisis situations are always stressful.

Announcing the closure of a factory to employees then having to go through it all again for local or national press, is always going to be a difficult task.

And when there are redundancies involved, a director is hemmed in by shareholder pressure and employee anxiety. It is tempting to want to stay silent.

But silence in a crisis is a ticking time bomb. With the Internet and the explosion of social networking media, rumours and disinformation can spread like wildfire.

A director cannot afford for board members or the media to pick up on false or biased information.

And allowing the unions to dominate the media dialogue can be counterproductive. A carefully crafted message must be put together - for everyone’s benefit.

When the wrong information gets to the media it creates internal and external instability. This instability is caused by the gulf between the reality of the situation and the way it is being portrayed publicly.

The challenge in a crisis situation is to bridge the gap between internal and external audiences. Getting this right means an organisation can provide points of reference to help everyone understand the facts on the ground and to open new perspectives on ways in which the crisis can be resolved.

Knee-jerk reactions and improvisation are ill-advised. A spokesperson must be unemotional and in control of the facts in order to communicate the message calmly and with authority.